Compaq says its users shouldn't feel concerned or confused about the company's efforts to integrate the new lines of products-namely servers-that it acquired with the purchase of Tandem Computers and Digital Equipment.
But it would seem likely that users are bound to be confused, judging by some contradictory views expressed by Compaq officials at a press and analyst day.
Although these executives sat in the same room at tables only a few feet from each other, they appeared to hold differing views regarding some key technology issues. They granted interviews to reporters on the eve of Compaq's Innovate Forum '99 event, slated to begin today.
Some Compaq executives had nothing but good things to say about both Intel's forthcoming 64-bit Merced processor due out in mid-2000 and the Monterey 64-bit operating system being developed for Merced by IBM, Sequent Computer Systems and the Santa Cruz Operation (SCO). Those products, along with the upcoming 64-bit version of Windows NT, will help Compaq's ProLiant family of Intel-based servers scale up and compete better against other high-end servers, the executives said.
But executives from Compaq's Tru64 Unix-formerly known as Digital Unix-operating system division weren't so enthused about Monterey and Merced, which will be the first incarnation of Intel's IA-64 architecture.
"Frankly, Merced-the first release of IA-64 -- doesn't look too interesting as a volume platform. I don't think it will have the performance. The compilers will still be somewhat immature," said Don Jenkins, vice president of product management, business planning and marketing for Compaq's Unix business segment, based in Nashua, N.H.
"We'll provide a port (of Tru64 Unix for Merced). People will try it. ISVs (independent software vendors) will port to it. But I don't think it will be a strong price-performance competitor to Alpha," Jenkins added, referring to the Alpha chips that power the Alpha line of 64-bit servers that Compaq acquired from Digital.
Intel's 64-bit chips will probably do very well in the low-end of the spectrum, for systems that cost between $5,000 and $20,000, the market segment that Intel currently rules in, Jenkins said.
Jenkins also remains skeptical about Intel's claims that the second generation of its IA-64 architecture-the successor to Merced, which is code-named McKinley and slated for release in 2001 -- will be a strong competitor for systems in the Alpha league.
"My answer to that is that time will tell," he said.
As for Monterey, Jenkins questions its ability to scale to the high-end of the computing spectrum, adding that it is an operating system for small and midsize business environments.
"IBM would have you believe that Monterey is a nice shrink-wrapped product that is small and easy and perfect for small businesses, and simultaneously appropriate for the largest SAP installation in the world. That just isn't true," Jenkins said.
Meanwhile, other company executives were reiterating Compaq's commitment to Tandem's family of high-performance Himalaya servers. They pointed to Compaq's intention to migrate the Himalayas from their current MIPS-based chip architecture to Alpha chips in the coming years.
"That's laying out a roadmap for our customers to say 'Himalaya is here. It's going to stay here,'" said Chris Rooke, a vice president in Compaq's marketing enterprise computing group specializing in Tandem systems and based in Cupertino, Calif. "You can buy today's Himalayas and upgrade them to Alpha Himalayas tomorrow very easily," Rooke said.
The future of the Alpha line of servers is also secure, another official said.
"The strategy for Alpha servers continues as it was laid out even before the merger. We continue to execute against our roadmap to deliver Alpha server systems based on the latest generation of Alpha chip technology," said Marion Dancy, vice president of marketing for Compaq's high performance server division, specializing on the Alpha line of products and based in Maynard, Mass.
The arrival of the 64-bit version of Windows NT is expected this year. It will help fuel demand for Windows NT applications for the Alpha platform, Dancy said. She stressed that Intel still hasn't delivered its Merced chip and that Alpha systems have been around for six years and thus have a performance advantage.
