Re: familiar on something other than iPAQ?

From another angle, I notice that the front of my iPAQ carries the "PocketPC"
trademark physically embossed into it. A trademark which I understood, correct
me if I'm wrong, is owned by Microsoft. Then does it really matter whether WinCE
is loaded on the machine or not - to maintain product differentiation in an
increasingly competitive global marketplace Compaq would still have to pay a
Microsoft tax for use of this logo - given PocketPC is clearly an established
counter-point to the branding by Palm & Handspring. The alternative, I gather,
would be to have Compaq retool the iPAQ case, which also seems - hmmm -
unlikely...

<Jim Gettys wrote:>
| Just to accent Russ's statements: we have to be able to forsee enough
| volume to justify another set of part numbers.
|
| Given the low nature of Microsoft's WinCE prices to OEM's, in concert
| with the high costs of another set of part numbers in a *VERY* high volume
| retail channel (remember, we're now building hundreds of thousands of
| units/month), this implies we have to see really signficant volumes
| for it to make any business sense.
|
| And we are just at the cusp right now of beginning to have enough
| apps usable by less than wizards for it to make sense to think about.

With all due respect to Dan, his argument strikes me as somewhat shortsighted.
Since not only does it discount the unique generosity that Compaq has
demonstrated through its ongoing support of the iPAQ Linux development efforts
by CRL but it also appears to miss the larger business case Jim refers to here.
Namely a percentage of a large number of machines is still a large number of
machines and I would much rather convince someone of the technical merits of
superior software technology with them already holding an iPAQ in their hands
then trying to overcome all the FUD otherwise.

| The best I can say is to ask you to come help make it the a no-brainer
| business decision we all believe it can become.

In the end, I guess, one is either part of the solution or part of the
problem...

\Terry
Received on Fri Jun 08 2001 - 10:13:36 EDT