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: Frank Ellis Morris who wrote (85452)	12/15/1998 5:30:00 PM
From: jhg_in_kc	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 176387

AUSTIN, Texas (Dow Jones)--Michael Dell, founder and chief executive of Dell Computer Corp. (DELL), said Tuesday that his company is reviewing an offer by Oracle Corp. (ORCL) and Sun Microsystems Inc. (SUNW) to participate in their plans for a new simplified business computer. Oracle and Sun announced the joint effort this week and are collaborating on the software to run the machines. But they need a computer company such as Dell or Compaq Computer Corp. to sign on to produce them. "They have given us information about it," Dell said following a Partners for Smart Growth conference here, where he was a featured speaker. But it is probably a little too early to tell if Dell Computer will be interested in the deal, Dell said. Some analysts have described the Oracle/Sun deal as an attack upon Microsoft Corp.'s (MSFT) dominance in the operating system market because the simplified business computers wouldn't need a full operating system to function. But Dell, who has declined to take a position in the federal government's antitrust case against Microsoft, said his sole concern is whether the Oracle/Sun product is something consumers would be interested in. Dell, whose company has its headquarters in Round Rock, Texas, outside Austin, and is a major employer in the region, spoke on the first day of the three-day national Smart Growth conference at the Austin Convention Center. Smart growth has become a popular term among development and land use experts and is defined as growth that benefits the community and the environment as well as achieving economic goals. Dell told the several hundred urban planners, environmentalists and developers in attendance that the Austin region's quality of life has been crucial to Dell Computer in attracting and retaining good employees. It's part of a formula he knows well: Dell Computer has been growing at a rate of about 55% annually and hired about 8,000 new employees in the last 12 months, he said. The company has become the fourth-largest computer maker. Meanwhile, Austin has approved a total of $624 million in bonds to fund everything from new roads to new parks to new libraries to keep pace with the boom it's experiencing from Dell and other area high-tech companies. Quality of life "is important when there's essentially negative unemployment," Dell said. "These are highly mobile workers (in the computer industry), and if there's an attractive opportunity somewhere else, it's very easy for them to move." Corporations have an obligation to communicate their plans and needs to local government officials, he said, while local governments have an obligation to see that roads and other infrastructure keep up. Dell was chosen as a featured speaker at the conference because of his reputation for cooperating with Austin city planners and neighborhood leaders despite the company's rapid growth. Dell Computer won accolades from city officials earlier this year, when it selected a 570-acre site for a new manufacturing plant in northeast Austin that city officials previously had designated for such a use. Attendees at the conference agreed with Dell that proper urban planning, combined with cooperation from local business, is the key to creating attractive communities that ultimately benefit everyone. "We can't pave our way out of congestion," said Reid Ewing, a consultant with LDR International in Florida. "And even if we could, the cost would be too high." -Bob Sechler; 512-236-9637 More about Dell Computer Corp.: From leading business publications From The Wall Street Journal Powered by Quote Agent® and News Agent® from IDD Information Services Copyright © 1998 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

To: Frank Ellis Morris who wrote (85452)	12/15/1998 6:28:00 PM
From: Zeem	Respond to of 176387

Hi Frank - I thought that too, so I sent them (Dell Investor Relations) a note today. Of course I don't expect an answer nor do I think they owe me one. I just wanted them to know we are thinking of them and they should be thinking of us. I do realize that they should stick to making the best computers in the world but, I know they have greater influence than we with the powers to be. I still remain Dellish but they're going to have to show me a sign before I bring some dogs home. The dell dogs ain't hunted in the last 6 mos. Now, over at AMZN, those dogs hunt Y'all!