The Highly Unofficial IBM OS/2 Beta FAQ v 0.06

NOTE: Last updated January 13th, 1996.

Compiled and maintained by:

Kris Kwilas

Feedback to kwilas@uiuc.edu. Please include "FAQ" in the Subject field.

This purpose of this FAQ is to attempt to cut down on the number of repetitive postings in the USENET comp.os.os2.xxx hierarchy.

This information in this document best falls under the heading of informed speculation. There are many people outside of IBM with varying degrees of contact with "unofficial" information about future releases. This posting is my attempt to consolidate the currently released information and the most informed gossip in one central place.

This FAQ is completely unoffical and unsupported by IBM. Official information about future releases and beta programs will probably be found in comp.os2.os2.beta and comp.os2.os2.announce within minutes of its release. IBM's official home page for beta-related information is located at http://www.austin.ibm.com/pspinfo/betahome.html Any new information should also find its way there shortly after release.

Most information in this document should be considered speculation and subject to change before release. Some information is from IBM employees in public forums, some is from IBM press releases, and some is conjecture from the vast USENET base and their many contacts(real, imagined, and hallucinated) inside the OS/2 teams and various ISV's.

At this point, I have tried to limit the FAQ to programs that I have arbitrarily deemed of general interest. Information on other IBM PSP beta programs(such as OS/2 DCE and DSS) is available from the IBM site above. If you would like to see more information about a particular topic(including ones not mentioned here), please drop me an email.

A Note on Naming

IBM has dropped the use of Star Trek codenames for members and relatives of the OS/2 Warp Family. The current naming convention centers around birds of prey. The codenames that I am currenly aware of are Merlin, Falcon, Eagle, Talon, Striker, Raptor, and Hawk.

Change Summary and Comments

Comments

Please include "FAQ" in the subject line of any email sent to me about this document. It makes it much easier for my mailer to filter properly.

Please do not post copies of this FAQ on other sites. Just add a link to the top of my home page at http://www.students.uiuc.edu/~kwilas/. That link will always contain the most current version.

As you can see from the Revision list, there have been numerous changes to this version. The short summary there does little to show all the changes. Please consider rereading the entire document, as lots of stuff has been updated.

Despite my best efforts, the size of this FAQ keeps increasing. ;-) Currently, loading this page and the associated graphics requires transfering slightly over 80k of information. Of that, less than 20k is due to the graphics.

My thanks to everyone for their information and encouragement. Maintaining this document requires a lot of time and energy(over twelve hours and four Cokes for this revision 0.06!).

I will be updating the FAQ as events warrant. If there is a section you would like to see added, please drop me a note. The Java section(however minimal) in this release was due to a comment someone made in passing.

I would like to take a moment to thank IBM's Larry Margolis for the fine work he is doing with the EPM editor. I am sure there are easier ways to create an HTML document, but I do all of my work in EPM. The new version 6.03a should be available here shortly. Highly recommended.

Please be sure to visit the Official Entry Point to The Highly Unofficial IBM OS/2 Beta FAQ. It contains a form that can be filled out to automatically receive notice of new revisions of the FAQ. This will help eliminate the need for an increasingly large mailing list. Thanks!

Does anyone run a site that would be willing to host future versions of the FAQ(as well as my homepage)? While I have a terrific Internet connection at the moment, I have been displeased with the server going down for maintenance and leaving readers in the lurch. If you have at least a T1 line, and are willing to donate a megabyte or two, I would be more than happy to give your site some exposure and free advertising.

Finally, can anyone provide me with a good reference for changing the body text in an HTML document? I would like know how to flip back and forth between text colors in a document with a minimum of hassle.

On to the good stuff . . .


Revisions

FixPack 16 withdrawn by IBM

More information on the SIQ fix and future FixPacks added

Lots of new OS/2 Warp (PowerPC Edition) information

Additional Merlin information included

Merlin multimedia information fleshed out and formatted

New Other section added for OpenDoc, CommonPoint, and Java information

Raptor section modified and moved into the Other section

Linked in Lotus InfoBox screenshot and modified the Lotus section

Warp Server section cleaned up

Additional comments added to Win32s section

Cutesy WebExplorer animation removed to save bandwith

Several small textual errors corrected(thanks largely to Scott Katzer)

Numerous minor touchups

Contents

Merlin

OS/2 Warp SMP

Win32s support

OS/2 FixPacks

Lotus WordPro, Freelance Graphics, and Striker

OS/2 Warp Server

OS/2 Warp Connect for the PowerPC (Falcon)

OS/2 Warp Server for the PowerPC (Hawk)

Projects Eagle and Talon

Other

Merlin(aka Warp 2, aka OS/2 Warp 3.1, etc.)


