Re: IBM Nixes Net PC
Amy Terlaga (aterlaga@www.biblio.org)
Wed, 10 Sep 1997 13:55:19 -0400
Date: Wed, 10 Sep 1997 13:55:19 -0400
Message-Id: <1.5.4.32.19970910180043.0086ec34@www.biblio.org>
From: Amy Terlaga <aterlaga@www.biblio.org>
To: Multiple recipients of list <conntech>
Subject: Re: IBM Nixes Net PC
Cost may not be a factor, but maintenance and support may be.
Roughly one-fourth of the libraries in our consortium have LAN-attached PCs,
but I'd say more than half of my calls these days involve PC-related support
issues. And that percentage is steadily increasing.
Not that I'm complaining, mind you. Job security. ;-)
Amy
At 12:16 PM 9/10/97 -0400, sufflib@tiac.net wrote:
>Rob, PC prices will be dropping so low that NET PCs will hold no advantage.
>
>>From Information Week (Sept. 8, 1997, p. 15):
>
>"Analysts say a Windows NT-capable corporate PC sporting a 166-MHz--or
>faster--Pentium with MMX graphics, 32 Mbytes of RAM, built in networking,
>and 1 Gbyte or larger disk will sell for around $800 early next year or by
>mid-year at the latest." (Note: $150 more for a monitor).
>
>Joe Cadieux
>Suffield's Kent Memorial Library
>
>
>
>At 10:57 AM 9/10/97 -0400, you wrote:
>>Jim, I'm actually a little surprised at IBM's response to this market. We
>>have public access to the Internet at the Wallingford P.L. and several
>>patrons have told me they have no need for a pc but would like to have
>>Internet access at home. Many of these people are older and have stated
>>that cost is a factor. A net pc would allow them to send e-mail, do
>>genealogy searches and much more.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>At 08:23 PM 9/9/97 -0400, you wrote:
>>>
>>>IBM NIXES NET PCs
>>>Three months after demonstrating a prototype, IBM now says it won't pursue
>>>the NetPC market after all. The NetPC is a stripped down version of a
>>>desktop computer, priced at around $1,000 and based on Intel microprocessors
>>>and Microsoft operating software. "There was a herd mentality about NetPCs
>>>and now we see some of the breakup of the herd," says the president of a
>>>Washington, D.C.-based computer consulting firm. IBM says its customers
>>>have indicated they'd prefer to spend a little more money and get the
>>>network and software management features found on full-fledged PCs. With
>>>hardware prices continuing to fall, "nobody can give a compelling reason why
>>>a NetPC makes sense," says one PC vendor. (Wall Street Journal 8 Sep 97)
>>>
>>> -- from Edupage
>>>
>>>[Whew. That was close.]
>>>
>>>JMK
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Amy Terlaga Libraries Sharing Computerized Services
Bibliomation, Inc
Stratford, CT
aterlaga@biblio.org