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Strategies & Market Trends : Cents and Sensibility - Kimberly and Friends' Consortium -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: puborectalis who wrote (24283)	11/7/1999
From: Marshall001	Respond to of 108040

Stephen, Thanks for the tips but I meant I am having DSL installed in my house.. My internet connection is sooooo sslllooowww. I like COBT and will be buying soon. BTW, Just read through 80+ informative posts that have answered about every question I had about alternative brokers/software.. Thanks again guys.. What a wonderful place this is becoming. M

To: puborectalis who wrote (24283)	11/7/1999 4:21:00 PM
From: puborectalis	Respond to of 108040

"Cobalt, based in Mountain View, California, has taken the Linux operating system a step beyond Red Hat's CD-ROM and technical support package. Cobalt manufactures, configures, and sells complete computer systems preinstalled with one of the Linux distributions. These server appliances deliver single Internet-related applications, such as file serving, Web hosting, email, or electronic commerce. Cobalt, in fact, utilizes a version of Red Hat for its Linux software, for which it pays a license fee. Cobalt customizes the Red Hat version by eliminating large portions of general-purpose source code it deems unnecessary for a dedicated server appliance, thereby tailoring the remaining source code to work effectively with its dedicated hardware. Dataquest, an industry research firm, expects the server appliance market to grow from $2.2 billion in 1999 to approximately $15.8 billion in 2003, representing a 64 percent compound annual growth rate. Dataquest expects the Linux-based server appliance market to grow at approximately 69 percent a year between 1999 and 2003 and to represent approximately 24 percent of the total server appliance market, or $3.8 billion, in 2003. So far, Cobalt has yet to tap that rich keg. Since its founding in 1996, the company claims to have sold more than 17,000 server appliances in more than 65 countries. Yet for the nine months ended October 1, Cobalt posted a loss of $13.7 million on sales of $13.8 million. That dollar for dollar equivalent in sales and losses is actually a good sign compared to last year, when Cobalt posted losses of $6.6 million on sales of $1.5 million. EARLY BIRDS GET WORMS Among the early investors is August Capital, which now holds a 9.9 percent equity stake in Cobalt (down from 12.1 percent before the offering). Chase Venture Capital Associates now holds a 9 percent position (down from 11 percent preoffer). Techfarm/Techfund Capital is on board with a similar postoffer holding of 9 percent (down from 11.1 percent in the preoffer). In addition, Vanguard V lays claim to a postoffering 6.7 percent equity position, while Crystal Internet Venture Fund rounds out the bunch with a 5.1 percent stake. A few days before the IPO, Cobalt announced that Allegiance Telecom (Nasdaq: ALGX) bought one of its server appliances to provide dedicated Web hosting services to Allegiance customers. Allegiance is a nationwide facilities-based competitive local exchange carrier (CLEC) that plans to provide its small- and medium-size business customers Internet services. In early September, Paul Allen's Vulcan Ventures closed a 1.5 million share purchase of Allegiance common stock from a group private equity fund of investors for an undisclosed price. THE LINUX LINEUP There are a slew of other companies with a Linux bent that are rumored to be eyeing their own public showing. LinuxOne, a Linux software distributor out of Mountain View, California, and Andover.net, a content company in Acton, Massachusetts, specializing in Linux-related links for developers, have already filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for their own IPOs. Also rumored to be mulling a filing is the anecdotal leader in the alternative OS underground, VA Linux Systems, a Sunnyvale, California, company that makes high-end computer servers and workstations for corporations. In addition to those companies, some companies popular among the Linux followers seem to be biding their time for any liquidation action: Caldera Systems, Mandrakesoft, and Turbolinux, along with Linux support provider Linuxcare."