Re: What companies are still using old technology

[ak621@chebucto.ns.ca (Richard Bonner)]

Bible John wrote:
> I got a new job working in QC at a electronics company in the Bay Area. 
> Its amazing, but I have seen people order floppy disk drives, ORB Power 
> adaptors, and yesterday someone ordered a 500MB hard drive. 

> Richard since you are the DOS expert, and the expert with old technology 

***   Thanks for the compliment. I am far from an expert, though I am
knowledgeable in certain areas. Interestingly, one of the computer clubs
to which I belong, deals with classic computer & gaming systems.


> who are the kinds of companies ordering these supplies? What business 
> are they in that relies so much on floppy disk drives (I saw one order 
> of like 6 floppy disk drives to one company) and who would buy a 500MB 
> hard drive?
>
> John

***   I can't answer for them, but why buy anything more than what is
required? Gigabyte drives are needed for media purposes and for bloated
operating systems, but many business run lean Unix or DOS systems and
only business software. Don't forget about thin-client style systems that
have a huge server but small terminals with small local hard drives. 
Those Mb drives are also extremely *cheap* now.

   As for floppy drives, a friend of mine says that local aerospace
companies here use floppy drives on a regular basis because they are
so universal. People can use floppies if they aren't employing bloatware
and if the data files fit. At pennies apiece, they can also be given away. 

   Finally, they can be easily erased and reused.


> PS- Richard also our terminals are using Unix. Most desk computers have 
> Windows 98 installed, and use some terminal emulator to access the 
> databases.

***   I see local retailers here often using DOS or Uxix systems. I
assume it's because they are reliable, small, require fewer resources and
have remained true to themselves for decades. A major grocery chain
here has a Unix inter-store system, although it uses WIN 98 terminals for
advertisement and price printing.

   Then there are law, medical, and insurance companies that need to be
able to access past records, so their software must be backward-compatible
at the minimum, and in reality never needs to be updated anyway. What
possible new features would they need to create & access basic data?  

   Change in these businesses is not a good thing. Do an Internet
search; many companies and governments are finally learning this lesson and
are now shunning forced upgrades. If it won't run their present hard and
soft ware, then forget it. They are fed up with the down time and cost to
retrain, and with the cost of upgrading hardware. A local discussion group
here posted a dozen or more links in several threads to stories from
around the world regarding this.

   A final example is that my company uses early 1990s AccPac software for
DOS because it cost thousands at the time and still does exactly what is
required. Why spend thousands more to get new software that requires a
system that in turn needs new computers and new hardware to do exactly
the same thing in exactly the same way? 

         Richard Bonner
http://www.chebucto.ca/~ak621/DOS/