Merlin is at the very least the code-name for the next Intel release of the OS/2 Warp client. John Soyring has used "Merlin" in a posting on Compuserve, so the name is at least semi-official. It may or may or may not apply to the entire "common code" strategy for future OS/2 releases on multiple platforms. See the Other section for some additional speculation.

Very little solid information about Merlin has been released. Three screen shots of "the direction" IBM is heading with the Warp interface were shown at Comdex. According to John Soyring, there are no plans to make these screen shots available in the near future.

Current plans supposedly call for the release of Merlin sometime around mid-1996. If IBM conforms to past behavior, there will be a wide external beta sometime before then. An informed _guess_ would be not expect anything before March at the earliest. Comments from IBMers have been to not expect anything for at least a couple on months.

*Until IBM announces an external beta program, there is no way most people can finangle a beta copy. If you are a developer or a large account, ask your local IBM rep. If an external beta program is announced, you _will_ know about it if you monitor comp.os.os2.beta and comp.os.os2.announce.*

What will probably be in Merlin?

Well . . . something old, something new, something borrowed, and lots of Blue - Kris Kwilas


A "fix" for the Single Input Queue(see the FixPack info below) Some portion of this has surfaced in FixPack 16. The inclusion of the fix has been confirmed by IBMers and others. See below.

OpenDoc runtimes. This OpenDoc support may also give users the ability to embed OLE 2.0 objects in OS/2 applications that support OpenDoc. At the moment, it appears that companies and developers are pushing hard for the integration of OpenDoc.

Updated User Interface

Security hooks in the OS. It appears that Merlin will incorporate C2 security extensions. However, it _strongly_ appears that these will only be the hooks to allow third-party developers to C2-enable the OS. These Security Enabling Services(SES) have already been shipped by IBM for OS/2 2.11. To the best of my knowledge, they are not available in a shipping product for OS/2 Warp. There is at least one RedBook available from IBM that has some information about SES.

Improved networking support. The Desktop will be more network-aware. Making connections with other systems should also be streamlined and automated with a feature that may currently be known as AutoConnect. Expect to find more of the networking code integrated into the base OS. This probably means we will see FTP and Web sites visually represented as object links, like in the newer revisions of the WebExplorer and some third-party utilities. You probably would not be too far from the mark if you thought that some of the new IBM Netcomber tools would find their way into the base OS.

HPFS improvements. The rumor mill is going full time with these. Since HPFS would need to be rewritten to a portable model for OS/2 Warp Connect for the PowerPC, it stands to reason that we will see it on Intel in the near future. Rumored features include the elimination of the 2GB file limit, shorter CHKDSK times, and a dynamic cache.

Developer API Extensions. These have been known as DAX/DAPIE in the press. See below under the Lotus products and FixPack 12 for more information.

Improved Plug and Play support. IBM has demonstrated a PM resource manager, so this could be implemented in much the same way as under Windows 95. However, I do not know if this will mean you can just drop a card in and have it automatically configure itself and load drivers. All the IBM references I have seen about this _specifically_ have mentioned something along the lines of "plug and play adapters." To me, this means PCI, PCMCIA/PCCard, or new ISA PnP adapters, not the dynamic loading of dynamic loading and configuration of legacy adapters.

Enhanced multimedia functions

Improved installation routines. Some sort of "Upgrade Advisor" along the lines of the one included in IBM's Windows 95 Recovery Kit will probably make an appearence.

ObjectREXX. Have you ever created your own OO GUI applications? Ever wanted to? You will . . . [More to come on this topic.]

The BonusPak will be enhanced(with at least portions OpenDoc enabled) and some new "surprises" will be added.

Generally referred to as "TrapDoor." This feature is already present in some preloaded IBM machines. Basically, you unload OS/2, leaving only a stub in memory. Then, your DOS application(or possibly Windows 95) that refuses to work under OS/2 executes. When you are finished, OS/2 puts you where you left off. This feature appears to be dependent on all the drivers supporting the APM specification. That is why this appeared first on preloads, as the manufacturer has more control over the drivers. For non-APM compliant machines, expect to see this function emulated in some way. This could present a very viable alternative for anyone who must occasionally run a Win32 application that is not supported under OS/2.

Support for connecting to infra-red printers, notebooks, etc.

