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Netscape The Internet

Netscape, Sun, and AOL plans 37

Posted by CmdrTaco from the so-whats-gonna-happen dept.
MBrod sent us a link to a story about the business plan of the new AOL/Sun/Netscape holy trinity. I'm keeping my eye on this one. The plan is nice and vague, but it does look like they will be working fairly closely.
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Netscape, Sun, and AOL plans More

Netscape, Sun, and AOL plans

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  • More Reading (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward
    If you interested in this try these

    AOL gave some idea this week of what it plans to do with its new
    toy, Netscape Communications Corp. A major reorganization and the
    creation of the new Netscape Enterprise Group division put
    approximately 1,000 jobs at risk.

    http://www.sunworld.com/swol-03-1999/swol-03-aol2. html?0329a [207.82.250.251]


    In an announcement related to the new Netscape group at AOL, Sun and
    AOL formed an alliance -- or a "virtual company," as they put it --
    to develop e-commerce solutions. Sun has been confusing everyone with
    mixed e-commerce messages, but AOL's massive user base, Netscape's
    middleware, and Sun's infrastructure could help the Sun shine on
    e-commerce.

    http://www.sunworld.com/swol-03-1999/swol-03-aol.h tml?0329a [207.82.250.251]


    In other news, the worldwide server market has grown, but its
    revenues appear to be flagging. Research giant IDC explains the
    sag and its implications.

    http://www.sunworld.com/swol-03-1999/swol-03-serve r.html?0329a [207.82.250.251]

    Not related as such but linux

    The streets were crowded on Linux Alley at this year's CEBIT
    technology fair, but the apps missed the party. Is Linux
    suffering a shortage on the desktop?

    http://www.sunworld.com/swol-03-1999/swol-03-linux cebit.html?0329a [207.82.250.251]

  • Posted by Aelfgifu:

    Interesting how Slashdot is so eager to throw up a pic of Bill Gates, the Evil Borg (tm) and yet there is a happy dinosaur Netscape. So I suppose that MS is really more evil that AOL?
  • Posted by Aelfgifu:

    Anyone who works for an ISP knows that AOL isn't doing nearly enough.
  • Posted by Aelfgifu:

    I should hope that any self-respecting Linux user would consider using only BBS's over AOL. :)Besides, you can get Earthlink almost anywere. And they don't make you use their proprietary software.
  • Posted by Mike@ABC:

    I've been out to AOL's HQ in Virginia. It reminded me of the typical Silicon Valley megacorp, just 3000 miles east. I know there's a knee jerk reaction to AOL as either un-cool or just too darn big. It might be both. But man, you have got to give them credit for knowing their customers, and giving them what they want. From the time I visited in January to today, they went from 15 million to 16 million registered users.

    Microsoft wishes it knew its customers as well.

    So you've got great technology from Sun and Netscape, and you combine it with some serious marketing know-how at AOL. Add 'em up, and what do you get? Hmmmm....

  • For those who haven't seen it, the Dilbert mission statement generator [dilbert.com] is worth a look.

    Here's the one it came up with for me.

    The customer can count on us to authoritatively coordinate world-class technology in order to solve business problems
  • There's a great article in this month's Performance Computing called Sun: Savior or Siren [performancecomputing.com].

    It's right on the mark regarding Sun's popularity in industry, their popularity as the leader of Anyone But Microsoft, their ability to take advantage of open standards and open source, and the criticisms brought upon them by competitors who accuse them of being just as bad as Microsoft if they could get away with it.

  • well duh since mozilla is open then you won't have AOL in your browser in the first place
  • Okay, this is off topic, but re: sendmail:

    It's an insanely powerful mail processing/delivery system, but it takes an insane amount of effort, energy and time to get it to do anything productive. Sendmail could probably be configured to bring about world peace, but by the time we figure out how to create that configuration, we'd all be dead anyway.
  • Hey, I'm all for business, but I've gotten so tired of having to go into the registry to remove that AIM thing and the AOL bookmarks that I'm considering tracking down a virus maker and creating something to modify the registry to delete this thing AS A SERVICE TO THE COMMUNITY. Aaagggh.

    --
  • One word: QMail. You don't have to like the author, but it's a damn solid product.
  • Great comment - I laughed.

    But, sadly, it's completely false. Business @ The Speed of Thought was created by taking statements like that and putting them in the blender.

    The statements, sadly, existed before the book. Wish I could give Bill Gates & friends the blame for inventing this style of lousy writing, but I can't.

    (I didn't actually read the book, but I picked it up in Fry's Electronics and flipped through it. Just the chapter headings were good enough to show what this book was about - it featured every crummy business cliche I've ever seen).

