WINDOWS MAGAZINE
December 01, 1998, Issue: 912
Section: Windows News
-------------------------------------------------------------------- Operating Systems -- PC Vendors Jump On NT5 Bandwagon
Jim Forbes
For computer hardware vendors, Windows NT 5.0 is like Christmas to a small child-it just can't get here fast enough. After all, in a marketplace sorely lacking a killer app to inspire users to upgrade to more powerful 450MHz systems, Microsoft's newest OS is viewed as a hot ticket that could stir up sales, particularly at the high end of the spectrum where fatter profit margins reside. That's why some PC vendors aren't waiting for Santa to come to them this time: A few are getting a jump on NT5 before it even hits the market by building systems and implementing programs that support the OS while it's still in beta form.
One of the most aggressive on this front has been Micron Electronics. In September, the company implemented a program called AdvanceDeploy, which gave customers the opportunity to purchase its Millennia and ClientPro desktops or Trek II and GoBook II notebooks already configured with Beta 2 of NT5. The program also included extensive technical support for Beta 2 users. Micron officials said that demand for AdvanceDeploy systems has exceeded the company's expectations.
Compaq has also gotten in on the action by setting up a dedicated support site on the Web for users of its DeskPro EN and EP series of desktop computers running NT5 Beta 2 (unlike Micron it does not sell systems already equipped with the beta). The site contains frequently asked questions on how to set up and maintain the new operating system in the corporate enterprise, as well as the necessary drivers, utilities, ROM BIOS upgrades and supporting text files.
Number-one PC maker Dell Computer is also considering climbing aboard the NT5 predeployment bandwagon. According to Michael Stich, software product manager for Dell's Optiplex line of desktop computers, the company is thinking about selling and supporting systems that could be purchased with an NT5 beta already installed. However, he notes that the company would wait until Microsoft releases Beta 3 of the operating system (expected in early 1999, according to Microsoft sources) before making such a move.
Why the sudden compulsion to get in early with NT5? "We think it's important for a [PC maker] to participate in these [predeployment] programs. Unless you do this, you run the risk of not understanding what customers will do with (your hardware)," argued Dell's Stich. Micron officials have made similar assertions, saying that its AdvanceDeploy program was created to help customers better integrate NT5 when the final release of the OS arrives sometime next year. |
