"RollForward Wizard" <rollforward@rollforward.com> wrote in message
news:j98hf.10600$Ad5.5295@fe59.usenetserver.com...
> Obnoxio The Clown wrote:
>> RollForward Wizard said:

> If you're IBM or any company, you have to have something to sell, and a
> market
> that likes what you sell. If there isn't a market for Informix, no matter
> how
> great it is, you are not going to sell Informix to anyone. IBM, Oracle,
> and
> Microsoft all sell a lot of software, some products more than others. At
> the
> end of the day, they look at what they sell, and make decisions, just like
> any
> business would. If it doesn't make money, why would they continue to push
> it?
>
> Oracle and Microsoft by the way do an excellent job of putting some pretty
> wrapping
> around all their products, something that is instructive for all of us.
>
> What does IBM need to do specifically to sell more Informix? Or is it
> less about
> "selling" Informix, and just making it more prominent, or visible, or
> legit, or ???
>
> What do IBM need to do with Informix that gives the product its' proper
> place?

I don't think many people will claim that Informix failed because its
technology wasn't the best, or up there with the best. The concensus is
that it failed because other products in its space were better advertised,
marketed or supported with application development features. Those of us
who like Informix were disappointed, I believe, that when it was acquired by
IBM its new owners chose not to use their enormous product promotion budgets
to revitalise the profile of Informix in its traditionally strong areas, but
to promote in its place a mainframe-native product (DB2) with little
presence in that market.

So it isn't a question of Informix having some inherent "right" to publicity
and promotion: it is (and remains) a great product in its space, but the
chance to consolidate and improve its position has been passed up in favour
of a wider strategy of publicising only one, flagship, DBMS.

The answer to your question: "What do IBM need to do with Informix ...?" was
actually answered quite well by Daniel Morgan.