If you don’t know yet what you’re doing to adjust to HP’s departure from the 3000 community, count a big firm in league with you: Hewlett-Packard. It’s estimated that about 400 HP 3000s are still working inside HP operations, some of them handling the most mission critical processes the company has. HP uses outside support for its applications from Managed Business Solutions on some 3000s, but MBS and HP haven’t decided how the third party could help HP make a transition that will cost millions of dollars. CSY R&D manager Dave Wilde had this comment: “We are working with our customers and partners to plan a transition to an alternate HP platform by the end of 2006. We are gathering feedback and will be assessing issues like this with our partners to determine if and how such issues can be addressed. This does not change our recommendation that customers begin planning a transition now.”