From: fr@compu.com (Fred Rump from home)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.pc-clone.32bit,biz.sco.general,comp.unix.sys5.r3
Subject: Re: PC Unix/Xenix vendors
Date: 23 Jan 93 14:36:53 GMT
Organization: CompuData Inc.

evan@telly.on.ca (Evan Leibovitch) writes:

>In article <1993Jan21.180850.16433@compu.com>
>	fr@compu.com (Fred Rump from home) writes:

>>>vendors (Dell and the new ESIX product comes to mind) - basically
>>>at 1/3 the cost of SCO.  These SVR4 products are just as reliable

>>I hate to keep bringing up reality here. Where do these numbers come from all
>>the time? Who makes them up?

>>SCO UNIX costs $1295. Where do I buy the same thing for $431 retail? That is
>>1/3 the cost isn't it?

>Time out for some data points. Here's your reality, Fred.

>Univel Personal Edition:	$450 (2 user, X, Motif, Merge, Netware)

Reality? A two user licence versus unlimited is reality?


>Univel Applications Server	$2,500 (same + unlimited + TCP/NFS)

Double the cost with TCP/NFS is reality? Even if I don't give a hoot about 
either?


>Consensys Desktop Platform	$400 (2 user, X, Motif, TCP&NFS)
>Consensys Unlimited Platform	$1,000 (same + unlimited users)
>Consensys Complete 		$1,525 (same + devsys)

Are any of these 1/3 the cost of SCO? Where is reality?



>ESIX Run&Net 2user		$384 (TCP&NFS)
>ESIX Run&Net			$886 (same + unlimited users)
>ESIX Development System		$131
>ESIX GUI			$380 (X, Motif, X.desktop)

>MST Runtime Station		$299 (TCP/NFS, X)
>MST Complete Station		$849 (same + devsys, X, Motif)

I still don't see even one unlimited anything at one third the cost of SCO. 

That was the point of my post.

>Dell 				$1,500 (X, Motif, TCP/NFS, Merge, devsys,
>				       X.desktop)

>So, Fred, it appears that most of the R4 vendors offer products for
>less than your $431 rhetorical price. Even Univel has a low-end product
>that ain't far from it.

We do want to compare an OS with the same number of users, don't we? Otherwise 
we could bring DOS into the picture as an argument for price too.  



>Granted, apples-and-apples comparisons are difficult because of the
>different combinations. The low-end R4 systems are two users and include
>X, which would make better comparisons with ODT (more that $1295).

OK, the next time someone wants to buy a two use system running X you may have 
a point. That's not what we're talking about though.

We were talking about the $1295 SCO UNIX operating system costing 1/3 the 
price elsewhere. I can't run 30 users on 'anything' for $400. Or is there 
something wrong with that? Can you? 



>The only vendor which unbundles in a manner which makes a real A/B
>comparison valid is ESIX, which has an unlimited-user runtime without
>networking. ESIX lists that at $784 (60% of SCO).

No wonder they went bankrupt! Is that the plan for SCO to follow? Just for 
once turn on the thinking cap and compare the situation. How many people did 
Everex have for support and development?  How many does SCO have?  Who should
pay for these people so that their kids can eat?

Since I've never purchased an ESIX OS, I don't know what the reseller paid but
we are not giving away big secrets here when we say that the ESIX price is
pretty darn close to SCO's typical dealer price.  SCO has always realized that
for anyone to sell its products they must have an interest in doing so.  A
result of that has been a good discount structure to those who carry the
product.  It seems to have worked rather well in any comparison.



>The gap widens between SCO and the others when tacking on TCP, NFS, Merge,
>and Xsight. Even Univel's server, which on the surface looks incredibly
>more expensive, costs less than SCO + TCP + Merge, let alone IPX or NFS
>or Xsight.

OK. No argument here. Perhaps the first guy on the block can charge a premium? 
Surely SCO is not totally stupid and will react to market influence when 
the need arises.  In the meantime they still own the block and as a going 
business will attempt to maximize the investment of millions of dollars it 
took to get them there.  Folks, a business plan is set up to make money. To 
fault a business for doing so is plain ridiculous.

Now, I see a problem at the low end systems pricing too. A 5 user system 
should cost less than a 100 user system. There may be contractual problems 
with USL about that as no one may have foreseen a 100 user PC.  I don't know
about that, but something should be done in this regard.

Fred



-- 
W. Fred Rump 	office:	   fred@COMPU.COM     "A man's library is a sort of 
26 Warren St.   home: fr@icdi10.compu.com 	harem" - Emerson (1860) 
Beverly, NJ. 08010                          		 
609-386-6846    bang:uunet!cdin-1!icdi10!fr   
Newsgroups: comp.unix.pc-clone.32bit,biz.sco.general,comp.unix.sys5.r3