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Technology Stocks : How high will Microsoft fly? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: RTev who wrote (28404)	8/19/1999 4:57:00 PM
From: ericneu	Respond to of 74651

And they create a unique Redmonian phrase in the process, "razz in". A person overhearing a cell phone conversation might be baffled by something like, "I'm off-campus today, but I'll razz in and check that." It would, however, make perfect sense to most folks at Microsoft. To "RAS in" is to log on to the corporate network from a remote location. Many corporations use RAS for the same purpose. I wonder if the "razz in" phrase is used elsewhere. Very true, although "RAS in" refers to any kind of dial-up connection, not just VPN. And it's definitely spread, I hear it from customers all the time. My wife even uses it now... :) - Eric

To: RTev who wrote (28404)	8/19/1999 7:35:00 PM
From: RTev	Respond to of 74651

Here's story from Salon that rolls together some themes that have been discussed frequently on this thread concerning free PCs and alternative OSes. A PC in every pot salonmag.com Excerpts: ...The popularity of free PCs is galvanizing the computer industry to ponder a near future when computers could literally be as ubiquitous as household appliances. Chasing this new vision, some computer manufacturers are even redesigning their products to look more like appliances -- building stripped-down boxes with button interfaces and one-click access to rudimentary software, like e-mail or calendar programs. The operating system behind those buttons, increasingly, is not Windows, but Be, Linux or Amiga -- alternative operating systems which are known for their simplicity and stability, and are often cheaper than Windows. ... The concept, according to the evangelists, is that most low-end consumers will use their PCs only for Web access, word processing, and e-mail. Instead of owning an expensive PC that includes everything but the kitchen sink, they say, you'll eventually own a variety of cheaper "appliances" that do one or two things well. ... Take the iToaster, a new computer about to ship from Microworkz. Based on the BeOS, the black iToaster is a stripped-down device with a proprietary interface that consists of a number of square buttons across the screen. There are buttons not just for word processing, calendars and e-mail, but for music, auctions, shopping, weather, news and stocks. ... In addition to the Be and Linux operating systems appearing on cheap boxes, prepare to witness the revival of the Amiga operating system as PC maker Gateway quietly slips into the appliance market. Using patents it bought from Amiga, the classic computing system that has all but disappeared from the market, Gateway plans to release a series of "appliance products" early next year. ... Despite the optimism of the computer manufacturers and their operating-system partners, there are plenty that pooh-pooh the notion that the free PC gives Linux or Be a fighting chance against Windows. The world, like it or not, still equates "computer" with "Windows," ... ... If the free PC start-ups really plan to take on the Wintel crowd, they have some work to do. Most don't sell their wares through typical retail chains; the iToaster and iDot machines, for example, are only available online. And Microworkz has a reputation for not fulfilling orders in a timely fashion. ... But even naysayers like analyst Stephen Baker admit that if appliances really do take off, there will be a bigger market for operating systems like Linux, Be, Amiga and the MacOS. After all, the interface of an "appliance" doesn't necessarily have to look like a traditional desktop; each interface could be customized for the purpose of the machine, so a user wouldn't care whether it's running on Windows or Linux -- if, that is, the free PC makers succeed in making the back-end operating system invisible.