Merlin should also include a set of communications API functions along the lines of TAPI in Windows. With any luck, this will also mean IBM will define a common address book/contact manager as part of the OS. If everyone is _really_ lucky, this PIM would be the obvious choice of Lotus Organizer for OS/2. But, who knows? ;-)

It is likely that Lotus cc:Mail will replace UltiMail/2 Lite as the mail client. This is consistent with the intentions stated by IBM after their purchase of Lotus. A new revision of cc:Mail would include support for POP amd SMTP as well as cc:Mail Post Offices.

Expect to see a Notes 4 Client bundled with the base OS. It is a good bet that it will be at the minimum a full "Express" client with mail capabilities, but you may not be able to develop applications without a full license. With the integration of mail functions into Notes, it is conceivable that cc:Mail may drop out of the Merlin lineup.

"PowerSOM" support. Someone mentioned that PowerSOM refers to SOM 3.01 and DSOM 2.01. Expect improved stability and better performance. No further information is currently available.

Support for the VFAT file system. No, I do not know what form this support will take. With any luck, HPFS aware applications will be able to utilize LFNs on VFAT drives.

Win32s support will be enhanced to at least the 1.25 level.

More and more messages are indicating that there CommonPoint(i.e. the Taligent object frameworks) will be a part of the base OS. I have no additional information about what frameworks will be included.

Merlin should include dual-processor SMP support out of the box. See the OS/2 Warp SMP section for additional information. So many sources have winked and hinted at this, that I have decided to promote it in the rankings.

What might be in Merlin?


Someone mentioned that the new book "IBM's Official OS/2 Warp Connect PowerPC Edition" says that ATM and TrueType fonts are supported for OS/2 applications. Some East Asian DBCS versions of OS/2 already have native OS/2 TrueType support, so this may not be as big a leap as it sounds.

For anyone who is interested, the PMMERGE.DLL file shipped with FixPack 16 contains a reference to TrueType that was not there in previous versions.

There are rumors that Merlin will include a new file system. This may or may not be based on the Journaled File System(JFS) used on AIX machines. The JFS in AIX maintains a "journal" of what the file system will be doing in the future(i.e. pending write requests). After the write request is serviced, the journal is updated to reflect this. This allows the file system to recover from problems like OS crashes better. [Note, if someone could send me a better description for what JFS does, I would appreciate it]. A second possibility for a "new" file system would be a journaled file system based on HPFS386. A third possibility is some kind of implementation of the Andrew File System (AFS).

Yet a fourth possibility is some kind of OO file system. There have been hints, but no one is talking.

David Charlap was kind enough to send me a brief overview of journaled file systems and AFS.

"I'm not too familiar with JFS, per se, but I do know a bit about how journaled file systems in general work.

The idea is that you have a reserve piece of the partition where the journal file resides. Whenever the disk is idle, the head sits over the journal space, over the track where the next data block will be written. (Which means there's probably a single journal partition that's used by all journalled file systems on the drive.) When writes are requested, the happen immediately to the journal file. This can happen amazingly fast because there should be no head movement involved. After this is done, the file system will then do the actual writeing and clean up the journal file. (This will happen during idle time, if possible.)

The idea is that if something catastrophic (like a power outage) happens, recovery will be nearly immediate. All to-be-written data (a-la lazy writes) will be somewhere in the journal file. So the CHKDSK program has only to read the journal file, and apply the journalled changes to the rest of the disk. It shouldn't be necessary to actually check out the entire file system.

As for the Andrew file system, Andrew is a project out of CMU for a distributed file system. It's sometimes known as AFS.

Like NFS, AFS creates a huge virtual file system, where you may have drives from all over your network mounted in the same place.

Unlike NFS, AFS is designed for wide area. You could have literally thousands of drives all over the world mounted together. Files and file systems can be moved around and the client apps will never know the difference.

AFS doesn't suffer from horrible performance bottlenecks by keeping a huge cache on your local hard drive. So after the first access to a file, you no longer need network access to continue accessing it.

AFS has other mechanisms for distributed file/record locking, update consistency, and other stuff."

An explicit option for NUMLOCK settings. ;-)

What will not be in Merlin?


The IBM Microkernel. Merlin is based on the current OS/2 Warp kernel. While this may very well be the last version of OS/2 tied specifically to the Intel platform, as of this point in time Merlin is Intel specific. Expect to see a revision of OS/2 Warp Connect for the PowerPC shortly after the release of Merlin that updates the PPC UI, etc.

Support for Win32 binaries. IBM has stated that they will not be supporting Win32 binaries unless customer demand warrants it. In the meantime, developers can utilize the DAPIE extensions to maintain a high degree of code commonality that will allow them to easily recompile for Win32 or OS/2.

Support for Macintosh applications. Merlin will not support Macintosh applications.

