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IIUG Insider (Issue #22)
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| Q: | How do you use Informix in your "real" job (DBA, Consultant, Developer, etc.)? |
| A: | My job is dedicated almost entirely to Informix. I was the lead-author of Informix Handbook, a 1400-page reference. I also own One Point Solutions, which is dedicated to the support of Informix customers. I sell Informix products and renewals, provide custom training based on Informix Handbook, do DBA consulting and 4GL/4JS programming. I'm also starting to become familiar with other IBM products like Websphere and DB2. |
| Q: | How long have you been using Informix products? |
| A: | Since 1989, I've worked almost fulltime on Informix projects in one
capacity or another for about three companies. I've worked as a
consultant, database designer, programmer, project leader, and just
about everything else. |
| Q: | What is your role on the IIUG Board? |
| A: | Since I am now the senior Board member (going on 5 years, I think),
I try to provide insights based on the experiences I've had. I'm
currently the Board liaison to the user groups in Michigan, Chicago,
Cleveland, Toronto and Montreal. I also work with the Board to
accomplish our incredible number of tasks. |
| Q: | Why did you volunteer to be on the Board? |
| A: | I've had a long-time dedication to Informix products and was
already working hard to run the Michigan Informix User Group. I
wanted to help users advocate their needs to Informix and help user
groups grow. |
| Q: | What do you want to accomplish this year on the Board? |
| A: | I would like to see the Board continue to advocate its efforts to
IBM via its surveys, meetings, and other user feedback. I also want
the users to understand that Informix is NOT going away and they
still should have faith in the product. Finally, I want to see local
user groups continue to flourish and be there for users. |
| Q: | Where are you from? |
| A: | The Detroit area, in the state of Michigan, USA. |
| Q: | Best Informix story? |
| A: | Writing Informix Handbook (though that story lasted 3 years!). |
| Q: | Worst Informix nightmare. |
| A: | Besides writing Informix Handbook... when I did 24x7 support, the
pager was my constant companion. We had some exciting incidents that
occurred in the middle of the night. Actually, I got a charge out of
doing this, but it was also pretty rough! |
| Q: | Can you tell us about your family and hobbies outside of the IIUG? |
| A: | I'm married and have an excellent Cardigan Welsh Corgi (small herd
dog). Hobbies include: outdoor sports like cross-country skiing,
skating, and hiking; travel; reading; and, most importantly, a never-
ending search for adventure (ask the Board!). |
See Ron and other members of the IIUG Board of directors as captured attending the recent WAIUG Forum 2002 at http://www.iiug.org/iiug/09nov02_board3.html.
Janet Perna, IBM Data Management Chief Writes to IIUG
You may have already found Ms. Perna's letter at www.iiug.org. It is a kind note that provides reassurances and expresses appreciation for IIUG members' loyalty to Informix products. Find following a set of quotes indicative of the missive's tone:
"Overall, IBM Data Management revenue grew double-digits last year despite a difficult economy. This growth was fueled by new applications such as Enterprise Content Management and Business Intelligence, as well as growth in our core database business. We continued to ship enhancements to the Informix database products and we shipped a new version of DB2 Universal Database which contained a number of Informix compatibility features."
"With 2002 behind us, we are at work continuing to enhance our products in support of your business requirements. IDS 9.4 is on track to shipping March. Version 9.4 focuses on performance, scalability, availability, SQL compatibility and security. This release is designed to help IDS 7 customers upgrade to IDS 9 and take advantage of the new feature functionality... We'll ship a new release of Red Brick later this year as well."
The entire text of Janet's letter may be read at http://www.iiug.org/news/newsitems/03mar03_jperna.html.
IBM's Insight Exchange Events for Business Partners
The IBM Insight Exchange(TM) Business Partner initiative brings you two webcast speakers each month to 1) answer questions to real-world issues for your and your customers' businesses and 2) present the technical topics that can help you stay ahead of the pack.
Since the launch of IBM Insight Exchange in January of this year, the feedback and participation has been very positive! Over 1000 people registered for each of the first two inaugural webcasts! Join IBM for the March Insight Exchange webcasts that promise to be just as informative and valuable.
March 26, 2003 How to Compete in a Chaotic Economy, featuring Todd Buchholz Former White House Economic Advisor and Renowned Expert on Global Economic Trends. Sign up today at: http://webevents.broadcast.com/ibm/insightexchange/032603
April 11, 2003 Autonomic computing and its impact on the future of development (Live event), featuring Alan Ganek, IBM Vice President of Autonomic Computing at developerWorks Live in New Orleans, April 9-12th!
If you were unable to attend the first 3 events, a replay of each is available for 90 days.
