REQUEST FOR DISCUSSION (RFD)
               unmoderated group comp.sys.ibm.as400.misc
               unmoderated group comp.sys.ibm.sys3x.misc

Summaries    : IBM midrange computer discussion (AS/400, S/3X)
Proponent    : Vincent Greene <vgre...@amo.com>

PROCEDURE:

This is a follow-up formal Request For Discussion (RFD) to create the
unmoderated Usenet groups comp.sys.ibm.as400.misc and
comp.sys.ibm.sys3x.misc.
This message initiates a discussion period to consider the creation of the
newsgroups.  The discussion will take place on news.groups.  All follow-up
posts should be made to news.groups.  Please subscribe to news.groups if
you wish to participate in this discussion.

The initial RFD called for the creation of a single group
comp.sys.ibm.midrange.  This 2nd RFD includes changes resulting from the
discussion of that group.  The proposal is split into two more precisely
targeted group names, which better fit the existing hierarchy and allow for
expansion in the future.

*This is not a call for votes.  Please do not attempt to vote now.*

RATIONALE:

The IBM AS/400 is one of the most popular computer systems on the market
today, with an installed base of over 300,000 systems. (New York Times,
March 5).  Also, the older System/36 is still an market player, with
over 200,000 systems still installed worldwide.

The recently improved AS/400 TCP/IP support, and the increasing focus
on "openness" in the industry have resulted in a growing interest in
Internet resources for IBM midrange computers.

Currently, there are few resources dedicated to the IBM midrange
community.  Several mailing lists exist to discuss midrange issues.  One
such list is the Midrange Discussion Mailing list
(midrang...@midrange.com). This is a moderated list with large, growing
subscription base and daily traffic of 25-30 posts.  The mailing lists
have the drawback of being difficult to find for the new internet user -- I
know of several of my peers who had internet access for several months, but
still had no idea that ANY midrange resources were available to them.

Formation of the proposed groups would provide a considerably more visible
resource for IBM midrange systems users, which would result
in increased participation, to the benefit of all involved.

USENET groups are also often carried on a large variety of BBS systems,
which will further expand the base of expertise available to the
midrange population to include the participants of the many midrange
bulletin board systems, including those sponsored by the Midrange
Computing and News/3X magazines.

comp.sys.as400.ibm.misc CHARTER:

The group comp.sys.ibm.as400.misc is for the discussion of topics relating
to the IBM Application System/400 (a.k.a Advanced Server/400) computer
systems.  This includes but is not limited to:

  - hardware configuration
  - performance tuning
  - application development
  - programming langauges
  - communications and connectivity
  - End user tools
  - applications software evaluation and assistance
  - Client/Server development on midrange platforms
  - COMMON and other professional conferences
  - Product announcements
  - Systems management and operations
  - Backup and Recovery
  - S36EE - (cross-posting to comp.sys.ibms3x.misc should be considered)

as they relate to the IBM AS/400 system.  Money-making schemes,
advertising (beyond simple product announcements), and discussion
of other systems, except in relation to connectivity, are not
appropriate in this group.  Posting of source code in this group is
not appropriate -- source code should be posted to comp.sources.misc,
with a pointer message in this group.  Posting of job announcements or
resumes is also inappropriate -- post these to misc.jobs or another
appropriate job-related group.

The official language of the AS/400 group will be English.

Users group meeting, and product announcements will be
allowed in the group, but we encourage the use of specific text
in subject lines to allow filtering by those who are not interested.

The following subject texts are suggested:

[UG-xx] - Users group announcement for state or country xx:

        [UG-AZ] Tucson Users Group Meeting 5/10/95

[PRODUCT] - Product announcement

        [PRODUCT] DDS parser for Code/400

____________________________________________________________________
comp.sys.ibm.sys3x.misc CHARTER:

The group comp.sys.ibm.sys3x.misc is for the discussion of topics relating
to the IBM 3X series computers, including System/32, System/34, System/36,
and System/38.  This includes but is not limited to:

  - hardware configuration
  - performance tuning
  - application development
  - programming langauges
  - communications and connectivity
  - End user tools
  - applications software evaluation and assistance
  - Client/Server development on midrange platforms
  - COMMON and other professional conferences
  - Product announcements
  - Systems management and operations
  - Backup and Recovery

as they relate to the IBM 3X systems.  Money-making schemes,
advertising (beyond simple product announcements), and discussion
of other systems, except in relation to connectivity, are not
appropriate in this group.  Posting of source code in this group is
not appropriate -- source code should be posted to comp.sources.misc,
with a pointer message in this group.  Posting of job announcements or
resumes is also inappropriate -- post these to misc.jobs or another
appropriate job-related group.

The official language of the midrange group will be English.

Job postings, users group meetings, and product announcements will be
allowed in the group, but we encourage the use of specific text
in subject lines to allow filtering by those who are not interested.

The following subject texts are suggested:

[UG-xx] - Users group announcement for state or country xx:

        [UG-AZ] Tucson Users Group Meeting 5/10/95

[PRODUCT] - Product announcement

        [PRODUCT] DDS parser for Code/400

____________________________________________________________________

This RFD was cross-posted to the following USENET groups:

comp.sys.misc, comp.misc, comp.client-server, comp.databases,
bit.listserv.db2-l, bit.listserv.ibm-main,

The following mailing lists:

midrang...@midrange.com
code40...@borzak.com
midra...@solar.rtd.utk.edu

The following will contain pointers to the RFD/CFV on news.groups:

Compuserve COMMON forum
Compuserve APPC forum
News/3X Newslink BBS
Midrange Computing BBS
IBM AS/400 WWW Page [http://as400.rochester.ibm.com]
IBM FORUM400

A call for votes will be posted within 21-30 days of this posting, per
the rules outlined in the Newsgroup Creation Companion.  This vote
will be administered by a neutral third party, not participating in
the debate.

Please limit discussion regarding this RFD to news.groups only.  All
comments should be posted there.

*This is not a call for votes.  Please do not attempt to vote now.*