To: Sun Tzu who wrote (12661 ) 5/18/1999 1:59:00 AM From: Patrick Grinsell Read Replies (2) | Respond to of 16960
Could those of you who go to the anual meeting or call the company ask 3dfx what they are doing to ensure they will not be production limited. Way ahead of you Sun. I asked this question at the merger meeting. Looking over my notes over at Tigerinvestor.com, it appears I missed covering this. So whip me...sorry guys. (What's up with that JAG guy? Was that last post from the same person?) Anyway, it looks like Juarez has space for another 2 or 3 production lines. If memory serves they are running in two shifts but can go to three if they need. Building out the new production lines and putting the new equipment in place should take time but adding the extra shift can be done quickly. Of course, this would cost extra and take a few points off the margin. It appears that most people, including the analysts, aren't asking the right questions about 3dfx. Here are the questions that deserve scrutiny. 1) What is currently being done to ensure production problems won't arise (esp. fab space)? 2) What kind of cost controls are in place? 3) What is 3dfx's gameplan that will ensure they will get OEM's vs. S3 or ATI? 4) Why was the 3500 delayed? (Note that EBWorld and NECX still have the 3500 listed for later this month but have taken out any references to LCDfx...interesting!) 5) WTF is Talon? Come clean damnit, you already announced the damn product. (Just so you guys know, I have no idea what it is, but given the rumors from E3 I suspect it's V3 SLI on the motherboard.) 6) How do you justify the use of 20 million in advertising, almost $1 per share? Was a cost/benefit analysis done? 7) What is the justification for the investment in Quantum3d? Note that none of these questions have anything to do with benchmarks or 32 bit or John Carmack's opinions. The reason is if all the other stuff is taken care of these things should fall in line by themselves. Too many people are sweating the petty crap and not keeping their eye on the ball. Keep your ears peeled tomorrow gentlemen. If there is an analyst out there reading this, please ask meaningful questions. Feel free to steal from the above. Pat