As an interesting little aside, I keep receiving indications that a great deal of Merlin is being developed on the PowerPC. It will then be brought back to the Intel side of the house. Before anyone asks, this is in addition to the article that was printed on this after Comdex. At least three people who "seem" to know have commented that many of the Intel Merlin features exist or are being developed on the PowerPC version.

OS/2 Warp SMP


While OS/2 2.11 for Symmetric MultiProcessing machines has existed for well over a year, an equivalent OS/2 Warp version has not been released. Speculation would suggest that this is due to a relative scarcity of SMP-enabled machines. Now, with the release of systems based on the Intel APIC(Advanced Programmable Interrupt Controller) specification, IBM can release a more generic version of OS/2 Warp SMP for use on those platforms.

There is still some confusion about what kernel OS/2 Warp SMP is based on. All indications are that it is strictly Intel-based.

In a discussion about many things on Compuserve, John Soyring had this to say about a request for dual-processor SMP support in the base package(7/21/95):

"Our product planning team recognizes the value of supporting the dyadic processors that we expect to start appearing in the coming months."

A demonstration of OS/2 Warp SMP was being run by DFI at Comdex. The only information I have about that demo is a possible contact - John Matlock VP Marketing matlock@dfiusa.com.

Hint - check your OS/2 Professional and OS/2 Magazines in the January and February. Guess what vendor is supposed to be supplying SMP systems? What OS will it run? Nobody is talking, but OS/2 Warp SMP would probably not be a bad bet.

The current target date for OS/2 Warp SMP appears to be 1Q96.

Updated Win32s support


IBM was conducting a beta of Win32s 1.25 application support. The license for the released beta expired in December, but that does not mean that it stopped working. Unfortunately, the currently available beta version does not support the newest revision(1.30) of Win32s. The newest revision of Win32s adds the Windows 95 common controls and dialogs. Hopefully, this will be a release that will be around long enough for IBM to implement support without Microsoft changing the underlying specification.

Nobody seems to know exactly when a new revision of the driver will be made available. I have seen some secondhand comments that indicate that Win32s 1.30 support may not be included in the Merlin beta. I make no claims as to their veracity.

Bad news for users of Photoshop 3.0. IBM appears to have closed APAR PJ18756 as a permanent restriction in the current version of OS/2 Warp. From the technical description:

"The application fails to load one of its Resource Strings due to the FindResource Win32 API failing. FindResource fails because MicroSoft's Win32 design places resources in the virtual memory region above 2 GB but the OS/2 architecture only allows up to 512 MB of virtual memory in a VDM. Regardless of what Win32S version is supported by OS/2, any application that uses the Win32 FindResource API for a Resource String will fail."

OS/2 FixPacks


This section is the umpteenth cut at consolidating information on the various FixPacks that have been released for OS/2 Warp. It will be expanded as I learn anything additional.

FixPacks are built internally every two weeks. If no major problems turn up in a month of testing each FixPack, it is usually OKed for external release. If you have a bug that is fixed by a specific FixPack, you can call IBM Support and they will provide you with the means to download a copy. Note, FixPacks are primarily intended as bug-fixes. While they may speed up your system, that is not their primary intention.

If you are not having problems, the rule of thumb is not to apply a FixPack. Most of the bug fixes "cured" by FixPacks will not apply to your situation. If you think you are having a problem, then by all means give a FixPack a try. Be aware that using FixPacks that have not been released by IBM will leave your system in an unsupported state.


FixPack 5 was the first official release. It brought the original Red-box Warp up to the Warp FullPack code-level.

FixPack 9 was released briefly. It was pulled and FixPack 10 was quickly issued. However, this is the code level that the OS/2 v3.01 refresh release was based on. This release was a refresh of the original OS/2 Warp v3 for Windows that was released in October 1994.

FixPack 10 was the second official release. It added some improvements to the HPFS code, but also appears to have broken some portion of the REXX and HELPMGR support. Warp Server Beta 2 appears to be based on an intermediate code level near this build.

FixPack 11 was leaked to the Internet. It contained more bug fixes.

There were two versions of FixPack 12. The first, which was leaked to the Internet, was basically a bug-fix like previous FixPacks. It also appeared to introduce some PM problems. Backing out the PMCTLS.DLL file from the archive created by the FixPack install takes care of most errors. Several people reported improved speed and stability with this release.

