Replies

as users make do with the PCs they already have.

I think that's the key. My P3 500 does everything I want it to do. I can't see upgrading at this time.

Windows OS is now the cost or more than a cheap system... that is the truth. $150-$200 for an OS is insane when an entire machine can be build from retail parts for the same price.

I am not reporting windows demise, but as Linux gets more exposer and robust user interfaces and software support, MS is going to have to start adjusting the pricing, or concede the low end. I know they don't want to do it, but that's reality.

Right now Dell/Gateway etc keep their low end machines at around $500-$600 and can only do that by perpetually upgrading what is their low end device. As sales continue to stagnate because of saturation and slower economy the "upgrade" to keep pricepoint model will begin to falter. When that happens, and if things stay the way they are which I expect them to for a good while yet, the price point of the Dell/Compaq/Gateway low end will go below that $500 mark, and when that happens it will put even further pressure on the cost of the OS.

Microsoft Corp. won't cut the price on its Windows operating system to compete with a $199 personal computer that runs rival operating software, the No. 1 software company's CEO said Wednesday At the time a new IBM PC cost $4,000.00 minus monitor. That is when the first clones hit. After IBM lost the court cas on BIOS they announced that they would not lower prices to compete wiht an upstart brand called Pc Limited owned by a college student named Michael Dell. The Dell cost $2,500.00. Today Dell has a much larger share of the PC business than IBM. IBM is not clost to having a monopoly.

The problem for the people who think LINUX can compete with Windows is it is not competitive to Windows. The Dell PC was an IBM Pc clone. LOOK UP CLONE IN THE DICTIONARY. It is the key to success in defeating Microsoft.

If you could run IBM's Pc you could run Michael Dell's Pc. Back in 1915, when Ford had 90 percent of the car market, if you could drive Ford's Model T, you could drive General Motors' Chevrolet.

Being able to run Windows does not mean you can run LINUX. NO one could have defeated the Ford' car with an airplane. And LINUX will not defeat WINDOWS. LINUX and Windows are operating systems in the way that planes and cars are transportation vehicles.

What kills Linux is the training costs. I can buy a Dell for $800 bucks with Windows installed and spend zero on training. Or I could pay $200 for one with Linux and spend $1,000 on training. When my total cost is $1,200 to buy a LINUX computer or $800.00 to buy a Windows computer, which do you think I will buy?

When you look at the total cost FREE LINUX costs more than EXPENSIVE WINDOWS. CEO's look at total cost. That is why they get the big bucks. Until the LINUX people solve that problem they are doomed to 1 or 2 percent of the desktop share.

Even in servers LINUX can't get the low end market. One can easily spend $2,000 on operating system software for each Windows 2000 server. The same functionality comes with FREE LINUX. Anyone can install and hook up Windows 2000 servers to windows 2000 or xp clients. It costs at least $50,000 a year to get a guy who can get a Linux server to work seamlessly with Windows 2000 and XP clients.

The total cost of server software for 4 servers running Windows 2000 is about $12,000.00 including labor to install and maintain them for the first year. OK! The total costs of server software for 4 servers running LINUX is $50,000.00 when the cost of the required LINUX GURU is included. And each year of its life thereafter the windows cost is about $3,000 for labor to maintain the servers, and the GURU to keep my Free LINUX running will cost $50,000.00 plus raises.

It works like this small business can't aford FREE LINUX. But it can hack the costs of EXPENSIVE WINDOWS.

Linux now installs as easily as Windows. But configuring it so Windows clients are able to talk to LINUX servers costs at least one LINUX GURU.

When a Linux client has no training costs and any windows server jockey can do a linux server, Bill Gates will be in deep doo doo. But until a LINUX GURU is not required to use a LINUX server with Windows Client, ONLY the big RICH companies can affort LINUX.

I hope the buyers have more luck with Linux than I have.

I've tried 4 different distributions, with NONE of them installing properly so far. Most of my problems have centered on getting the Mickey Mouse but essential app X-Windows to operate properly.

The level of configuration required by X-Windows is utterly ridiculous. What program nowadays can't properly deal with a standard PC display (laptop in my case)? Everything else I run, from 1980's utilities and programs through year 2000 CAD programs have no trouble at all. MS-DOS, Windows 95 and Windows NT 4.0 all can do it - but the latest Mandrake and Red Hat distributions couldn't, and neither could older Caldera and Red Hat.

Linux is for masochists.

I'd been hoping for something to match all the "lean and mean" and "high performance" hype. What I found was an unfriendly '60's mainframe OS with a poorly glued on GUI that ANY version of Windows could beat, performance-wise.

For servers it may be great. For the desktop, it's definitely not ready for prime time. Perhaps the late, late, late show, for those with nothing better to do with their time.

Operating systems are two orders of magnitude more complex than the PC hardware that they run on.

Nobody wants an incompatible OS.

BUMP

Will it wipe out our ability to do innovative work like Windows XP? That it will do," he said.
____________________

All lies all the time from Ballmer. Mr. FUD. Microsoft had 30 billion sitting in cash last time I looked. They are a very rich company but still feel compelled to lie.

hmm $199. plus $50 for a modem. $150 for a monitor. $20 for speakers.

or just pay $450 for an emachines box that already has everything and you can actually find software for. people want AOL. once they take the training wheels off, they graduated to 128meg video cards.

it's niche market marketing.