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OS/2 Shareware BBS: 32 Periodic
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1995-05-17
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OS/2 Warp Connect: A Suite Idea
by Jeri Dube
After the initial success of OS/2 Warp, IBM was confronted with
the problem of making a good thing better. To solve this
problem, they decided on the classical approach of improving on
success - combine the good thing with other good things. This
operational philosophy has lead to a large number of fabulous
inventions: banana splits, step aerobics, water ballet,
spandex, pine-scented cleansers. The list of things improved in
this manner goes on indefinitely. This philosophy is not new to
the software industry. It is this philosophy that lead to the
creation of "suites".
What Makes OS/2 Warp Connect So Suite?
OS/2 Warp Connect, in essence, is a suite of products that makes
life easier. By combining the OS/2 operating system with
productivity and on-line connection software, IBM has created an
easy-to-install, reliable, one-box connectivity software
solution. OS/2 Warp Connect offers a visually appealing,
intuitive user interface, compatibility with DOS and Windows
applications and the performance and reliability expected from
IBM products, all at a competitive price.
The list of features that come with OS/2 Warp Connect is quite
extensive. Everything that comes with OS/2 Warp comes with OS/2
Warp Connect. That means that the spreadsheet, word processor,
and the rest of the set of full-function applications that
define the IBM Works piece of OS/2 Warp are all included. The
other BonusPak features for OS/2 Warp also come in the Connect
suite, so you get fax and communications software that provides
an easy way to access on-line services, bulletin boards and
other PCs and mainframes. The IBM Person-to-Person for OS/2
(P2P) application is there as well. This software lets up to
eight people work together on the same document from remote PCs
over standard telephone lines or an office network. Every
participant can view information simultaneously and write or
draw their comments.
The connectivity features included in OS/2 Warp Connect are
really what differentiates it from its OS/2 predecessors. Never
before has IBM offered such a wide variety of connectivity
options in one package. This product lets you hook up to a LAN
as a LAN Server Requester, a NetWare client or as a peer. And
the Connect package makes it easy to choose any or all of these
options. OS/2 Warp Connect includes software that lets you
remotely access a PC or use the LAN resources in the office.
Furthermore, getting this rich level of connectivity is easy.
You no longer have to know or understand all the software
packages that you need to buy, all the connectivity software
needed is included in the Connect package. Furthermore, getting this rich level of connectivity is easy.
You no longer have to know or understand all the software
packages that you need to buy, all the connectivity software
needed is included in the Connect package. For example, if a
small medical office with five personal computers use OS/2 Warp
Connect, the Peer product lets all five computers share one
printer. And if any member of the team needs to work remotely,
OS/2 Peer Services allows the remote worker to share files and
resources.
IBM is also putting Lotus Notes Express in the OS/2 Warp Connect
package. With Express, customers get a communication and
collaboration platform where they can easily share information
via databases. They also get seven application templates for
setting up databases. The templates are for:
Discussion databases
Client/server mail
Phone book
Reference databases
News databases
Customer tracking
Service requester.
How Does OS/2 Warp Connect Make Life Better?
Using OS/2 Warp Connect can improve and simplify computing
conditions in a variety of situations. For example, a company
trying to hook into the Internet can get everything they need in
the OS/2 Warp Connect package. TCP/IP for OS/2 Version 3.0 is
included in OS/2 Warp Connect, so the company automatically gets
dial-up and LAN access to the Internet, the capability for
simultaneous LAN-based TCP/IP and Internet activity as well as a
variety of connectivity services. These services include IBM
WebExplorer, Gopher Client, NewsReader/2, SLIP connection,
TelnetPM and more. Without OS/2 Warp Connect, a company would
have to buy and install TCP/IP separately, and they still
wouldn't be able to take advantage of all the IBM connectivity
services right away. With OS/2 Warp Connect, a company gets a
versatile connectivity package and saves both installation time
and money.
Another situation where a company can save time and money with
OS/2 Warp Connect is when they are setting up a new team of
workers. IBM Peer for OS/2 included in OS/2 Warp Connect makes
it quite simple for the team to share data files and resources
on a network, such as printers and modems, without a dedicated
LAN Server. For example, if a small medical office with five
personal computers use OS/2 Warp Connect, the Peer product lets
all five computers share one printer. And if any member of the
team needs to work remotely, OS/2 Peer Services allows the
remote worker to share files and resources. And if any member of
the team needs to work remotely, OS/2 Peer allows the remote
worker to share files and resources.
For companies that need to hook client workstations to a server,
OS/2 Warp Connect provides all the necessary client components.
There are multiple transport protocols so clients can connect to
all the major LAN server products on the market, and more than
one server can be accessed at a time. OS/2 Warp Connect
simplifies logging on to a host session and signing on to a
server by letting users have a single sign-on for multiple
servers.
OS/2 Warp Connect can simplify life for the people who install,
maintain and configure software for large networks because it
offers CID installable components. CID stands for
Configuration, Installation and Distribution and its purpose is
to provide the tools for simplified remote installation and
configuration of software.
As Suite as a Banana Split - And No Calories!
Just as the value of a banana split comes from the combination
of the individual elements, the same is true of OS/2 Warp
Connect. Just about all of the components have been offered by
IBM before, but the value comes from the integration of the
separate elements into a collective package that is reasonably
priced, easily installed and reliable.