Re: 64 Bit Compatibility

Folks,

>  > *I* know what "64 bit compatibility" means, but I have been
> programming for
>  > 20 years.. how many members of the press corps are going to know what
> that
>  > means? and if someone doesn't know what it means, how likely are they to
>  > look it up or ask someone that knows about these things?

In one way, it's not important.   "64 Bit Compatibility" is one of today's
tech buzzwords, like "Web Services" or like "ready for the Enterprise" was 3
years ago.   These terms and phrases too vague to be meaningful in and of
themselves, but it's important to point out that you "have" them loudly and
repeatedly lest you get classified as "legacy software" by the press ... and
in the corporate executive boardroom, where VP decisions are often governed
by buzzwords:

Pointy-Haired Boss:  We need to migrate to a SQL Server.

Dilbert Thinks: (Is this something he really wants, or something he saw in a
trade magazine?)

Dilbert Asks:  What color should that SQL Server be, boss?

Pointy-Haired Boss:  Blue.

Dilbert:  Right away, sir!

Like "Web Services", "64 Bit Compatiblity" is nothing new; Java and Perl have
been supporting "web services" for 5-6 years, and most Unix software has been
compiled to Sparc or MIPS years ago.  But the general trade press just
discovered "64 Bit Compatibility" two years ago, so it's "cutting edge" to
them.

The real news worth reporting from us is that we have at least one proven and
tested PostgreSQL version working on Opteron, and that PostgreSQL will
compile on Opteron out of the tarball, including making some advantage of the
extra memory space.

Also that we've been compiled, tested, and running on several other 64-bit
architectures, some for years.

But we do need to use the phrase "64 Bit Compatible" or "64 Bit Optimized" or
something similar.   Reporters in the general trade press look for those
kinds of buzz phrases.

P.S. The Open Source press generally know better, but in a way they're not as
important for us to reach, since they already know the value of PostgreSQL.

--
Josh Berkus
Aglio Database Solutions
San Francisco