The second version of FixPack 12 remained IBM Internal only. It was combined with a DAPIE(Striker) beta. This version of FixPack 12 evidentally included the infamous Single Input Queue(SIQ) fix that many of us have been waiting a long time for. It is my understanding that this does not add multiple input queues to OS/2. This input queue has evidentally been redesigned to detect and rip the focus away from any app that hogs the queue for more than 100ms(IBM's Colin Powell on CIS). This is visually represented to the user by adding a red border around the offending app and dumping it to the back of the z-stack. [Does anyone know if a blue border also exists?]

The first version of OS/2 Warp Connect for the PowerPC is slated to include this fix.

The internal version of FixPack 12 made an appearance on DevCon 9. Since this came out at around the same time as FixPack 16, no one really paid it much attention.

FixPack 13 was leaked to the Internet. No additional information about feature/function/bugs is available. It has been suggested that FixPack 13 also contains a partial workaround to the queue problem. This is not the SIQ mentioned above, but an increase to the queue size a la Brent Noorda's PMQSIZE patch. I have not verified this myself.

FixPack 14 was also leaked to the Internet. An interesting tidbit about this FixPack is that it first made its appearence on an IBM FTP site. It appears that the window where FixPack 14 would have been an official release has passed. There have been many reports of increased speed, responsiveness, and improved stability with this release.

FixPack 15 probably existed internally, but was not leaked to the best of my knowledge.


FixPack 16 was been officially released for external distribution. It was pulled after only two weeks due to all sorts of minor, but annoying problems(mostly with applications). Expect a release of FixPack 17(not a rerelease of 16) or higher sometime after 1/15/96. It appears that this time they are going through the extra effort to get it right.

Some of the following information was originally written for FixPack 16. Until a new release appears, I maintain the current version references as they are. FixPack 16 includes some remedies to the SIQ problem. FixPack 16 increases the queue message buffer(a la PMQSize) to a default depth of 3000. This should help prevent messages from getting lost in the queue. There is also at least a portion of a the more pervasive "ripping focus away" fix discussed above.

To see the queue fix in action for yourself, Kurt Westerfeld suggested: "Try doing a search all libraries from an .INF file and hit Ctrl+Esc. Works great!"

For my own part, I have been very pleased with the queue fix. I have not had any identifiable queue hangs since installing FixPack 16. I have also noticed a marked increase in the stability of my system. This is not to say that there are not some problems with FixPack 16, but it has a home on my system until a newer revision appears.

Here are a couple of new FixPack 16 CONFIG.SYS parameters for people to play with. Thanks to Dick Kurtz of OS/2 Fix Distribution(RRKURTZ at BCRVM1 for those of you who know what that means) for the first portion.

"The parameters to the SET command are:

SET PM_ASYNC_FOCUS_CHANGE=ON | ON x | OFF

The default is ON. To turn it off, put

SET PM_ASYNC_FOCUS_CHANGE=OFF

in CONFIG.SYS and reboot.

To change the timeout (I'll describe that in a moment)

SET PM_ASYNC_FOCUS_CHANGE=ON x

where x is in milliseconds. Default is 500 (half a second) and reboot.

The timeout says that that when a focus change is requested (by clicking on another application, hitting Ctl-Esc etc) and the application that has the focus does not respond to the message in x milliseconds, OS/2 determines that the application is not responding to messages, flags his queue as bad and switches focus to the desired application. The system will subsequently monitor that queue to see when it does indeed start responding to messages and mark the queue as good again.

A good first cut at isolating a problem would be to raise the timeout to say, 5000 milliseconds. If that does not help, turn it off and see if that helps. If there is indeed a SIQ fix problem, this will help us isolate it."

SET QUEUE_SIZE_THRESHOLD=x appears to be the parameter that controls the PMQSize-like functionality(see above). The default queue depth appears to be 3000.

SET PM_DYNAMIC_DRAG=ON turns on a full window drag mode a la NT, the Windows 95 Plus Pack, and numerous OS/2 utilities. The IBM code does not extend to VIO windows. While I like their first attempt, the code could certainly use some tuning. The easiest way to seem its limitations is to turn on Always Maintain Sort Order and resize a folder. Pretty choppy, right? It may be because of the video driver not being optimized for that time of redraw, but Windows NT experiences none of the same choppiness with my ATI Mach64 video card.

For anyone who is interested, FixPack 16 also changed the default OS/2 File Open/Save dialog box. I will be linking a snapshot of the new "look" in a slipstream(i.e. not announced/no version change) release of the FAQ. ;-) I have to reinstall the latest ATI Mach64 drivers to correct a palette bug that turns screen captures purple.

