Scott:
Thanks for the reply to my "nostalgia" post and the useful info. I also prefer WP over MS Word, I've used WP since its v5.0 DOS days, and have always regarded it as a better program than MS WORD. I haven't upgraded to WP 2000 yet, but the reviews have been good, particularly the ability to seamlessly deal with MS WORD files.
I think Corel really lost its way in 1997 diverting its talent and $$ into Java based applications, net computers and what have you. The WP Suite, with the right sales and marketing support, particularly to the corporate world, could have held onto its then substantial market share, and used the cash from that business to fund its (Cowpland's) ambitions as the MSFT giant killer. Bigger people than Cowpland (like Ellison, McNealy) have tried to dethrone Gates and Co., and they haven't succeeded yet.
However, as I pointed out back in 1997, the window of opportunity for Corel was small, because of the upgrades to pentium machines, WIN 95/97, and new office software that I saw going on apace in the the companies I consult for, particularly the major law firms where WP originally got its foothold. Corel management didn't seem to grasp that, and now seems to me to be stuck with the small % of the market that MSFT is content to let them have. That may of course change, and I have and will keep watching to see if Corel can increase market share in the corporate world.
As for recouping my Corel losses, there have clearly been numerous opportunities to make good trading COSFF/CORL, but that's not my style. I prefer to take long term positions in companies that I've done my homework on, and hang on through all the market gyrations. I do trade a small % of my holdings, but over the last three years my track record "trading" is poorer than my "buy/hold" approach. If there's one thing I learned from my Corel experience, it is that it's as important to research the company management as it is the underlying market, business and financials. Sounds from your post that O'Reilly is a big improvement over Norris, how's the corporate sales guy from Dell working out?
Good luck with your obviously long term Corel holding!
David T. |
