First of all I would like to say I have no ideas why SUN wants to get Alliance with Intel
to promote Merced, instead of promoting its own CPUS. My speculationis:
1) Cost concerns
2) Technology concerns
3) Prepare to merge with CPQ, and useing Merced is just the first step, and then give up
UNIX based workstation business.
4) A protective conduct.
We all know SUN has long wanted to be a software company like MSFT but never succeed.
If SUN also promote Mercede with different OS, then there is no difference between SUN's
UNIX based workstation and CPQ's NT based workstation as far as hardwares are concerned,
the difference is softwares. So, SUN will compete head to head with MSFT, instead of INTEL.
However, personally, I think INTC's Mercede probably will be similar with SUN's
next generation CPU as far as technology is concerned, so, people buy NT based workstation
is because the OS , not because the hardwares. In the engineering world , there are complaints
for long time that UNIX is hard to use and learn, and I also knew that a lot of software
companies had started to translate their programs to NT based operating system from UNIX
about four to five years ago, and now it is time to promote the NT based software into the market!! |