*I have also seen one message from an IBMer that seemed to imply that multiple message queues had been implemented as part of the fix. If someone knows for _certain_, I would appreciate an email. I would greatly appreciate if some could drop me a copy of the official fix documentation(or abstract), if it is not classified.*

The best advice I can offer for FixPacks is to be very careful. If you are happy with the way your system is running, and you do not have an APAR that is specifically addressed by a FixPack, it is probably best not to apply one. If, after a couple of weeks, the denziens of the Internet have passed their approval on it, feel free to give it a whirl. Of course, the usual cautions about having a backup and knowing what you are doing apply.

Bottom line: Caveat Emptor!

Lotus WordPro, Freelance Graphics, and Striker


As of this posting, the beta program for these products has not yet begun. The lastest information that I received(secondhand) was that Beta 1 of WordPro would be distributed 1/26/96. My thanks to Kevin Royalty for passing that date along.

IBM was nice enough to post some information about the new version of the Lotus SmartSuite. Jump here for more information. Click here to view a snapshot of a Lotus InfoBox. It is immaterial what platform that screenshot was taken on, as the UI is a part of the Lotus common code strategy(which ties into the DAPIE information below). Everything in the screenshot is common Lotus code that exists in the Windows 3.1, Windows 95, and OS/2 versions of their new products. Some of this code may very well find its way into the Merlin base, but the screenshot tells nothing about the OS that is running. Even the list of Truetype fonts cannot be taken as an indication of the platform, because of the information in the Merlin and FixPack sections of this document.

I am not aware of any additional information on the beta program for the new version of Freelance or 1-2-3. However, some additional information should be made available during Lotusphere '96. Stop by the Lotusphere homepage for more information. Currently, the intention appears to be to demonstrate betas of WordPro and Freelance for OS/2 at the conference.

An application to beta test Lotus products is located at http://www.austin.ibm.com/pspinfo/os2lotus.html.

The current plan is for the new Lotus applications to be implemented on OS/2 using the DAPIE extensions(codename "Striker"). These API extensions to OS/2 implement ~80% of the most commonly used Win32 API calls as native OS/2 calls. This allows a developer to recompile a Win32 application with minimal changes to create a native OS/2 app.

From everything I have seen from Lotus and IBM, these applications will not be based on OpenDoc in the first release. There is also a large question about how the DAPIE stuff will be distributed. To the best of my knowledge, IBM has not announced official plans as of yet.

A message recently crossed my desk that said Lotus has formed a team dedicated to specifically enhancing the OS/2 functionality of the new versions. To me, this means "add features that the Windows versions do not have." FWIW.

My current take on the situation is the WordPro and Freelance will be the first Lotus applications available. Currently, the end of 1Q96 may still be possible for the release of at least WordPro. However, I would not expect to see the SmartSuite released in a new version until at least the end of 2Q96. I would love to be proved wrong, since I would really like to get the complete native package. Based upon the experience of others, I will probably be purchasing an upgrade to the Windows 3.1 version of the SmartSuite in the near future. From there, it is an easy crossgrade(generally media charge only) to the Win32 and OS/2 versions.

OS/2 Warp Server


OS/2 Warp Server builds on the proven combination of OS/2 Warp and OS/2 LAN Server 4.0. OS/2 Warp Server includes an integrated installation procedure, system management features previously available separately, an excellent backup mechanism(with a killer UI!), a remote access server, advanced print functionality, and improved networking support(including a combination of Dynamic DHCP and Dynamic DNS dubbed Dynamic IP).

There will initially be two versions of OS/2 Warp Server - Entry and Advanced. Advanced will include HPFS386 as well as being architected and configured for support of up to 1000 client machines per server. Entry will include regular HPFS and is designed for smaller networks.

OS/2 Warp Server is also slated to include SMP capability(for at least two processors) after release. According to John Soyring(11/30/95):

"We are still in development with the SMP version of OS/2 Warp Server. No one is yet authorized to demo it publicly as all of the development work is not yet complete. The SMP capability is definitely not in beta test nor gamma test."

OS/2 Warp Server is currently undergoing a large external beta program that began in early September. A second wide beta was made available in early December. US and international ordering information for Warp Server Beta 2 code can be found at http://www.austin.ibm.com/pspinfo/betaws.html.

OS/2 Warp Server is slated for a 1Q96 release. The buzz is that the end of January is looking pretty good. The Warp Server Beta 2 code is supposed to be so Gold that it glitters . . .

OS/2 Warp Connect for the PowerPC (Falcon)


[This section will probably not be getting much revision in the near future.]

