Manolo v. 4.1 to be released Jan. 3

TORONTO, ON (elToronteco). The launching of version 4.1 of the operative system (OS) Manolo is expected to take place in Corso Italia this next Thursday, 3 January 2008, was announced on a recent press release by Manolo & Co. A summary of the previous versions and releases will give an idea of the impact that the new features of v. 4.1 introduces and/or refines from previous incarnations of this reliable but fairly unknown OS. One of this main new features is the capability of full deployment as a stand alone OS, while being more efficient for networking. Here is a "condensed" history of Manolo:

Manolo v.1 Originally created in 1975, Manolo came with factory defaults shared with other OS of the time, such as RomeroGT. These defaults made Manolo quite successful in the deployment of work (and study) routines. Due to its ability to manage data from different sources simultaneously and to efficiently handle complex software applications version 1 didn't need many changes for more than a decade and a half. At that point, though, the appearance of loops and other bugs made it start to get hung up when trying to run programs related to both past and future. One of the original main developers of Manolo started using the term "growing pains" to describe the difficulties version 1 started having. She still uses appropriately this term for the motivations behind the release of 4.1.
V.1.2 was launched on January of 1993 in what came to be some of the most formative years and the successful use of Manolo in networks beyond academic environments. An expanded self-reflection sub-routine produced a paradigm change in the belief system that had already been questioned by v.1.1. Version 1.2 specialized in one field of study, Psychology, but had consistently add-ons from other disciplines, in particular Anthropology, Mathematics and to a certain extent Education.
V.1.2 SP1 For the first two or three years of the marketing of Manolo 1.2 there was flirting with the idea of introducing a Service Package (SP) to solve some of the bugs and loops encountered by upgrading from v.1.0 to v.1.1 in the late 80s and early 90s. In 1995, after a couple of attempts in producing such SP, Manolo started to run using SP1. SP1 transformed some of the networking features of Manolo and created a branding issue by producing a dependency on services packages for subsequent versions of this OS.

Manolo 2.0 Shortly after the introduction of SP2, the first program in Psychology was discontinued due to succesful completion. However, the developing team wasn't prepared for the mayor changes that V 2.0 was going through. SP2 was upgraded to fiancée and eventually to spouse. There were more working packages installed. There was a reframing of the belief system, clearly influenced by SP2. And finally was the relocation of the headquarters of the software company that produces Manolo from Guatemala to Canada. There were fatal errors in the different upgrades of SP2. And in June of 2001 a Beta version of Manolo 3.0 had to be introduced as a stand-alone OS.

Manolo 3.0 Since the release of V.2.2 the Psychology software packages were discontinued, although some of the background processes were still running at the startup of the OS. Manolo 3.0 (Beta) had, therefore, a new Insurance and Financial suite and there was even talks of introducing an MBA upgrade, potentially for versions 3.1 or 3.2. Remember that the Beta version of Manolo 3.0 was a stand alone version. The final release of V. 3.0 included the SP3, which indirectly created a resurgence of academic and research programming in Manolo.
Version 3.1 was the first release to be done in Toronto and came with an MA suite that needed some time to run properly. It also continued the in-house installation of SP3 that came standard in the last version produced in Waterloo (v.3.05). The integration of Manolo to SP3 was so organic that sometimes Manolo 3.0 is simply called Manolo SP3, which may have confused some of the users of the OS. Historically, even though there have been three service packages and, up to this point in the story, three versions of Manolo, there is no one to one match between them. Actually both SP1 and SP2 were added to solve bugs on the last few releases of V 1.0.
Due to decisions in the direction of the company, Manolo 3.1 tried to discontinue or had limited use of some of the software developed in the original headquarters in Guatemala. There were issues with international trade agreements that also made it difficult for the transportation of Manolo to its casa matriz. However, Manolo 3.2 re-introduced some new versions of the software packages that version 1 had made popular, including the Guatemalan identity, the Cultural Studies and Anthropology and the Mathematics module, this last one now targeted to Statistics.
It is important to mention that the different Service Packages were not developed by the same company that produces Manolo. The SPs have always been outsourced and there is always the issue of full compatibility. There were upgrades in SP3 that started discussions on the drawing board of Manolo 3.3 about making it a semi stand-alone OS, but keeping SP3 as part of Manolo. Because of the implications of the marketing mix- up of Manolo 3 and Manolo SP3 and a new turn in terms of software innovation, Manolo 3.3 was never released.
Manolo 4.0 The fourth version of Manolo was launched in September of the recently defunct 2007. It no longer included a Service Package, but was still dependent on other idle processes to run. A very unsuccessful release of 4.05 in October was highly publicized along with a move of the company from North York to Corso Italia (the St. Clair West and Dufferin area). For many reasons, the launch of Manolo 4.1 was pulled back from the Spring of 2008 to 3 January. These are some of the new features of this new version of Manolo:

• No more Service Packages. The concept of the SP was introduced as a "patch" for the OS. Subsequent releases and versions of Manolo would look forward for compatibility and integration, more than "solutions" to endless loops and chronic bugs. This integration with other systems will presuppose a merging of the software companies and not only agreements to produce SPs for Manolo.
  


• Full Stand-Alone version. The moving forward, not only of the headquarters but also of the philosophy of the company that develops Manolo, will have Manolo 4.1 running completely by itself of the first time ever. "These are exciting times for this organization" the re-freshed CEO of Manolo & Co. stated on a press release last month in Toronto. However, Manolo 4.1 will still be an efficient OS for networking and will rely on the strategic partnerships it has created during the more than three decades on the market


• Work and Play upgrades. It is expected that this release and subsequent releases of version 4 will be able to complete the PhD program introduced on Manolo 3.2. A more efficient usage of virtual memory will hopefully provide with a better use of resources not only in research but also for entertainment possibilities.

Due to the relocation of the developing facilities of Manolo & Co. and the preparations for the launching of Manolo 4.1 the company announced a closing of operations for 2 January. Any pending replies and communications should resume no later than next Friday. The press release finishes with this statement: "Manolo & Co. would like to thank all the end-users and retailers for their continuing support and hopes that Manolo 4.1 would be soon embraced (and will embrace back) by old and new loyal costumers".