Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Technology Stocks : Dell Technologies Inc. -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: K. M. Strickler who wrote (48056)	6/18/1998 2:09:00 AM
From: rudedog	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 176387

Ken - Look at IBM's performance as a company between 1964, when they first began to implement the integrated 'family' strategy which led to the 360 and grew into the S390 architecture, and the early 1980's, when they let the genie out of the PC bottle. Not necessarily a bad model to follow. IBM had plenty of competition in 1964. Burroughs, Sperry, Univac, GE to name a few. Not too much left by the mid-70s though. If CPQ is going to follow that track I will be well satisfied, at least for the next 15 or 20 years... but frankly I don't think it's that easy today.

To: K. M. Strickler who wrote (48056)	6/18/1998 3:27:00 AM
From: FR1	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 176387

Didn't IBM of 'yesteryear' try to be that 'full serve' provider? Yeah, but it is hard to compare yesterday to today. Everybody I knew hated IBM for the same reason - their tendency to lock everyone into their proprietary hardware and software. Then charge enormous sums. Minor Example: When 3.5" floppies first came out I checked all over the US and found a good supplier selling boxes of ten for $6.50. IBM was also $6.50 and I was amazed. Then I noted it was $6.50 each. Identical floppy. CPQ can't charge high prices and understands it is forced to adapt to a rapidly changing and totally unexplored world. Solution: Buy em all - then throw everything at the wall and see what sticks. Marginlise the money losers or charge more for the product. Push what sticks. CPQ Website: rudedog is right about CPQ web site. It really sucks - I give it a F+. It's a unforgivable sin because all they have to do is copy DELL and others that work. CPQ was bragging today that their web site writes more business than DELL. Then you find out they are getting the stores to order over the internet and counting store orders in their sales figures. Pretend you want to buy a SCSI drive for your server. Go to the Compaq web site and tell me how long it takes you to find the product and order. You should never be more than about 4 page clicks from placing a order. Otherwise you got a design problem. They desperately need a ad agency design team (not technocrats) to completely re-do their site.