Why is DELL Still in Business?????? (1 Viewer)

[Fifty2One]

That would be pointless - Cadillac does not have them for a Hyundai Accent

But you don't NEED to go to the Cadillac dealer to buy windshield wipers....

 

[Galaxiom]

Yes it is shameful that parts are not standardised. Cadillac and Hyundai should be forced to use the same engine too.

 

[Vassago]

And different gaming systems should accept each other's peripherals.

Seriously though, the fact that all of your competition has agreed on an industry standard and you choose to ignore it just seems counter-productive to me, but it's their perogative. If they want to alienate themselves to interchangable parts, it's their business. You can either choose to go with them or not. I'll choose to not.

 

[statsman]

There are certain industries where standards are an absolute must to ensure safety or because technical requirements make them essential. Even so, televisions do not have one standard world wide. As a result, a North American TV doesn't work in Europe or Asia, a European TV doesn't work in Asia or North America and Asian TVs don't work in Europe of North America (yes, I know that Sony makes TVs for all these markets but the TVs they sell in North America and Europe are built to the local standards, not the Japanese ones).

Are computers really one of those areas...not really. It is still a mostly free marketplace which makes the watch words "buyer beware" important. Just like deciding what kind of car you should buy, research is an important factor. I would never buy a brand of computer unless I knew someone who had one and got their opinion first.

I remember the first computer I owned was an Olivetti. They had it rigged up so that only an Olivetti printer would operate from it. Both ends of the printer ribbon had a unique plug style and forget about finding an adaptor.

 

[Yarp]

The only problem I have had over the last 4 years using my Dell laptop and desktop are relating to Vista being rubbish. I have upgraded the RAM in both and they still handle everything I want to do. The desktop has a new graphics card (a couple of years ago) and it still manages new games with decent performance. My issues are with Vista using all the system resources, and not necessarily with Dell.

 

[Fifty2One]

With Toyota fuel management systems, Mazda steering compoonents and Chrysler brakes... might as well have all of then feature MS Synch so they have a quiet ride.

Yes it is shameful that parts are not standardised. Cadillac and Hyundai should be forced to use the same engine too.

 

[kevlray]

Computers are a lot more standardized then when I started with computers. The first standard I remember for computers is the S100 bus (I think that is what it was called). Anyhow, there were a lot of small computer companies early on and nothing was compatiable (Atari, Amgia, PC compatiable, Apple (various varieties), TI, etc.).

 

[Banana]

Why is DELL Still in Business??????

For same reasons Hell is still in business.

 

[Steve R.]

Computers are a lot more standardized then when I started with computers. The first standard I remember for computers is the S100 bus (I think that is what it was called). Anyhow, there were a lot of small computer companies early on and nothing was compatiable (Atari, Amgia, PC compatiable, Apple (various varieties), TI, etc.).

Few people seem to realize that the PC became a worldwide success because of interoperability. The problem is that, over time, our business climate has changed. Rather than embrace openness companies and compete on product quality. Companies now attempt to lock customers into their product line-up. This of course means the use of proprietary components and lack of choice for the consumer.

The quest to maximize profits through disingenuous business practices may end by as a losing proposition. Only time will tell.

For same reasons Hell is still in business.

Very good.

 

[boblarson]

The problem is that, over time, our business climate has changed. Rather than embrace openness companies and compete on product quality. Companies now attempt to lock customers into their product line-up.

Hmm, I'm not seeing that. In fact, I'm seeing the opposite as more and more parts become interchangeable. Where are you seeing this trend? In fact, there are more standards today than there ever were in the past. Also, the open source community has had quite an influence on many things.

 

[Banana]

I wonder if Steve R. is actually thinking about software. I agree with Bob that in terms of hardware, compatibility is much less an issue than it was even few years ago however brands we may talk about.

 

[Vassago]

Software is also less of an issue because of the open-source push as Bob mentioned. There are only a few companies today who seem to have hardware proprietary, and Dell happens to be one of them. Now for most parts, they are pretty open. You can replace hard drives and such. Power supplies seem to be a big one for them. Another argument could be they were tired of people using third-party power supplies from Ebay that ended up causing more problems with the laptop that they would have to fix. There are many speculations.

 

[Banana]

Well, I would probably rephrase that just slightly - for a end user software, I do think there are lot more cross platform solutions than before but for something that's more packaged, there's still a fair amount of lock-in. For instance, Microsoft's SharePoint, Oracle's products, IBM's Websphere and so on.

 

[Steve R.]

Hmm, I'm not seeing that. In fact, I'm seeing the opposite as more and more parts become interchangeable. Where are you seeing this trend? In fact, there are more standards today than there ever were in the past. Also, the open source community has had quite an influence on many things.

Come on, your causing me to have to think and find examples. Unfortunately for me, at this time of night, I don't know if I will be responding that well.

First, you are correct that there are more standards today and the open source community is having an influence. For example, I am taking a look at how to learn HTML/CSS code and both books that I am looking at acknowledge that the lack of standards forced the implementation of standards so that all browsers would function reliably. Also, Cell phones used to be locked to a specific provider, but that restriction is crumbling.

I suppose my big examples of locking the consumer into a product line would be ink cartridges and music platforms such as iTunes, Windows Media Player, and music servers. (But then, if I remember correctly, Apple now offers DRM free music. But then again Apple fought against cell phone jail breaking and lost.) Microsoft had "play-for-sure", but killed it. Another example would be "reward cards" that have become a retail rage. Of course reward cards don't stop you from going to a competitor, but they do provide a limited incentive to stay in-the-family.

I guess, I haven't come-up with any really good examples.