Even some new software won't work in 2000
Article Abstract:
Microsoft Chmn Bill Gates' assurances that most PC users will not be affected by the Year 2000 transition problem could be misleading. Some current versions of popular software applications, including Quicken, FileMaker Pro and even some of Microsoft's programs, will have problems with the transition. The problems are related to the practice of using two-digit numbers to represent years, such as using 96 to represent 1996, but assuming all dates will be in the 20th century. When the date changes to 00, computers will read it as 1900, not 2000. Many users will have to reset their computers and software will have to be corrected, but the problems will be miniscule compared to the catastrophes some corporations will face if they fail to take preventative measures. Mainframe programmers took many shortcuts in the 1960s and '70s because of memory limitations. PCs do not suffer from such limitations and there are fewer problems, but they will have to be dealt with.
Publication Name: The Wall Street Journal Western Edition
Subject: Business, general
ISSN: 0193-2241
Year: 1996
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Cutting-edge EMC sells the old-fashioned way: Hard; revenue from its costly computer data-storage system expected to soar
Article Abstract:
EMC Corp's advanced technology, successful marketing tactics, and superior customer service make it a leader in the $25 billion data-storage market. EMC's RAID system is responsible for the company's dominance among mainframe storage suppliers. EMC forecasts approximately $750 million in sales of these open-systems in 1996. EMC's Symmetrix enterprise storage platform can hook up to network computers and mainframes and costs more than 50% more than its competition. To set itself apart from rival systems, EMC is entering the software market. EMC's Symmetrix network file storage, introduced in Oct 1996 for a starting price of $125,000, features sophisticated coding that enables EMC storage boxes to operate on a network. Since the introduction of Symmetrix network file storage, EMC's share price has increased more than 46.5%. Experts predict EMC revenue to rise to $2.26 billion in 1996 from $1.9 billion last year.
Publication Name: The Wall Street Journal Western Edition
Subject: Business, general
ISSN: 0193-2241
Year: 1996
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Iomega adds zip to ho-hum business of floppy disks; popular product draws competition to transition in storage technology
Article Abstract:
Iomega has used a combination of aggressive marketing tactics to leverage the development of an innovative 100MB floppy disk with 70-times the storage capacity of present floppy disks. The Zip portable disk drive has helped Iomega to increase its stock price from $5 in Dec 1995 to $112 in Apr 1996, a jump that raised the company's total valuation to $7 billion. Iomega is positioning the popular Zip drive for the intense market competition it is expected to receive from 3M's LS-120, a drive that can store 120MB and has the influential backing of Compaq. The LS-120 is backward-compatible with current 1.44MB floppy disks, while the Zip is not, but Iomega executives predict that present floppy drives will become obsolete in several years, vanishing from the market. The technology behind Iomega's Zip is inherently less expensive, giving Iomega the edge in an eventual price war.
Publication Name: The Wall Street Journal Western Edition
Subject: Business, general
ISSN: 0193-2241
Year: 1996
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