    D

    ----
  • anyone who works at a local ISP can thank AOL for keeping the bulk of the morons to themselves.
  • sendmail has got to be the worst designed program out there. I don't know what kind of drugs they must have been on when they were writing that thing! If anyone came up with a piece of crap like that today, they'd be laughed out of the room.

    Just because it runs on Unix doesn't mean it's good.

    PS: I work with sendmail every day so I know what I'm talking about.

  • ``We are launching the industry's first comprehensive, multi-platform, E-commerce solution to accelerate the rapid move of businesses to the Net Economy. The strategy unveiled today demonstrates the natural synergy between the Sun and Netscape products, as well as the opportunity that Internet-powerhouse America Online provides with its consumer expertise and audience reach.''

    ``There are two big phenomena that make this strategic alliance a compelling opportunity. First, consumers are coming online in droves and accelerating E-commerce. Second, businesses are embracing network computing on top of Internet standards as the architecture for all of their back-end systems. For E-commerce to make it to the next level, there have to be new, comprehensive, integrated solutions that make every part of the commerce value chain much easier. That's what this strategic Alliance will do: enhance the value chain all the way from silicon to eyeballs.''

    Oy! I think someone just put Business@The Speed of Thought through a blender to come up with those quotes.

    Bravery, Kindness, Clarity, Honesty, Compassion, Generosity

  • AOL is one of the largest installations of HP-UX servers. They have row upon row of enormous HP9000's. Now AOL's climbing into bed with Sun to collaborate on new media and new platforms.

    I wonder what the future holds for HP-UX within AOL. HP losing AOL certainly wouldn't kill the company in and of itself, but it certainly would sting a great deal.

    Should be interesting to see what comes of this alliance.

    --j

  • Imagine, a year from now you're contacted to put together an extensive ecommerce site. The company bigwigs, who have their secretaries print out all their email every day, are willing to commit buckets of money to this initiative. You, the humble consultant/coder/webmaster that you are, get on the phone with Sun.
    After discussing your needs, they recommend a system, hardware, software, and connectivity, that meets all of them. Not only that, but it ties into AOL's proprietary content delivery services as well. The system is purchased, configured,etc, in about a week. You wait another week (don't want to see it look too easy) before getting in touch with the client, way ahead of schedule.
    You look good, you delivered extra functionality, and all ahead of schedule. Not bad.
    Of course, such an easy turnkey solution could make the client bypass you entirely. Oops...

    In any case, it should make it easier for less technologically-inclined businesses to get on the Web easily and quickly. However, such a system ups the ante to a dangerous level. As an Open Source, GNU, whatever advocate, you want to be able to offer the same features, but written elegantly in open source. Do you think AOL wants any sort of OS software running on the poprietary part of their service, especially when it stands to lose sales to it? Probably not.
    One the one hand, hope for a system that works well, simplifies what can now be a difficult process, and makes life somewhat easier.
    On the other, fear that such a project could be too successful, leading Sunscape into the realm of Microsoftian (previously Orwellian) market domination.
    If OS is truly going to take over the world, we as its advocates need to act. Too much OS software is technologicaly elegant but impossible to use without an extensive skill set. Perhaps this is because designers and interface specialists aren't as willing to work for free by contributing to OS software as programmers, who are notorious for designing great software whose interfaces could be called evil at best.

    So, what to do?
    Well, what if Sunscape was OS? It would probably be under the NSPL or Sun's Public License, but this is better than a completely closed product. Simply, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. Or at least meet them halfway. RMS would probably cringe, but this type of solution seems necessary if free software is truly to take over the world.


    --Andrew Grossman
    grossdog@dartmouth.edu
  • Uhhhh, so what exactly are they going to DO?
  • we can get them to open the source to AIM (like Mozilla). Then we'll go in and add a backdoor password (i.e. "/.rulez") that causes it to delete itself. I'm sure they would have no trouble recruiting programmers to do THAT for free. :-)
  • ... is if they try to kill off Mozilla somehow.
    Remember the AOL layoffs of Netscape employees last week? There is a considerable contribution from independent programmers to Mozilla, but I would guess that most of those developing Mozilla are still on a salary from Netscape, or should I say AOL. AOL could stop supporting Mozilla at any time if they choose, which may not kill Mozilla, but it certainly would be a serious blow. Yes, yes I know Steve Case has stated a couple of times how supportive of open source he is, but I believe him about as much as I believe M$. Besides, if he is so supportive of open source why hasn't the code to AOL's proprietary login software been made available so that we can have AOL for Linux.
    I know, "AOL for linux!?!? Yuck!!" but for some it is the only ISP available. OK enough ranting.
  • Sun - very good, Netscape - very good, but why when I see AOL I get this feeling of uncertainty or doubt or "untrustfulness" or "unseriousness" or even "do not believe that it will be any good" feeling... Maybe I'm paraniod.

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