Student kit expires 1-Feb-2024

[snadow]

I saw this briefly discussed in another thread, but it was more of a tangential discussion.

ANYWAY: The VSI Student kit at https://training.vmssoftware.com/student-license/ is a pre-built Alpha V8.4-2L2 environment running on the FreeAXP Alpha emulation software for Microsoft Windows. Without a doubt, it's a great tool for exactly the purpose it was meant for: Students learning OpenVMS in their own "world" that they can halt / boot / experiment / crash / etc. at will. I like it for "trying system stuff" when I don't have a development system handy and I am not feeling bold enough to experiment on a production server.

Sure, one can get a community license and do a raw install of an OpenVMS distribution kit instead, but that's a much steeper learning curve for a newbie, and it also means spending a not insignificant amount of time to learn how to work with the FreeAXP emulation software too. And even if you're a seasoned veteran, there's a lot more TIME involved to get a usable system configured from scratch versus just clicking a Windows icon to start the ready-to-run student kit.

Enough rambling on my part! Is there going to be a new student kit with a new expiration date on it tomorrow? Or is there something on the verge of being made available that will be an x86 kit that will render using the FreeAXP emulator and V8.4-2L2 obsolete?

Thanks,
Scott

[mister.moderator]

Hi Scott,

The future of the student license is currently being discussed and we will send an announcement once we have a clear decision.