At 09:50 06.05.2003 -0700, Dave Hitz wrote:
On May 06, John Enger wrote:
We are not talking Public Domain! I have bought a hardware unit. Most other companies have a database of their units sold, and with what software. The thing is that NetApp does not. I'm critisising the lisencing system NetApp uses. It makes it totally impossible to learn proper NetApp without paying an arm and a leg for courses.
I agree with John: I don't see a piracy issue here. We've got 50,000 systems out there already, and I don't see why home users would be more likely to try to steal something than the people who already have access to those 50,000 systems. Plus we've got the Data ONTAP simulator which we are letting lots of folks have.
This isn't a case of us having carefully thought through the issue and made a decision to handle home users this way. It's just that there has never been much demand for our systems from home users, and we've never really thought about it at all.
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Dave, I am so pleased to hear this, and your effort is very much appreciated. I am sure not only by me, but by a lot of people. And I am pretty sure that your efforts will pay off in terms of more people knowing about your products.
I have seen the NetApp filers run, and spoken to a couple of other admins, and they keep praising your products. That was why I bought mine in the first place...
Thank you
John Enger