John,
        And beauty of this is that we have programs that are 20 years
old and still run unmodified in the original object code. Amazing isn't
it?
John Zoltak
North American Mfg Co

> -----Original Message-----
> From: John Clogg [SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
> Sent: Thursday, January 15, 1998 3:59 PM
> To:   [log in to unmask]
> Subject:      [HP3000-L] HP3000 like rear-wheel-drive car
>
> The debate about old and new cars is really beside the point.  The
> fact is
> the HP3000s sold today have very little resemblance to the ones sold
> twenty-five years ago - new architecture, rewritten and greatly
> enhanced operating system, etc.
>
> If we are to assume that the value of an OS or its applicability to a
> purpose can be measured simply by the release date of its original
> version, then MPE (1972) beats Unix (1969).  Of course the premise is
> ridiculous.  I think other criteria, such as functionality,
> reliability, ease of
> use, interoperability, quality of vendor support, efficiency (shall I
> go on?)
> are far more important and meaningful.  It is just plain idiotic to
> abandon a
> good solution for a less desirable one simply because it is assumed to
> be
> newer or because the trade press tries to say you must.
>
> The fact is that MPE is the best solution for some requirements, just
> as
> Unix, NT or even (gulp) MVS is the best solution for others.  The
> choice
> has nothing to do with dates.