Oracle Acquires Sun: What Effect on Microsoft?

[baarod]

It might come as a surprise to many of you, but my primary professional focus in recent years has not been Windows or Microsoft technologies. I've been firmly entrenched in the anti-Microsoft world of *NIX and Oracle for almost a decade now.

As one of about a dozen Senior Principal Consultants nationwide in Oracle's Enterprise Architecture group I designed and implemented hardware-software-networking infrastructure to support the largest and most complex deployments of Oracle's Fusion Middleware stack. That stack is 100% native Java.

What do you think Oracle's acquisition of Sun will do to the Java marketplace and what effect will that have on Microsoft? Do you think that negative Oracle sentiment (it's really a love/hate relationship at almost all big shops) will drive folks off Sun hardware and towards Windows? Do you think that Oracle control of Java will push more shops to .Net?

What other mechanisms for change can you folks envision?

 

[Lebon14]

I cannot compute your question but...

What I'm worried about is... Java.

 

[johngalt]

As soon as Ellison's crew started mucking things up they'll lose customers (both free as well as paying) by the boatloads....

 

[baarod]

As soon as Ellison's crew started mucking things up they'll lose customers (both free as well as paying) by the boatloads....

Hey, now. I used to be one of those guys. We weren't all that bad

 

[Win7User512]

I find this kinda exciting. shaking things up.

 

[baarod]

Analysts are starting to think as I was when I posted this...

Microsoft Could Be a Winner in Sun-Oracle Deal - PC World

 

[jimbo45]

It might come as a surprise to many of you, but my primary professional focus in recent years has not been Windows or Microsoft technologies. I've been firmly entrenched in the anti-Microsoft world of *NIX and Oracle for almost a decade now.......................

That stack is 100% native Java.

What do you think Oracle's acquisition of Sun will do to the Java marketplace and what effect will that have on Microsoft? Do you think that negative Oracle sentiment (it's really a love/hate relationship at almost all big shops) will drive folks off Sun hardware and towards Windows? Do you think that Oracle control of Java will push more shops to .Net?

What other mechanisms for change can you folks envision?

Hi Baarod.

I think this is actually a "Marriage made in Heaven".
It amazes me especially on a Technical Forum that the biggest ERP / CRM company on earth is rarely ever mentioned especially considering the number of external consultants who must be working with this stuff in every country on the planet. I refer to SAP.

Whilst SAP essentially has its own ABAP internal programming language (and more recently JAVA as well) to handle the base DB calls and screen manipulation the underlying DB system used BY FAR on SAP installations actually the ORACLE DB system. Whilst other DB systems can be used such as IBM's DB2 and SAP's own Community edition MAXDB ORACLE is the system of choice. Note - only the DB system is used not the applications such as Oracle Financials as SAP is using its own applications here.

With JAVA and the new SAP WEB DYNPRO technology a huge amount of new applications for this once lumbering giant are opening up. (This can still be done via older ABAP technolgy as well but on the whole JAVA is the method of choice for Web enabled applications whilst ABAP handles more traditional stuff like Logistics, Materials, Financials etc).

With the Web dynpro technology a whole load of new technologies are possible.

Imagine in a large corporation handling simple employee requests like booking courses, managing leaves, handling Shifts with people wanting to swap assignments etc etc.

SAP's E.S.S (Employee self service) system manages this very well and really reduces costs to large HR depts. (There's a similar management facility known as MSS Management self service).

Another scenario -- Imagine your company produces chemicals / other products for which all sorts of conformity certificates are required before the goods can leave the site.

At the reception area you can have the WEB DYNPRO / Portal interface running the computer(s) in "KIOSK MODE". All the truck drivers have to do is to enter their ticket number. They then get the paperwork, check the loads and sign off.

The data then goes into the rest of the ERP system for maybe ordering more supplies, generating billing, compiling statistics, aranging production schedules, managing storage and comples wharehousing / goods movements etc etc etc.

E-commerce is also another area SAP is used for - there are a load of E-commerce systems out there but SAP has the advantage that for larger organisations all the other stuff is integrated as well.

With Windows and its SQL server Microsoft should have developed something like SAP - now Windows and Office have essentially matured where is their next generation income stream going to come from.

Incidentally if you want to try what used to be called "MiniSAP" on your own machine you can download it free from the SAP site. This version has the CORE stuff in it (ABAP / JAVA stacks, database server, Portal, Web application server, Web Dynpro, Workflow etc). It doesn't have the transactional stuff like say Logistics but you can still do a lot with it. -- Not for the faint hearted BTW. It's free but you need to send of (automated) for a license every 90 days.

Download from here.

https://www.sdn.sap.com/irj/sdn

Choose downloads==>software SAP Netweaver main releases==> then pick what you want (ABAP / JAVA stacks etc. All versions have the WEB dynpro and portal integration).

Interesting times ahead even in these times --we won't be in recession forever.

Added -- in general the "Front end" for SAP applications was Windows (SAPGUI.EXE) the WEB DYNPRO concept means that this is no longer the case. Any web enabled browser will work -- so 'NIX or whatever can be used.



