Past Blasting
Nov. 30th, 2005 04:28 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
susandennisI got a note this afternoon from a woman who is putting together a retirement party slide show for a guy I used to work for. I worked for him in Minnesota and in California but the holes in her show were Minnesota... did I have any pictures?
Well, yeah... The one below. (The retiree, Tom, is the one standing behind and just in between the beige dress and the powder blue suit. That's me in the ever so lovely cream number.) The picture was a product announce award. And the product was the AS/400. In those days, you never announced a product before the first day of sale. Until it was built, ready and announced, it was a state secret and a well kept one for the most part.
However, it's my personal theory that the AS/400 paved the way for changes in product announcements. We had a bunch of customers that we made early disclosures to. They had to sign more documents than a ball player does autographs and, as I recall, pledge their first born son to a variety of deities but they did get early product info and the end of the world didn't come.
These days, of course, you get the full product spec before you even get the slideware. But. What.Ever.
Back then Announce Day was still a big fucking deal. For the AS/400, they set up a photog studio in the plant and every team was marched through it and had their picture taken with the hardware. Then everyone was given a framed copy. It was a huge crowd pleaser and the picture is really nice memento even after all these years. June 1988
Well, yeah... The one below. (The retiree, Tom, is the one standing behind and just in between the beige dress and the powder blue suit. That's me in the ever so lovely cream number.) The picture was a product announce award. And the product was the AS/400. In those days, you never announced a product before the first day of sale. Until it was built, ready and announced, it was a state secret and a well kept one for the most part.
However, it's my personal theory that the AS/400 paved the way for changes in product announcements. We had a bunch of customers that we made early disclosures to. They had to sign more documents than a ball player does autographs and, as I recall, pledge their first born son to a variety of deities but they did get early product info and the end of the world didn't come.
These days, of course, you get the full product spec before you even get the slideware. But. What.Ever.
Back then Announce Day was still a big fucking deal. For the AS/400, they set up a photog studio in the plant and every team was marched through it and had their picture taken with the hardware. Then everyone was given a framed copy. It was a huge crowd pleaser and the picture is really nice memento even after all these years. June 1988
