When I first read Roger's e-mail, I felt that it was at least a step in the right
direction. However, on a second reading, I don't feel that I can even go that far.
While I appreciate Roger's taking the time to respond to the overwhelming barrage of
criticism, I do not see anything in his answer that constitutes an apology, or an
acknowledgement that the wrong decision has been made.
There are two problems that make me hesitate to continue to use Imail in current and
future production servers. First, the trust issue which Matt identified - what will be
the next hare-brained plan rolled out with no consultation of the user base? Second,
the future of the platform - will Imail continue to be developed and improved as a
standalone product, or will those of us who elect to stay with it ultimately be given
the same choice, only postponed: go to the full ICS suite, or go somewhere else?
Neither of these issues are addressed in Roger's e-mail.
As I see it, here's what should have happened: if Ipswitch wanted to compete in the
office groupworking suite market, they should have announced that with the next
milestone release of Imail, customers would also be able to buy a suite of additional
_elective_ modules that would together constitute ICS. But that isn't what happened -
they were, and are, saying "if you use Imail server, within the near future, you're
going to have to go to the full ICS suite, or go somewhere else". Given that most
people on this list have stated that they would never use the majority of ICS'
features, the lack of an Imail only option means that in practical terms, this isn't a
change in product so much as a massive price increase for the existing product.
Roger's e-mail is STILL trying to sell us ICS ("You may now make the move to ICS on
your own schedule"), even when it has been made brutally clear on this list that we
ain't buying. This isn't a back-pedal, it isn't an admissal of a mistake, and it most
certainly isn't an announcement that they've changed their minds. What it *is* is the
exact same thing as the original announcement, put in slightly more diplomatic
language. It explicitly offers an extension of the Imail support license at an
increased price, but there is no indication that this "concession" will last, or for
how long, and every indication that it will not, given their obvious continued belief
that we'll all come around to ICS eventually, given enough cajoling.
Bill Pollack posted on Friday that Ipswitch IS listening. Ipswitch is NOT listening,
Bill and Roger - if it was, it would understand that its existing customer base
clearly do not what a vastly bloated and more costly Exchange Server-lite, and stop
trying to push that idea down our throats. In the beautifully eloquent words of Mr.
Bill Foresman: "Bill, we just want imail, plain and simple".
As I read it, Roger's e-mail changes nothing, as far as it goes. Ipswitch are still
killing Imail as a standalone product, and we will seek alternatives within the next
year. There is absolutely and catagorically no way that we will buy ICS, and unless
Ipswitch decides to substantively change their decision about Imail - which they
thusfar have not - I can't possibly recommend that we continue to stay with Imail.
Regards,
Simon Dodd,
Hostmaster
Joink Internet
E: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
T: +1 (812) 234 5100
F: +1 (812) 234 5144
------------------------
"In Critical and baffling situations, it is always best to return to first principle
and simple action" - Sir Winston Churchill
> -----Original Message-----
> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of
> Roger C. Greene
> Sent: Monday, November 01, 2004 9:47 PM
> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Subject: [IMail Forum] IMail/ICS Update
>
> Dear IMail Customers,
>
> The messaging market has changed since we introduced IMail
> almost 10 years ago.� Back then, SMTP and POP3 were most of
> what was needed in a product. Today, there is increasing
> demand for more comprehensive collaboration solutions and the
> stand-alone messaging market is shrinking.� That is why we
> introduced Ipswitch Collaboration Suite as our messaging
> solution for the future.
>
> In introducing ICS, though, we did not fully assess the
> impact on you, our customers.� Many of you have written or
> called to tell us about that impact.� We have listened to
> what you had to say and decided on the following actions:
>
> 1. IMail Server customers may continue to purchase Service
> Agreements without upgrading to ICS.� Since it is at the core
> of ICS, you can be assured that we will continue to enhance
> and support IMail Server. �As of December 1, Service
> Agreement prices will increase to $695 (from $495) for IMail
> Professional and to $375 (from $245) for IMail Small Business.�
>
> Note that anti-virus subscriptions will only be sold as part
> of ICS.� For those who have AV, we believe the ICS value
> proposition is compelling.
>
> As always, we strongly encourage all IMail users to keep
> current with new IMail releases. �We do not believe that
> per-support-incident charges are in the best interests of the
> majority of our users, and will not adopt them at this time
> (but will continue to listen to your feedback).
>
> 2. Ipswitch Instant Messaging customers may also continue to
> purchase Service Agreements.� As of December 1, the Service
> Agreement price will increase to $195 (from $99).
>
> 3. The December 31 deadline for cross-grade pricing to ICS
> has been eliminated, so you have more time to plan.� You may
> now make the move to ICS on your own schedule.
>
> I am sure that many of you will have questions about your
> particular circumstances, and I encourage you to talk to your
> Ipswitch or reseller salesperson about the best path forward
> for you.� I want to especially thank those of you who took
> the time to call us and explain your situations in detail.�
> We are pleased that we ended up opening a more direct channel
> of communications with all of you who wrote or called. �Last
> week Bill Pollack sent an e-mail with management names and
> phone numbers; please always feel free to call us.
>
>
> Sincerely,
>
>
> Roger Greene
> President
>
>
>
> To Unsubscribe: http://www.ipswitch.com/support/mailing-lists.html
> List Archive:
> http://www.mail-archive.com/imail_forum%40list.ipswitch.com/
> Knowledge Base/FAQ: http://www.ipswitch.com/support/IMail/
>
>
To Unsubscribe: http://www.ipswitch.com/support/mailing-lists.html
List Archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/imail_forum%40list.ipswitch.com/
Knowledge Base/FAQ: http://www.ipswitch.com/support/IMail/
