Oracle-L: RE: No DBAs needed on AS400

From: DENNIS WILLIAMS <DWILLIAMS_at_LIFETOUCH.COM>
Date: Thu, 11 Apr 2002 06:44:45 -0800
Message-ID: <F001.00441B85.20020411064445@fatcity.com>

Jay - I can see the manager's confusion. After all, one expects computers to become easier and require less effort to maintain as time goes by. I forwarded your question to another list that has some AS/400 programmers.

On the AS400 you can run queries and use SQL even though the machine is configured to use files. Under the covers it is still AS400/DB2.

The AS/400 has a full-featured database built into the operating system. Originally it didn't even have a name but IBM started calling it DB2/400 when they found out that some people didn't know it was there. And you don't need a DBA. Virtually all the functions that are performed by a DBA on an Oracle database, for example, are handled automatically by the AS/400 under the covers.

Dennis Williams
DBA
Lifetouch, Inc.
dwilliams_at_lifetouch.com

-----Original Message-----
Sent: Thursday, April 11, 2002 8:54 AM
To: Multiple recipients of list ORACLE-L

We are going through a merger, and management is looking to eliminate positions. Here is a brief summary of my discussion with the new director of IT:

Director: "Back when I we were using an AS400, we didn't need a DBA." Me: "Then you probably were just using files." Director: "No, it was a database."
Me: "Could you issue SQL commands?"
Director: "Yes. But we didn't need a DBA. I guess it was just one of those mysteries of life."

My thoughts are that he is using the term "database" in the generic sense of the word (our "files" are our database), or he was using some proprietary database that doesn't even begin to compare to Oracle.

For those of you who know AS400s, I would appreciate some insight that would demonstrate why he needs to keep me as a DBA.

Thanks,
Jay

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Author: Jay Hostetter
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Author: DENNIS WILLIAMS
INET: DWILLIAMS_at_LIFETOUCH.COM

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