The following article mentions the operating system rationalization
that HP planned, converging to Linux, NT and Unix.

Since then, MPE has beeen EOLed and Tru64 unix pronounced as an "organ
donor". It's doubftul that VMS and NSK are what attracted HP to CPQ.

   http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1003-200-7071077.html
   HP to have merger map in 100 days -  Tech News -  CNET.com

   HP to have merger map in 100 days
   By Michael Kanellos

   Staff Writer, CNET News.com
   September 5, 2001, 5:15 p.m. PT

  "Like a newly inaugurated president, the new Hewlett-Packard is giving
   itself 100 days to flesh out its strategic vision.

   Jim McDonnell, vice president of worldwide marketing for the business
   customer unit at HP, said Wednesday that the transition team charged
   with overseeing HP's acquisition of Compaq Computer will try to
   formalize a strategy for how the new company will operate in
   relatively short order.

   "Within 100 days, we should have a very, very solid plan," he said.
   "We believe we can combine the strengths of the two companies and
   discard the weaknesses."

   The need for speed grows partly out of concerns over the gargantuan
   task of combining the two companies, which have combined annual
   revenue of approximately $87 billion and many overlapping departments.

   Analysts, industry executives and others have said the inordinate
   amount of time Compaq took to formalize its acquisition of Digital
   Equipment is one of the principal reasons for the company's decline
   since 1998.

   In fact, the plan, which will only be shared internally, will likely
   be finished well before regulators approve the merger, a process that
   takes about six to eight months. Webb McKinney, vice president of HP's
   computing group, and Jeff Clarke, Compaq's chief financial officer,
   are heading up the integration team.

   HP's transition plan will have to tackle a number of issues. Because
   of the merger, HP finds itself responsible for supporting multiple
   server operating systems, for example: Linux, Windows NT, OpenVMS,
   HP-UX and Compaq's own version of Unix, among others.

   Eventually, HP will converge toward Linux, NT and Unix, according to
   McDonnell. The challenge will lie in coming up with a product road map
   that will push customers toward a more streamlined OS portfolio
   without alienating them.

   The transition plan will also likely include internal product road
   maps, plans for combining different departments and plans for
   explaining how the merger will benefit large corporate customers, he
   said.

   The plan, however, won't look into issues such as pricing,
   technological cooperation or other issues that might violate antitrust
   laws in countries were HP does business. The public also won't see the
   strategic plan until after regulatory approval is granted, if then.
   "It is not going to be shared externally," McDonnell said.

   While acknowledging the difficulty of the task ahead, McDonnell said
   it should be an easier task than when Compaq bought Digital.

   "They were completely different types of companies," he said. "The
   cultural differences between Compaq and HP are relatively minor."

   On other notes, McDonnell termed the largely critical response to the
   merger by Wall Street analysts and the press as superficial. Shares in
   both HP and Compaq have declined sharply since Tuesday. When the
   merger was announced, HP's stock offer amounted to $25 billion. By
   Wednesday night, it was down to $18 billion.

   Many critics have looked at the merger as a deal between two PC
   companies, he noted, although HP and Compaq operate in many other
   markets.

   "We thought a lot of the industry reaction was very superficial,"
   McDonnell said. "This is not about a PC company. This is more than a
   PC company."

   McDonnell also hinted that the combined company may continue HP's
   strategy of outsourcing manufacturing. Over the past few years, HP has
   increasingly shifted manufacturing to contractors. Compaq has too, but
   it has also attempted to create a build-to-order manufacturing
   facility, a la Dell Computer.

   The manufacturing strategies of both companies are fairly complex, but
   he added that "Compaq has made moves toward outsourcing." "

VMS does have the "DII COE" project, and the requirement of vendor
commitment for 15-20 years:

   http://www.openvms.compaq.com/solutions/government/coe/dii_COE_Faq.html
   OpenVMS.Compaq.com - DII_COE_FAQ


--Jerry Leslie     (my opinions are strictly my own)

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