February 13th Opportunities in the IT Market Place -- Shaping IBM's SW Strategy, featuring Steve Mills, Senior VP and Group Executive SWG. Access the replay at http://webevents.broadcast.com/ibm/insightexchange/021303/
February 21st The next step: e-business on demand, featuring Dr. Irving Wladawsky- Berger, General Manager e-Business on Demand. Access the replay at http://webevents.broadcast.com/ibm/insightexchange/022103/
March 5th Managing and Understanding Tomorrow's Data Today, featuring Dr. Pat Selinger Industry leader in the development of relational database management. Access the replay at http://webevents.broadcast.com/ibm/insightexchange/030503/
Spread the word among your colleagues! Find out more about these speakers and other IBM Insight Exchange events at: http://www.ibm.com/software/insightexchange
Informix Customer Opens Giant Global Data Center
Nothing warms the heart like the stories of business success by companies which have recognized the value of Informix to power their enterprise into the 21st century. The opening of a 110,000 square foot Global Data Center by DHL Worldwide Express in Scottsdale, Arizona, was featured recently on the February front page of Database Trends and Applications (DBTA). This widely read and respected publication levels the playing field for the leading Database vendors, and this significant feature of an Informix customer experiencing business success makes excellent reading.
For the full coverage of this interesting article, go to: http://www.dbta.com/frontpage_archives/2-03.html#3
If you reside in the US or Canada, it is also easy to subscribe to this free and informative publication by going to: http://www.dbta.com/subscribe.html
Jacques Roy of IBM: "Generating XML from IDS 9.x"
Need to generate XML from your database? The extensibility features of IBM Informix Dynamic Server give you the opportunity to create your own functions to generate XML output. For Jacques' complete write up, please visit http://www7b.software.ibm.com/dmdd/zones/informix/library/techarticle/0302roy/0302roy2.html
IBM developerWorks Live! - New Orleans, 9-12 April 2003
IBM developerWorks Live! is IBM's technical event of the year in the United States, with sessions on IBM Data Management - including Informix products, Lotus, Rational, Tivoli and WebSphere software.
IBM developerWorks Live! will be held in New Orleans, April 9 - 12, 2003. Attendees will receive a wealth of information designed exclusively for technical teams and be offered a variety of stimulating experiences, including general session presentations by industry experts, hands-on labs, birds-of-a-feather meetings, elective sessions, certification testing, exhibits and meet-the- expert opportunities. Register from now through March 16, 2003 to receive an Early Bird Discount - a savings of $400.00!
Be sure to check out the web site to find a wealth of information on this exclusive event: http://www.ibm.com/events/ibmdeveloperworkslive/r/nltr24iiug
Updated "IBM Informix Product Roadmap - Securing Your Future"
An updated webcast recording of "IBM Informix Product Roadmap - Securing Your Future" will be available through March 31, 2003. If you or your colleagues haven't done it yet, take the time to listen to the web cast recording of Don Top, IBM VP, Informix Customer Advocacy Executive (formerly, VP Informix Product Development).
Hear Don review IBM's long-term commitment to supporting and enhancing the Informix product line, how the acquisition of Informix is accelerating the IBM Data Management Vision, and how the Informix Arrowhead vision of converging best technology into a single product lives on!
To access the web cast recording information before March 31, 2003, go to http://www.ibm.com/software/data/informix/events/customer/
Call for Speakers for the 2003 IBM Data Management Conference (US)
The call for speakers for the 2003 IBM Data Management Conference (http://www-3.ibm.com/services/learning/conf/us/dm/) was launched last week.
Now is the time for you to submit your proposals for presenting at the main technical event for IBM Data Management products in the Americas, to be held at the Las Vegas Hilton in the fine city of Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
For guidelines, please visit www.IIUG.org and look for the appropriate highlight.
Please keep in mind the following critical deadlines:
- 29 March 2003 (changed from 12 March): Deadline for conference presentation proposals
- 02 April 2003: Plan to complete selection and send notifications of proposal acceptance by e-mail
- 29 August 2003: Presentation softcopy materials must be submitted by this date if selected
Useful Links
In response to your input, we have created a new page on the IIUG web site containing all the links we used to include. Please find it at http://www.iiug.org/quicklinks.html.
Closing and Credits
The International Informix Users Group (IIUG) is an organization designed to enhance communications between IBM and its worldwide user community. IIUG's membership database now exceeds 16,000 entries and enjoys the support and commitment of IBM's Data Management division. Key programs include local user groups and special interest groups, which we promote and assist from launch through growth.
| Sources: | IIUG Board of Directors |
| Editors: | David Smith, IIUG Board of Directors Jean Georges Perrin, IIUG Board of Directors, and Fred Hubbard, IIUG Managing Director |
| For comments, please send an email to ug@iiug.org. | |