Eric Lundquist

Three days after Compaq CEO Michael Capellas blamed a perfect storm for unhinging the companys sales, Dell CEO Michael Dell said his namesake companys balance sheet was right on target. While the perfect storm as described by Capellas was a combination of a faltering economy, uncertainty arising from the proposed HP-Compaq merger, the World Trade […]

Security begins at home. And for the IT manager, that means the server room, where the Internet has brought not only the promise of a worldwide audience but also the threat of worms, hackers and cyber-terrorism. As the United States mobilizes to shore up security at airports and public gathering spaces and in the countrys […]

A ghastly terrorist attack that struck at the financial heart of the country. Another errant computer virus worming its way through the network. A shaky economy further destabilized. A call to arms from the president. How do the IT business and professional fit into this calamitous scenario? IT fits in by realizing that, like it […]

The terror attacks of last week filled us all with horror, grief and agony that the promises of a new millennium can be dashed by crazed extremists. Our heartfelt sympathies are extended to those friends, relatives and fellow industry workers struck by this tragedy. The World Trade Center in addition to being a financial center […]

Once there were lots of companies building personal computers. Now, there are still lots of companies building personal computers, except the gap between the really big international vendors and the guy down the street cobbling together systems has become large, indeed. The major news last week was, of course, HPs proposed acquisition of Compaq. It […]

If you like Windows 2000, youll like Windows XP professional. But maybe not enough to pay $199 for an upgrade. And therein lies the basis for Microsofts continual upgrade saga of keeping the best of the previous version, adding enough new features to make the upgrade attractive and playing the fact that in the world […]

Talk about pressure. I was speaking early last week with an IT manager who was describing how he had been faring under the current reality of tight budgets and staff cutbacks. What were his feelings about outsourcing? Not favorable. The latest round of pressure from upper management was to give this IT manager a fixed […]

Lets see. For every one icon AOL gets to place on the XP startup screen, Microsoft gets to place three icons, according to our recent news story. But PC makers are facing tough times, and those bucks they get from Internet service providers for sticking those icons on startup screens have suddenly become their most […]

How many times can you have the conversation regarding hope for an uptick in the technology business? If my trip to the West Coast last week is any gauge, the answer is many more times than you care to. In cabs, restaurants and airport lounges, techies were trying to read the digital tea leaves, hoping […]

Last week, Intel president Craig Barrett, speaking in Malaysia, said the PC industry has bottomed out. This was seen as good news by Wall Street, which has been looking this summer for reasons to believe in a market recovery. The market may have bottomed out, but Id say it has to make serious amends before […]