Fw:Some Firms, Let Down by Costly Computers, Opt to 'De-Engineer'
Jay Thomas (jpthomas@ix.netcom.com)
Mon, 11 May 1998 16:46:48 -0400
> Title: Some Firms, Let Down by Costly Computers, Opt to 'De-Engineer'
> Source: Wall Street Journal (A1)
> <http://www.wsj.com>
> Author: Bernard Wysocki Jr.
> Issue: Technology in the Workplace
> Description: A great article about the costs of today's rush to have
> more/better computer technology. Due to the "deadly" combination of a
> fast-changing landscape, an increasingly complex array of software, and
> technology boosters' can-do mentality (even when they can't), some
> companies are abandoning plans for newer -- high-end computing options,
> and returning to older -- work-horse systems, searching for better balance
> between man[sic]power and computer power. The article describes a failed
> collaboration between IBM and Pacific Gas & Electric, in which IBM's new
> system couldn't meet the demands of PG&E's changing service environment.
> Many companies are refusing costly and complex upgrades as they realize
> that employees are using only a fraction of available computing power.
> Aeroquip's president calculated that the full cost of upgrading his
> company's 50-person research lab from Windows 3.1 to Windows95 was $20,000
> per person. The article also cites a 1996 survey that found that 42% of
> corporate information-technology projects were abandoned before
> completion, and that US companies spend about $250 billion annually on
> computer technology. [We selected this story as a heads-up to nonprofit
> professionals who may be dealing with similar issues.]
>
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--
Jay Thomas (w)617-576-4832
Network Manager (b)617-546-2444
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Verbing weirds language -- Calvin