Cheers
jimbo

 

[Win7User512]

I hope MySQL is largely unaffected by this merger.

 

[baarod]

I hope MySQL is largely unaffected by this merger.

I just left Oracle in February so I still have tons of contacts inside. MySQL will be dealt a swift death. No further development or updates of any kind and zero support without a big cash support contract. MySQL has been a thorn in the side of commercial databases for a long time. Oracle might have said that Java was why they bought Sun but killing MySQL dead is icing on the cake.

 

[Win7User512]

I just left Oracle in February so I still have tons of contacts inside. MySQL will be dealt a swift death. No further development or updates of any kind and zero support without a big cash support contract. MySQL has been a thorn in the side of commercial databases for a long time. Oracle might have said that Java was why they bought Sun but killing MySQL dead is icing on the cake.

Well that sucks ass. Btw, why did you leave?

 

[raj11650]

yeah what will be done to mysql will oracle continue supporting mysql!!!

 

[baarod]

Well that sucks ass. Btw, why did you leave?

100% travel. Sometimes I had no idea where I'd be going next Monday until Friday or Saturday. Travel arrangements were my responsibility but we were only allowed to fly certain airlines and stay in certain hotels without prior approval which you couldn't get on short notice. Sometimes I had to drive over an hour or more to get to the client site in often unfamiliar and heavy traffic because I couldn't get an approved hotel close by.

Many customers HATED us -- they spent millions on Oracle software after being promised by sales that implementation was a snap only to find that the software required the standard high level of care-and-feeding that most Oracle software demands. Management was often belligerent and downright hostile because they felt they were being double-dipped and the guy on the ground (me) got the brunt of their hostility. IT staff were no help at all as they had no desire to help the Oracle consultant achieve what they had repeatedly failed to. Sometimes they actively undermined my effort or completely refused to work or talk with me.

Grueling work hours. We were never on a project that was not weeks or months past it's implementation deadline so the client expected the Oracle consultant to be in first and out last every day. Combined with all the travel time 80 hour workweeks were the norm, not the exception. With travel delays especially in the winter months there were many times I didn't even get back home on the weekends. Oh, yeah. And it was a salaried position that Oracle got paid hourly for -- you can just imagine they abuses that caused especially when profits were down.

Oracle would place us in situations we had little or no experience with and provide zero support above what the customer could already get on the phone. Sometimes all I had over the client was years of IT experience, expert troubleshooting skills and an Oracle name badge. Being expected to over-represent your knowledge was a constant requirement. No time off for training on new products but we were always expected to somehow magically attain expert level with new versions or products that Oracle had just acquired.

I could go on but what's the point. They paid very well, but then gave every excuse in the book for not paying travel expenses. In short it was always blatantly evident that you were working for a megacorporation run by the king of jerks who'd sacrifice your ass for a dollar without thinking twice.

The exposure to the variety of environments, technologies, methodologies and cultures could not be appraised though and I'm glad I did it. I had to put my life completely on hold for three years but for a die hard technologist like me it was worth it.

 

[Win7User512]

In short it was always blatantly evident that you were working for a megacorporation run by the king of jerks who'd sacrifice your ass for a dollar without thinking twice.

Wow, I had read from many sources that he was a complete jerk, but I didn't know how true the rumors were. Well I hope you're happier now that you have removed yourself from that environment.

 

[jimbo45]

Hi there -- OT to the main point but answering a previous posters thread :

Obviously you had an unfortunate experience but you probably learned far more than you might have done in a smaller environment. -- but in these large types of organisations there are the "Screwed" and the "Screwees". The trick is to get to belong to the 2nd group rather than the first.

If you can be a little bit of a Salesman and also don't totally ignore the Politics these large corporations can actually be OK to work in(for a while).

On my present contract I'm much less "tech savvy" than a lot of my colleagues but because I can usually "understand Management Speak" better I often get the plum assignments while the poor tech guys get worked of their butts.

Working "Both sides of the line" I can probably say that most of the stuff that comes out of an IT dept is usually totally ignored or disregarded by management more concerned with Sales and next weeks share price (to say nothing of their Fat Bonuses -- and Oracle isn't even a Bank).

The best way to be successful AND stay technical if that's what you want is to be able to communicate essential ideas to "Non Technical" management and then make them think they thought of it first. More challenging than you think -- and can actually be quite fun and rewarding if you are reasonably skilful at it.

For example :

It's no good going round and saying we need new more powerful gear and then passing around forms for user depts to fill in riddled with such questions as "How much disk space will you need in 3 months" or what's your response time to query XXXX" but to try and "Sell" what you are after - couched in THEIR terms -- like more customers / more work / bigger profits.

You'll get the nice plum assignments with great expenses etc etc. (I know I've done it ).

But good Luck in your new position.

Finally I don't think MySQL will go anytime soon -- it's too convenient and cheap -- and even if it does there's always Postgres or MAXDB.

Cheers
jimbo