Bottom line: Forget about purchasing OS/2 Warp Connect for the PowerPC for a PPC machine in 1996. It looks like IBM has decided that there is no advantage to diverting the resources to promote OS/2 on the PowerPC platform, when it has not shown a clear advantage of the new Pentium Pros. One way to look at it is perhaps IBM has decided not to fight a "two front" war. First, they'll deal with Microsoft's Windows 95 and Windows NT. Later on, when the PPC gains some marketshare outside of the Macintosh, IBM will have a product for that platform.

This is not as wild as it sounds. IBM will be advancing their "common code" strategy even more with the release of Merlin. Sometime in late 1996 or early 1997, this will allow IBM to finally release a converged IBM Microkernel release of OS/2, for both Intel and PowerPC platforms(with Alpha/MIPS/etc. possibly following at a later date). Indications are that much of the Intel Merlin code exists and is being developed on the PowerPC version.

The "Developer's Release" of OS/2 Warp PowerPC went Gold on 12/15/95(with availability on 1/5/96). The "Connect" portion of the name appears to have been dropped, as there is no integrated networking in this release. It is only available as an RPQ(Request for Price Quotation). These are used by IBM to offer standard and non-standard products and programs to a set of customers with unique requirements(in this case, customers with an IBM PPC). This release is targeted specifically at developers, but if you have an IBM PowerPC machine(sorry, I do not know about other manufacturers), see below for order information.

I ripped the following description from Compuserve:

"Here is a description: OS/2 Warp (PowerPC Edition) consists of the following products: OS/2 Warp Version 3 for the PowerPC, IBM Micro-kernel, IBM File Server, IBM Registry, BonusPak and the Applications Sampler.

OS/2 Warp (PowerPC Edition) supports execution of OS/2 x86 DOS and Windows+ 3.x binary applications used on today's personal computers. It is shipped with an accompanying BonusPak of productivity applications and online connection software. The BonusPak, a value-packed suite of application programs includes:

  1. IBM Works with spreadsheet, word processing, database, report writing and charting
  2. HyperACCESS Lite for OS/2
  3. FaxWorks Lite for OS/2
  4. OS/2 based CompuServe Information Manager"
Please note that the Internet Access Kit is not part of the above list.

If you are really interested in purchasing a copy of OS/2 Warp (PowerPC Edition), try these simple steps:

  1. Take a piece of your company letterhead.
  2. Write out a purchase order for program number 5799-QTZ.
  3. Find an IBM Marketing Representative and have them order you a copy. Unless you have dealt with your rep before(say, if he is your corporate account representative), you will probably have to pay up front.
  4. Wait for them to finish the paperwork and send the request down to the development lab.
  5. Receive your new copy of OS/2 Warp (PowerPC Edition) and go wild. ;-)
For 1996, the focus for OS/2 is most definitely on the Intel side of the house. More news as it slowly filters its way out of IBM.
Despite the above information, some people may still find the following of interest. I will update and consolidate this next portion eventually.
So far, this product has generated nearly as much vapor as Windows 95. However, the press has not been fawning over it like they were over Windows 95.

OS/2 Warp Connect for the PowerPC(Falcon) is the first commercial release of a product built on the IBM Microkernel(v1.0). Think of the microkernel as the base upon which the rest of the "OS" is built. The microkernel can serve as a base to multiple things at once(for instance OS/2 and a UNIX personality of some sort). By writing portable code for the "OS" portions, a vendor(such as IBM) can easily port their products to another platform that supports the IBM Microkernel. Currently, the IBM Microkernel runs on the Intel and PowerPC platforms.

Developers can simply recompile their 32-bit Intel OS/2 applications and immediately have access to another platform. This process can take from hours to several weeks, depending on the amount of non-portable Intel specific code in the application. I also have one testimonial of a developer recompiling in NINE minutes. Evidentally, one line of code had to be commented out.

Sometime in 1996, version 1.1 of OS/2 Warp Connect for the PowerPC will be released. This version will incorporate improved networking support. Depending on the time frame, this version of Falcon may also include the Merlin UI.

In late 1996, early 1997, there will be a converged Intel/PowerPC OS/2 release based on the microkernel. This version of OS/2 should have complete feature parity. This evolution of the Warp family to the MicroKernel has been laid out for several years. Off the record, some IBMers have been saying since the release of Warp that "the next release"(i.e. Merlin) would be the last version to use the monolithic Intel kernel.

