From: alex@cs.umd.edu (Alex Blakemore)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.next.advocacy
Subject: NeXT should improve, not eliminate, its hardware line
Date: 6 Jan 93 18:48:21 GMT
Organization: U of Maryland, Dept. of Computer Science, Coll. Pk., MD 20742
  > If NeXT pulled out of hardware, their software group could be a lot bigger.

If NeXT pulled out of hardware, their software group could die from lack of revenue.
They would be much less able to make new technology usable by mortals
(their only card against the big contenders).
ISDN, new color models, DSP, renderman and even PS level II would
have been much less likely to appear if NeXT was focusing on other people's
hardware first.  They cant compete on stability, price, marketing dollars -
they have to keep pushing their quality and technology edge till a critical mass
of software and users buy in to lessen the risk for others to jump in.

  I can imagine many people who would view dropping the hardware line
as a sign of NeXT's continuing demise and then avoid any investment of time and money.

  The dollars are not the problem.  The MIPS are not the real problem.
The risk of having different hardware from a company that goes bust is not the big
problem (it will be obsolete soon no matter who makes it)  The problem is people dont
want to risk investing valuable human time (sys admin, programmers, users) learning
a system that is different than what they use now - even if its better, for fear
that the company goes bust and takes the investment with it - or remains a marginal
player and makes the investment almost wasted.  Spending your time learning
to use, program administer X and Windows is safer but less satisfying.
(sort of like protected sex).

  People also think of NeXT as incompatible and therefore trouble - even though
the facts dont really bear that out on close examination. People have to believe NeXT
is a rising star to want to risk looking closer.  Dropping the hardware line might please
some, but would send the wrong message to most.

  The hardware is innovative in many ways - a little slow and overpriced (esp color)
but has many things going for it.  cheap 400 dpi laser printing, DSP, ISDN via DSP,
good quality large monochrome monitors. there are flaws, but lots of potential.

  By dropping the hardware line, NeXT would cut off a serious revenue stream which
they must need to invest in further software, marketing and hardware.  The factory
is automated and in place, any savings would be over the long run. In the short
run there would be severance and adjustment costs - plus wasted resources.
They cant fire every hardware engineer and replace them with experienced NS developers,
nor completely reorganize their management team and marketing strategies overnight.

 Finally, if NeXT dropped their hardware line, they would be extremely vulnerable
to every kind of shift in alliances, corporate ownership, incompatibility, merger, market swing
imaginable.  They would have to be constantly on dancing on shifting sands.
Microsoft is big enough that they can determine many of the market rules just by stating
their plans (and having them immediately heralded as brilliant by the adoring trade press).
Hardware manufacturers and developers will jump into line.  Having their own hardware line,
gives NeXT a stable, loyal platform that they can use to establish a firm foundation before
jumping into a hostile environment.

  NeXT should by all means port NS to many many computers, but they have to be careful not
to destroy their hardware line - at least not until NS is a serious accepted success in
the market place.  At that point, it wont matter quite so much.  Prematurely eliminating
the hardware line could stop the company in its tracks.  Pricing NS486 software has got
to be a tricky balancing act.

 I am glad NeXT is continuing to make hardware. It boosts my confidence in
their judgement.  Next, I'ld like to see a Mach 3.0 based true multiprocessing system
at a decent price (with a real thread safe obj-c runtime).



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Alex Blakemore alex@cs.umd.edu   NeXT mail accepted