San Jose – let’s not forget the way...

Well, the Big Event is over. The vendors have packed up their booths, the booze is all gone, and the HP product managers, developers, and execs are safely home in their remote offices.  And even though the weather was almost the same, everyone in attendance overwhelmingly preferred San Jose to that other city.  The HP NonStop Symposium and EXPO turned out to exceed everyone's expectations not only in terms of Customer attendance but also HP and Partner involvement.

Yes, this was the biggest and best NonStop event in years (and with a killer Tandem-style beer bust) where we proved beyond a doubt that there is still life in the NonStop family and the platform that runs mission critical applications for the world's largest companies. This year we were also able to spend time with customers that we have not seen in a while and the attitude was very much like the old (ITUG) days. Far more Europeans, Latin Americans and Asian customers were present than at HPTF in 2009 – several of whom were actively seeking tools to aid PCI compliance projects.

There were dozens of business and technical sessions, including standing-room-only customer how-to's, NonStop software and hardware roadmaps, and presentations from Vendor Partners. PCI compliance was a common theme throughout the event and it’s only going to increase.  Packed presentations by end-users Netherlands-based Equens and Wells Fargo Bank and HP’s Karen Copeland and Wendy Bartlett show just how in tune the NonStop Community is with PCI Compliance.  That illustrates just how much of our mission critical and confidential information is trusted to a NonStop!  It's amazing how much customers are willing to share their experiences because of the pride they have in their NonStop server applications tuned to perfection, secure and protected from disaster.

XYPRO specifically enjoyed an unprecedented amount of coverage at this event as we were lucky enough to have it take place right around the time our XYGATE Merged Audit software solution begins automatically shipping on all new H and J systems.  The interest level is extremely high and we are thrilled at the positive response!

Yes, a pleasant time was had by all and I hope that we remember it for a long time. The level of international customer attendance was inspiring!  The XYPRO customer dinner was very well received and we would like to thank everyone who attended.

It may seem a disappointment hearing that next year’s event will be part of the HP Software / Tech Forum conference at the Venetian hotel in Vegas, but your voices may have been heard. In his keynote, Winston Prather said that this event would be restructured to retain the strong community feel that this Symposium displayed. The big question is whether or not HP will be sending the same number of NonStop product managers and developers and it will be interesting to see how the big tent event achieves the incredible dynamic we all experienced in San Jose.  The amount of interaction with HP staff and customers was simply something we hadn't enjoyed in years and everyone seemed to revel in the long overdue opportunity. 

But hey, the next event is 9 months away and if customers take the time to communicate their preference - another NonStop Symposium in San Jose? You never know...




Lisa Partridge