Friday January 14 08:24 AM EST Compaq steps iPaq toward business
John G. Spooner, ZDNet
Compaq Computer Corp.'s commercial PC group is attempting to use service and support to
pull ahead of the "paq."
To compliment its soon-to-ship iPaq PC, the Houston, Texas, PC maker is about to launch a service
and support initiative that will allow corporate IT managers to configure and install software on the iPaq
with relative ease.
Under the initiative, which consists of a partnership with manageability
software maker Altiris Inc., Compaq Compaq (NYSE: CPQ - news) will
install Altiris eXpress software on iPaq PCs, beginning on January 24.
Companies will be able to use the eXpress to install applications or
deliver software updates, as well as perform backup and restore
operations on their iPaqs.
A feature called PC transplant will also simplify the transition from an old
PC by capturing a person's preferences and application settings, then
moving them to the iPaq. eXpress can also be used to automatically
configure a PC, based on information that can be collected by a Compaq
Aero handheld fitted with a bar code scanner.
Simplicity is key
Compaq officials said a forthcoming Gartner Group study will prove the worth of the eXpress software.
The report they said will show that managing a PC costs about $225 each per year, but that a
company can cut that cost by 50 to 60 percent if it uses a tool such as eXpress to simplify PC
management.
Simplification is also key to Compaq's overall strategy.
Compaq developed iPaq as part of move to make PCs simpler. It is working to develop a number of
easy-to-use Internet appliance-like devices to compliment iPaq, Company officials said. A Compaq
customer would, for example, use an iPaq at the office and take one of its Aero Windows CE devices
on the road.
Companies should think, "This whole notion of what you use here and now is going to be much more
appliance-like," said Ed Reynolds, director of Compaq's Lifecycle Solutions Group, which was in
charge of putting together the Altiris deal. "There's going to be a new world order ... where people are
going to have individual appliances for the situation they are in at the present time."
One such device in development at Compaq is a wireless handheld that will use Microsoft Corp.'s
(Nasdaq: MSFT - news) Windows CE operating system. It should be introduced in April or May,
company officials said.
Pagers and cell phones
Compaq is also evaluating partnerships with manufacturers of pager devices and cellular phones so
that it might deliver them to customers as well. They will likely come as part of a complete offering,
which will help connect customers to data stored on their corporate network.
The eXpress software can be used for 30 days for free, after which it will cost about $30 per PC, along
with a maintenance fee of about 25 percent of that cost. It will, however, be free for the first 30 days.
Later in the year, Compaq will offer the software on its Armada notebooks and Deskpro desktop PCs.
iPaq, scheduled to ship by mid-January, has received a few thousand orders at this point, Compaq
officials said.
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