D
Davis Gentry
(Originally posted Thurs. 1/22/98)
"Brock, Dan" <[email protected]> wrote:
> When was the last time Win95/NT ran more than a month without a
> problem?
[Gentry, Davis] If you get (write) good software, hardware compatible with its environment, and know what you are doing when you set it up, then an NT 4.0 PC which crashes once a month on a production box would surprise the hell out of me. I would be disappointed if it crashed
once a *year*. If you miss *any* one of the three criteria above, then yes, it will crash on you. Frequently. One difference with the Wintel
boxes is that everybody and his grandmother thinks that they can program it. And they do. And it is not always stable. What a shock. How many amateur programmers out there are there who try to write applications on VMS? Or HP-UX? And from the other end of that equation, how many
of you have ever seen poorly written RLL causing havoc in a PLC?
> Johnson Lukose [SMTP:[email protected]] wrote:
>
> > The reality is the users have the money, and common sense says
> >the one with the money to spend is always RIGHT!! You will be up
> >against the wall in this matter. You are going to have a hell of a
> >time to convince them otherwise. The propoganda of PC + W95 / NT
> >has created a market perception of propotions even this list does
> >not realise.
> >It will make everyone a winner if you agree with the users and take
> >the contract. They get the systems they want and you get the project
> >you need.
[Gentry, Davis] I agree with Mr. Lukose, but he is missing one point. What do you do with your data? Many (most?) of the users today who want to look at manufacturing data (in any form) are using a wintel PC on their desk. And they are running Microsoft Office on it. And if you generate your data on a platform which is compatible with MS (whatever our feelings may be about MS, its tactics, and its products) you will find it *much* easier to get the data to the customer in a timely, efficient, and inexpensive manner. When your customer's accountants are getting the data they want, and the IEs are getting the data they want, and the process engineers are getting the data they want, and the executives are getting the pretty pictures on their desktops that they want, then everyone is happy. *That* is the true advantage to the PC. That is where your cost savings are, if that data is appropriately utilized. Be sure to help your customer *use* the data. They may not be used to having data quickly and easily available. Show
them the advantages.
Come on guys. The PC is just another tool. It may or may not be applicable to your problem. Analyse your problem, decide the best tools for the job, decide the cheapest tools for the job, and present your customer with the options, the pros, and the cons of each option. And if you don't know enough about PCs to program them and/or set them up correctly for a factory setting, then sell something else. But you should probably learn, because their market share is not going *down* any time soon.
Davis Gentry
White Oak Semiconductor
Sandston, Virginia
"Brock, Dan" <[email protected]> wrote:
> When was the last time Win95/NT ran more than a month without a
> problem?
[Gentry, Davis] If you get (write) good software, hardware compatible with its environment, and know what you are doing when you set it up, then an NT 4.0 PC which crashes once a month on a production box would surprise the hell out of me. I would be disappointed if it crashed
once a *year*. If you miss *any* one of the three criteria above, then yes, it will crash on you. Frequently. One difference with the Wintel
boxes is that everybody and his grandmother thinks that they can program it. And they do. And it is not always stable. What a shock. How many amateur programmers out there are there who try to write applications on VMS? Or HP-UX? And from the other end of that equation, how many
of you have ever seen poorly written RLL causing havoc in a PLC?
> Johnson Lukose [SMTP:[email protected]] wrote:
>
> > The reality is the users have the money, and common sense says
> >the one with the money to spend is always RIGHT!! You will be up
> >against the wall in this matter. You are going to have a hell of a
> >time to convince them otherwise. The propoganda of PC + W95 / NT
> >has created a market perception of propotions even this list does
> >not realise.
> >It will make everyone a winner if you agree with the users and take
> >the contract. They get the systems they want and you get the project
> >you need.
[Gentry, Davis] I agree with Mr. Lukose, but he is missing one point. What do you do with your data? Many (most?) of the users today who want to look at manufacturing data (in any form) are using a wintel PC on their desk. And they are running Microsoft Office on it. And if you generate your data on a platform which is compatible with MS (whatever our feelings may be about MS, its tactics, and its products) you will find it *much* easier to get the data to the customer in a timely, efficient, and inexpensive manner. When your customer's accountants are getting the data they want, and the IEs are getting the data they want, and the process engineers are getting the data they want, and the executives are getting the pretty pictures on their desktops that they want, then everyone is happy. *That* is the true advantage to the PC. That is where your cost savings are, if that data is appropriately utilized. Be sure to help your customer *use* the data. They may not be used to having data quickly and easily available. Show
them the advantages.
Come on guys. The PC is just another tool. It may or may not be applicable to your problem. Analyse your problem, decide the best tools for the job, decide the cheapest tools for the job, and present your customer with the options, the pros, and the cons of each option. And if you don't know enough about PCs to program them and/or set them up correctly for a factory setting, then sell something else. But you should probably learn, because their market share is not going *down* any time soon.
Davis Gentry
White Oak Semiconductor
Sandston, Virginia