Word: dells
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 2000-2009
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...PENGUIN THAT ROARED Linux, the little operating system that could, is catching up with big siblings Windows and Macintosh. Last week high-tech heavyweights IBM and Dell announced new deals to sell Linux servers, and a host of other firms declared their support for Gnome, a Windows-like user interface for Linux. Unlike its stuffier competitors, Linux is free, and was developed collaboratively by an international community of hackers. Also unlike its competitors, it has a funky penguin as a mascot...
...five years Microsoft's price-earnings ratio has ranged between 30 and 80 and averaged 51. Now the P/E is 41, by that measure its lowest point and best value in many months. That earnings multiple is well below those placed on lower-margin businesses run by, among others, Dell and Sun. And history (notably the 1984 breakup of AT&T) suggests that breakups work out well for shareholders...
...haven't tried the airport service yet, so I don't know if there are other, hidden hells involved in connecting to a public, commercial wireless network. I did, however, set up one of the new generation of wireless networks. I used the Dell 4800LT Wireless PC Card ($139) for my laptop and the corresponding PCI Card ($179) for my desktop. Compaq, 3Com, Lucent and others also have Wi-Fi-compatible setups comparable to Dell's, which range in price from $100 to $300 per card...
...last time I tried to set up a wireless network at home, both my PC and, worse, my wife's crashed. The technology, happily, is much improved. Dell's system comes with a CD-ROM that has a video-based setup tutorial that, among other things, explains--as well as shows--how to put a PCI card into your desktop machine. Once installed, the network performed smoothly and without glitches. I can't wait to start using it at the coffee shop...
...economy types have argued that the value metric is no measure for stocks of dotcoms like Amazon that have no earnings but just might become the next Microsoft or Dell. Their solution: simply replace the E in the ratio with something else--revenues, cash flow, new orders or what have you. And if the company should be a fast-growing market leader, or the kingpin in a field with barriers to entry, the P/E ratio could top 100 and analysts would still be calling it a buy. Until recently, they had a case; value investors missed out on the NASDAQ...