According to a new Mary Jo Foley article in the 12/25 PCWeek, we will not be seeing a major release of OS/2 Warp Connect for the PowerPC in 1996. There will be a "Developer's Release" available directly via IBM reps to those people who can utilize the product(and figure out the confounding IBM order process). Strangely enough, she does not use this article to claim that IBM has abandoned OS/2. Must have been the holiday season . . . ;-)

Commentary: IBM has been pushing the "common code base" strategy for well over a year. IBM reps have unofficially(possibly officially as well) commented many times that the "major" release after what has now become known as Merlin would be a converged Intel/PPC release based on the IBM Microkernel. Based on the ever shifting ship date of OS/2 Warp Connect for the PowerPC(which was originally tied to the PReP design), IBM has decided to put even more focus on making the code base as common as possible. In late 1996 or early 1997, this strategy should start to bear fruit. There might even be a few non-Macintosh PPC machines around by then. I would not expect to be able to purchase a PPC with OS/2 in the next twelve months.

OS/2 Warp Server for the PowerPC (Hawk)


Hawk appears to be the codename for the initial release of Warp Server for the PowerPC. A PCWeek article dated 11/27/95 stated that IBM has shelved this product. Since the rumors of OS/2's death are greatly exaggerated and all the information in the article was from "unnamed sources," I would tend to doubt this. The last I heard(months ago), the intention was to release Hawk by the end of 1996. Information on this product is sketchy at best. I would not expect to see a beta before the GA of OS/2 Warp Connect for the PowerPC 1.1(with the networking support).

I have been in communication with five IBMers who assure me that Hawk is alive and well. The holdup is the OS that it will run on - OS/2 Warp Connect for the PowerPC. See above for the sordid, and decidedly unclear, details about that product.

Projects Eagle and Talon


IBM's Project Eagle is not one specific product. Eagle is IBM's strategy to compete more directly with BackOffice and to emphasize the wide range of solutions that IBM can provide.

Eagle will consist of "server stacks" that can be added onto your servers. Do you need a Transaction Processing Server and a Secure Internet Server? No problem. Add them on top of the base server package, OS/2 Warp Server and AIX are two of the initial server platforms, and you will be all set. If you need a Communications or DSS server in the future, just build upon the common base. Many of these servers already exist. This strategy combines them into a single/multiple product that emphasizes IBM as a solutions provider.

It is my understanding that Eagle refers only to the server stacks for OS/2 Warp Server(both Intel and PowerPC versions). However, the server stacks strategy also applies to the RS/6000 and AS/400 platforms via AIX and OS/400 respectively.

Talon is an integrated package of server stacks consisting of an OS/2 Warp Server or AIX base, a communications Server, a database Server, and a workgroup Server.

Other


CommonPoint/Taligent

IBM has been very tight-lipped about their plans for the CommonPoint technology. Many indications point to some of it should be finding its way into the base operating system in the Merlin release. In fact, if you dig into the Warp Server beta installation, \OS2\Install\SysLevel.suc contains the text "SM20004_SM20003_SOMobjects Taligent Collection Classes." It also appears that the application of FixPack 12 causes SYSLEVEL to report some components as being from Taligent.

According to the IBM press release announcing the absorption of Taligent, CommonPoint for OS/2 is now available.


OpenDoc

OpenDoc for OS/2 went Gold on 12/15/95. Evidentally, it pretty much works as promised. Some private comments have suggested that is not yet 100% solid, but neither is most software these days. Expect to see a special edition of DevCon 9 in late January/early Febraury with the GA code and development tools. The GA code should also be available on IBM's Club OpenDoc in the near future.

Some information I have received indicates that you will need a FixPack 16 or later code revision to make use of this GA version. Please feel free to send me information to the contrary. As a little FYI, FixPack 16 adds an "OpenDoc Document" type to the Associations Settings tab.


Raptor

Some information has recently come to my attention that indicates that Raptor was not referring to CommonPoint at all. Instead, it appears that Raptor may have been the catch-all name for much of the future "common code" strategy. Things like the SIQ six, OpenDoc, CommonPoint, the revised networking code, and dyadic processor support fell under the Raptor aegis. Much of what was known as Raptor has become part and parcel of Merlin. Merlin _may_ therefore be the codename for all the code going into all Intel and PowerPC releases after the initial drop of Warp Server. [Comments?]


Java for OS/2

Nobody outside of IBM seems to know exactly when an external beta of the Java for OS/2 support will appear. The secondhand information I have received indicated that we should see something by the end of January. To keep up to date on the latest IBM Java information, visit http://ncc.hursley.ibm.com/javainfo/.


Netcomber

This section is intended as a placeholder in this version of the FAQ. More information about the IBM Netcomber Internet suite can be found here.


WebExplorer

This section is also intended as a placeholder. The only real news of note is that a leaked internal beta version 1.03a found its way to the Internet in early January. Despite being unsupported and potentially hazardous to your system and the transmission on your car, it works better for me than version 1.03. YMMV.

More information to come!

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