Gordon Haff Money Quotations

Dell has had a very focused strategy: Don't spend a lot on research and development, leverage the work of others, and deliver cookie-cutter servers and desktops cheaply. That lined up well with the market when saving money was in. But IT managers have to consider more than price now in making buying decisions.

Certainly it's at least at the same level of sophistication that Office 97 was in terms of features and capabilities, which is enough for most people, ... Microsoft seems determined to see how much money it can squeeze out of buyers, but in doing so, they're opening up an opportunity for somebody else to come in.

Business desktops are a narrow, narrow margin business; they are almost a commodity. You have to be very efficient in order to make money selling desktops.