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Technology Stocks : All About Sun Microsystems -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: cheryl williamson who wrote (19082)	8/31/1999 9:03:00 PM
From: Rusty Johnson	Respond to of 64865

Briefing.com on SUNW ... Sun Microsystems (SUNW) 79 +3 3/8: Just as we mentioned yesterday on this page, Sun buys Star Division, a German software company that produces an office productivity suite that runs on the Sun Solaris system, Linux, OS/2 (remember that?), and, one other system, oh yes, Microsoft Windows. Is this the business model that finally brings down Microsoft (MSFT)? That's certainly the hype that is being thrown around the deal in the mass media, but most don't really explain what is different about it. Furthermore, Sun itself is going out of its way to state that they are not buying Star to compete with Microsoft Office. But the truth is they are going after Microsoft, but with the only business model that has a chance: a web based server-centric thin client model. Microsoft's financial strength has been a license based on a "per-user" basis. Microsoft Office's revenues are nearly all derived from preinstalled desktop licenses and large site licenses for corporations. If Sun can offer the same computing power on a "per-server" model, they stand of chance of undermining the Office stranglehold on the desktop. What we think Sun will do with the Star products is the following: 1) adapt the base technology so that all of the features are interactive through a browser (using Java, of course); 2) Sell the basic Star server software to internet service provides or corporations, for them to provide remote productivity to users or employees; 3) Offer Star server products preinstalled on Sun servers for web use. Step 1 makes Java more widely accepted. Step 2 is a software business model for Sun, but it gives ISPs the ability to "rent" word processing. The "access your word processing from anywhere" strategy will be powerful, just as web-email boomed. Step 3 means a corporation can provide productivity to every employee, without a per-person fee. Giving away the Star software now for desktop use has only one purpose: get the product accepted in general use. Microsoft strategy has been to get NT accepted as the server operating system; it has had mixed success so far. Can Sun leapfrog NT with features like Star, that bring a new business model to the enterprise? A lot depends on what the Star product actually looks like, but Sun is capable of making a good product. Overall, we think it is a very positive move, even though the acquisition price hasn't been revealed. But in the end, it is only a very small step towards battling Microsoft. A big step would be something like Sun and Oracle (ORCL) merging. Now there's an idea... - RVG Better idea ... buy Informix and get the best database technology for a song. Best of luck.

To: cheryl williamson who wrote (19082)	8/31/1999 10:05:00 PM
From: Reginald Middleton	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 64865

<Well, let's see the solutions. Are you willing to give yours away for free???> Yes, I am. A lot freer than Sun may I add. That is the entire basis of my business model. Maybe you should have came by the NuoMedia page to catch up on the details. <How about M$FT???> Maybe, maybe not. We'll see. <Too bad your ideas and implementation didn't precede Star Division's.> Why is that? Star division's is not as scalable as mine, at least from what I know of it. We have discussed the weaknesses right here in this forum. <You would have done well to sell your software to SUNW.> Again, why is that? Sun has never proven themselves in the consumer/retail markets. What makes you think this time will be any different? I am not saying they won't do well, but to think that they are going to hit a home run this time although they have never been able to get to first base in the past is overly optimistic.