I was amazed to see the costs quoted for PC ownership in the text box "Thin Clients: Behind the Numbers" that ran with the April cover story. The five-year cost of owning a Windows PC is $44,250? Rubbish! No wonder network computer (NC) proponents are such easy prey for the PC advocates. I run a small networked office with six PCs and a NetWare server; if the five-year cost were a tenth of that figure, I would feel derelict in the performance of my duties. In fact, I have had more problems with office calculators, fax machines, and copiers than with PCs. As for upgrades, no one would simultaneously upgrade all users when some clearly don't need it.
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Behind the Numbers
