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To: The Duke of URL© who wrote (2534)	2/8/2003 12:59:51 PM
From: MeDroogies	Respond to of 4345

Blaming it on something, and that thing playing a major role are 2 very different arguments. Smoot played a major role because it caused trade to decline, just a point in time when trade was greatly needed to remove certain surplusses in the world economy. The other issues, that you describe as "effects", were reactions to the market meltdown and other international issues of the time. The market meltdown, and these international issues, were not the depression, nor did they specifically cause it. Charles Kindelberger has written some of the best stuff on crashes and depressions. You would, undoubtedly, find him, and any other economist that is well schooled in the depression, blaming it on a singular event or item. Many things led to a confluence of events that created the depression. Glass Steagall would not have prevented another depression any more than Smoot Hawley (alone) would have caused one. Compare it, again as an analogy, to the addition of grains of sand to a pile. Eventually, one grain will fall that causes a landslide. Is that single grain the cause, or were any of the ones that came before it partially responsible? Believe me, I've written enough papers for grad school on the Depression. At this point, the amount of misinformation that is available to the public exceeds valuable study. There are far too many crackpots who blame it on fiat currency, blame it on government intervention (or lack thereof) or some other ridiculous thing. It takes alot to cause a depression, and all those things have to occur at the same time, or within a reasonable time frame. That is why they are so rare.

To: The Duke of URL© who wrote (2534)	2/9/2003 5:45:37 PM
From: PCSS	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 4345

Sun Microsystems lowers prices By Scott Morrison and Simon London in San Francisco Sun Microsystems will announce on Monday that it is cutting prices for mid-range and high-end servers by as much as 35 per cent, a move the troubled computer maker hopes will enable it to remain competitive with rivals such as IBM and Hewlett-Packard. Sun will also make a series of product announcements, including the release of its first blade servers - thin computers increasingly popular with corporate customers because they generate less heat and use less space. The price cuts and new products are critical for Sun, which is struggling to return to long-term profitability amid an economic downturn that has seen IT spending slashed, forcing computer makers to discount prices to retain market share. Paul McGuckin, analyst at research firm Gartner, said IBM's high-end servers, used to perform complex corporate computing functions, cost about 20 per cent less than comparable systems from Sun before today's price cuts. He also said HP has been increasingly willing to discount prices aggressively in order to compete for corporate accounts. Sun has long argued that its systems are cheaper in the long term if systems management, support and other factors are taken into account. But corporate customers are increasingly opting for hardware with the lowest up-front costs. Cheap servers based on Intel microprocessors and the Linux operating system, developed by the open source software community, are gaining in popularity at the expense of servers based on the Unix operating system on which Sun has built its reputation. Sun last month reported a $2.3bn net loss for its most recent quarter, including a $2.1bn writedown on the value of acquired companies. The blade servers unveiled today will be the first products from Sun to feature new technology aimed at making it easier for companies to manage large computer networks. Systems management and administration costs are estimated to absorb on average 80 per cent of corporate IT budgets. Sun plans later this year to introduce similar technology across its product range. IBM and HP are working on their own "managed computing" initiatives. All three companies believe managed computing technology will become essential in the future as they compete for a greater share of corporate IT spending.