IBM Corp has finally given up on trying to persuade the 100,000-plus System/36 shops still out there to upgrade direct to the AS/400, and rather than lose them to Unix, it is preparing a new PowerPC-based System/36 model for launch later this year, the May issue of IBM System User reports. The new 36 is built around the forthcoming PowerPC 620 64-bit RISC processor that is also being tailored for use in the next generation of AS/400s, which are planned to be launched a year from now. But the new 36 will run only the System/36 System Support Program, SSP, operating system – although it will be upgradable to the planned PowerPC-based AS/400. Research suggests that there may still be over 200,000 System/36 machines still in service, but many are running old applications in shops that also have AS/400s installed, and a substantial proportion of the all-36 shops have multiple System/36s.
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