sasaki@HARVARD.HARVARD.EDU (Marty Sasaki) (01/02/86)
I would like to rally some support from info-vax readers. I would like to see TCP/IP from DEC. This would be well integrated with VMS mail and other system utilities. Yes, I know that there are a few software groups who sell TCP/IP but I think that DEC would do a better job of integrating it with VMS. Further, it would be nice to put the lower level details into the DELUA (DEC's smart ethernet controller) thereby off-loading the host. The reason that DEC isn't doing this is that they don't see a need for it. They don't think that they would sell many copies of the software, so it isn't feasible for them to even consider it. At a networking session at the last DECUS symposium there were only two or three hands raised when the speaker asked the audience about TCP/IP. If you are interested in TCP/IP from DEC, especially running on DELUAs then contact your sales rep and state your interest and need. If we can convince DEC that they will make some money, then we will get TCP/IP. Marty Sasaki
bzs@BOSTONU.CSNET (Barry Shein) (01/05/86)
It is also interesting to note that DEC supports full TCP/IP on two of its other big operating systems: ULTRIX and TOPS-20. I think they still have pipe dreams about decnot. I agree, TCP on VMS would make my job a lot easier also as that's about all that counts around here, we are far too heterogenous to take decnot seriously. You will be also very shortly.... -Barry Shein, Boston University P.S. No flames about the current status of TOPS-20, I know, the point is that DEC saw fit to invest their time and effort recently in this (just being released with TOPS 6.1, we have it beta in 5.4), so surely it couldn't be that big a deal with VMS which is supposedly their flagship product. I suspect competing interests is what is at work here, rally them.
info-vax@ucbvax.UUCP (01/06/86)
> I would like to rally some support from info-vax readers. I would like > to see TCP/IP from DEC ... It is rumored that Digital may soon begin marketing TWG's TCP/IP for VMS. Likely, TWG or DEC will modify the package slightly before this happens ... but don't expect anything dramatic (like putting the lower level details into the DELUA). Even if this rumor is true, I wouldn't expect a great deal of support from Digital for TCP/IP. They're committed to moving DECNET towards ISO standards -- which has nothing to do with TCP/IP. I agree with Marty that there's probably a much larger market out there than Digital may think, and out here we're definitely pinging on our sales rep about this. However ... > ... At a networking > session at the last DECUS symposium there were only two or three > hands raised when the speaker asked the audience about TCP/IP. Which should tell us something. I didn't attend that particular session, but at the ones I did it was clear that the mass majority were primarily interested in DECNET. I suspect DEC will listen more closely to them. I'm not sure who originally said, "the wonderful thing about networking standards is that there are so many of them," but it's true, and one company can hardly support all of them.