Date:         Wed, 18 Dec 1996 11:11:11 PST
Reply-To:     Melvin Klassen <KLASSEN@UVVM.UVIC.CA>
Sender:       "SAS(r) Discussion" <SAS-L@UGA.CC.UGA.EDU>
From:         Melvin Klassen <KLASSEN@UVVM.UVIC.CA>
Subject:      Re: Acad. site license and older versions

David Nasser <NASSER@UMSLVMA.UMSL.EDU> writes:
>When I asked for a new setinit (under an academic site license) for my
>little OS/2 SAS 6.10 that I sometimes run at home, I was told that SI
>had a new policy of supporting only the current version (6.11).
>Is this true? If so, I wonder why they would change the policy after
>all these years? Any info would be appreciated.
 
First, we need to define "support".
 
If you need a new SETINIT for an older version,
the people in the "licensing" department of the SAS Institute
should do this for you.
 
If you report a bug in, say, Version 6.06,
the people in the "technical support" department of S.I.
should look in their database, to see if a fix for it is already available.
If it is, they'll send the fix to you.
If no fix is available, they'll encourage you to try your code
in a newer release, to see if they've already fixed the problem.
If it has been fixed, then it's "your" problem, not "theirs".
 
If you report a bug in, say, Version 6.11,
the people in the "technical support" should look in their database,
to see if a fix is already available.  If not, they should record all
the details of your problem, so that it can be recreated, and a fix can be
created, shipped to you, and incorporated into the "next" version of SAS.
 
This is all "support".  What level of "support" do you want?