[SunRescue] can I repost your mails?

[Sheldon T. Hall]

On Thu, 30 Mar 2000, Bill Bradford wrote:

> Do I have ya'lls permission to repost your supportive mails on
> www.sunhelp.org/support.php3?
>

Dear Mr. Bill:

You have my permission to re-post on the Sunhelp website anything I've 
posted to the Sun Rescue list, or any other list you administer.

I think Sun is really screwing the poodle on this play.  If there is no 
informal support network, only those who can afford the prices of the 
formal, official support network can afford to learn anything about Sun 
products.  Sun will drop right off everyone else's radar.  People are 
hesitant to buy what they do not know, so Sun's lack of mindshare will be 
reflected in a declining market share.

McNeally may not think so, but Sun fighting for its life.  Commodity 
Intel-based hardware, combined with either Win NT or Linux, will kill Sun 
and the rest of the  proprietary hardware manufacturers unless they can 
broaden their base of support.  The history of the computer business is 
replete with precedents; one need look no further than the "Connector 
Conspiracy" section of the Jargon File for examples, though the morgue of 
the Wall Street Journal will supply many others.

In an age when everyone owns a printing press and access to a 
mass-distribution infrastructure, Sun really can't afford to alienate 
anyone, particularly a group of volunteers who support its products.

-Shel