Date: Wed, 20 Nov 1996 19:14:41 -0500 From: Edward Ing <edward.ing@utoronto.ca> To: wp@ec.camitel.com Cc: chat@freebsd.org, questions@freebsd.org, ports@freebsd.org Subject: WP 7.0 For FreeBSD and Corel Suite Message-ID: <32939EF1.11F6@utoronto.ca>
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Hello, I'll happily buy WP 7.0 for FreeBSD _but_ at $90 Canadian, not $495; and if the price were $70 Canadian, I will shout on each street corner about such a great offer from Corel to us free-UNIX users. (Please remember -- free-UNIX users aren't corporations! Furthermore I would happily buy the Corel Perfect Suite for $180 CAN, and if the price were $70 Canadian, I will paint my chest with the Corel Wordperfect logo and flash it to everyone I meet. But more seriously, since we are on the subject of porting the Corel Perfect suite, I should tell you of a TOTALLY new marketing strategy which Corel should take with regard to its office suite. I was going to save it for my cover-letter on my resume, but what the heck, here it is: Microsoft's Office Suite is entrenched in the market and it is very unlikely that anyone will dislodge it, though one may gain a profitable market segment. Secondly, Microsoft with its monopolistic practices will always have an advantage in developing such application software because it is the designer of the operating system on which the applications will run. Short of a marketing blunder Microsoft will rule the Suite market for Win95, WinNT, and Win3.1. Then what is the weakness in Microsoft's marketing strategy which can be exploited? -- The weakness of their OS -- namely WinNT. The weakness of NT is that it is not entrenched in the the server/workstation marketplace. It is steadily gaining acceptance, but it is not entrenched. If another equally or more powerful and significantly cheaper (even free operating system) were available, it could gain acceptance readily (though probably with considerable marketing effort, at first, to enlighten buyers.) If this new operating system were to be significantly competive with WindowsNT, then the market would be wide open for all vendors of Suite applications willing to develop applications for this new operating system. (An if one vendor were to have a lead in the development cycle, it might gain a significant market share. ;-) ) There is such an operating system and it is FreeBSD UNIX (or Linux though the latter's unstructured development strategy makes it less stable). It has full internet capabilites. On an intel 386 machine it (FreeBSD) can serve as a workstation and as a server. Also it can function as a router. It comes with and runs X-windows applications. Thousands of pieces of software run on it and hundreds of these applications are included in the initial purchase. It comes with NFS and NIS and comes with a LAN Manager server software (Samba). Furthermore it can turn your old 386s and 486s into an intranet server. A server running FreeBSD can act as a LAN Manager server, a http server, a database server and as an application work station (and as JAVA SERVER AND CLIENT with some work) at the same time. With the existence of this software there is really no need for anyone to Pay $800 US to get and NT sever when he can get this equally, if not more, powerful operating system, for $24.95 on one CD-ROM or for free off the internet. There are difficulties with FreeBSD from an ease-of-use point of view and from the point of view of someone looking for compatibility with the latest whiz-bang gadgets, but these deficiencies can be overcome by the following marketing and software development strategy. If Corel is serious about dislodging Microsoft from its near monopolistic dominance in the Suite's market, it might consider doing the following: 1. Develop its commercial office suite software for FreeBSD or Linux (or both) and market it for a reasonable price. 2. Commit software engineers to participate in developing FREE software to make FreeBSD (or Linux) a more manageable and useable for UNIX novices. This would include the development of a better (and free) X-Windows manager, the development of an easier installation and configuration process for both UNIX server components and widely used application servers (--actually the UNIX installation is quite easy as it is, but it probably can be improved--) , and the development of drivers for the latest and greatest devices. 3. Commit marketing personnel and technical staff to sell the virtues of the newly packaged FreeBSD OS and Corel-WP office suite bundle and provide technical support. This incredible operating system should and can be included FREE as part of the WP software, or office suite software. Corel might even adapt FreeBSD and market it as a central JAVA server for its new upcoming JAVA office suite. This would be the first complete workstation/server, internet/intranet ready operating system and office suite bundle solution, as far as I know. (Corel might even be able to get a foot hold into the database system market.) Now, I must make some comments on item 2. First, Corel may be reluctant to participate in developing freely distributable software but this is not new. Sun's development of Java, Microsofts development of Explorer, and Apple's participation in the development of Linux for PowerMac demonstrate the advantage of developing free software. It allows profit-making corporations to get foot holds into new potential markets. Corel's participation in the development of free components for FreeBSD will help make FreeBSD more widely useable and in turn will provide Corel with a new market for its Office Suite for FreeBSD. Secondly, a better windows manger incorporated with a graphical system manger will make FreeBSD as user friendly as WindowsNT for those with command-line phobia. Hard core command-line UNIX addicts can still use their UNIX shells. Thirdly, putting considerable resource into the development and testing of drivers will make FreeBSD useable to a wide segment of the intel market for the present and for the future and thus create wide market for office suite applications. This is a viable strategy, if Corel is willing to put some resources behind it. By this strategy Corel can exploint the chink in Microsofts armour. (And, heck, if you need someone to hire to help you get this done, e-mail me.) Edward Ing.
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