Real Time View

It was a wild ride into New Orleans but we had to continue driving – there wasn’t any alternative as commitments had been made. How often do we make plans even today without fully exploring back-up options? I have covered a lot of distance over the past couple of weeks and with February already drawing to a close these trips have included visits to Las Vegas and New Orleans. What we observed and how we handled the travel have been covered in previous posts, but it’s fair to say, both towns share a couple of things in common. They are entertainment capitals certainly, but they are also living on the edge – gambling is in evidence everywhere you turn. A history steeped in riverboat gamblers is hard to hide in New Orleans even as the crime bosses inventiveness in Las Vegas too seems to still permeate its streets and yet, there’s a constant stream of visitors to both locations who seem focused on doing nothing other than gambling. And with risk come rewards, but only to a select few an

A chance forced detour out on the highway reminded me of just how important good service is - for the NonStop community there are many options when it comes to service and I suspect there will be even greater demand for services in the future. Think for a moment about Hybrids and NonStop as Software!   Driving the many miles we do, attending one conference or another, we probably spend more time in car service bays than most. Throw into the mix the need to accommodate extreme temperature changes that living next to the continental divide creates, and the expenses climb steadily through any given year. Seeking the assistance of service managers isn’t restricted to where we live either, as we have been forced, on occasion, to pull into garages all across the western states of America. Service, particularly when it comes to cars, is something Margo and I know a lot about. As much as it really hurts to own up to such familiarity with car service centers across the country, it’s our ba

With road trips about to kick off in earnest, it’s good to be getting out and about among the NonStop community. And the good news is that NonStop is still here, still funded even as it remains highly visible to senior executives within HPE! Calendars are being reviewed and with a flourish of highlighting pens the first half of 2016 is beginning to take shape. Who says that the NonStop community isn’t active or that there’s little support for user events? Clearly, the first half of the year will be bookended with 2016 HP Discover , but there will be other events including MRTUG (Chicago) and possibly GTUG (Berlin) that are really must-attend occasions. I would have liked to have penciled in SunTUG , as the folks out at Tampa are always fun to be with, but already we have to deal with conflicting dates. There are also plans firming up for Margo and me to participate in industry association events as well, with the ATMIA event in New Orleans scheduled for later this month now