runtime vs development filepro

[Laura Brody]

On Fri, 24 Sep 2004 08:31:45 -0400, Walter Vaughan <wvaughan at steelerubber.com> wrote:

> Frank7767 at aol.com wrote:
>
>> A customer must upgrade to 64 filepro users on a SCO UNIX system. They are running a 32 user 4.8 development filepro. Sue recommended a 64 user Runtime and a 5 user development system as the best solution.
>
> Well there you go. fpTech recommending a cost effective solution, rather than just extracting every available dime.

	To my knowledge, Sue has ALWAYS recommended this. She
never told a customer that he needed a development system
of 128 with a runtime with 128 users. She would happily sell
it to you if you wanted it, of course.

	When I worked at SCC, she was always in the developer's
corner when he wanted something unusual. The following is
a true story....  [Cue wavy lines as we enter the wayback
machine.]

	The customer placed an order for filePro on a Unix
box, on tape. I made the tape and gave it to shipping to go
out. The customer got it a couple of days later and called
Sue. He told her that the install wasn't working. I made
another tape and overnighted it to him. He called back
again and said that the tape still wasn't working. He sent
the tape back and I tested it - no errors. Someone
talked to him and quickly discovered that he was typing in
tar commands, rather than the cpio commands that were clearly
listed in the step-by-step printed install directions. He was
told to follow the directions. Later, he called Sue and said
that he wanted the software in tar format. The bottom line
was that he simply refusted to type in the cpio commands
because he was familiar with tar and wanted to use tar.

	Sue came into programming and told Ken to "make it so".
Ken argued, complained and told her that the customer was
being unreasonable. She told him "the customer is always
right, even if they are a total pain in the neck. Take the
needle out of your arm (one of her favorite phrases) and make
the damn tape". This went back and forth several times until
Sue called Ken on the phone and ordered him to change the
install and make the tape the way the customer wanted.
With this, Ken slammed down the phone -- this was the first
time I ever saw Ken lose his temper (now that we have 4 kids,
so it's now almost a daily occurance, but I digress).
He then went over to the computer, made the changes to
the "make tape" script, made the tape and stomped down
to shipping while mumbling unkind things about this
customer's IQ. The rest of us stood there in programming
with our jaws on the floor and quickly decided that today
would be a bad day to ask Ken for anything .....

-- 
Laura Brody, Publisher of the filePro Developer's Journal
+------------- Hudson Valley Computer Associates, Inc ----------+
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