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Date: Mon, 12 May 1997 16:47:56 -0400
To: Terry Lambert <terry@lambert.org>
From: dennis <dennis@etinc.com>
Subject: Re: if_de.c ????
Cc: msmith@atrad.adelaide.edu.au, hackers@FreeBSD.ORG
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At 12:18 PM 5/12/97 -0700, Terry Lambert wrote:
>> Certain things you're just not gonna get...so deal with it. Do you
>> think that SMC is gonna build another card with DEC-like chip when
>> anyone with a $500. layout program can clone the board and steal
>> their market? Its getting so easy to clone hardware, particularly
>> with single chip solutions, that you're going to see big vendors
>> refuse to use parts that have public specs...like you said, you
>> gotta pay the bills, and it doesnt pay to build hardware with
>> readily available hardware with public specs.
>
>Actually, you seem to be complaining about the fact that using parts
>with public specifications commoditizes the hardware.  This is true,
>but it's not a bad thing.  After all, many companies make lots of
>money selling commodity items.  Like kitchen utensils.
>
>I think as more and more ASIC parts get out there, the applications
>to which they are targeted must *inevitably* become commoditized.
>
>The unit production cost is the thing, and SMC is going to have a
>lower unit production cost than "Joe Schmoe" because of quantity
>price breaks from their vendors, and economies of scale on production.
>
>If you think DEC isn't going to sell those specs to "Joe Schmoe" in
>order to protect SMC's market, then you have another thing coming.

Horse Hockey! This is the old IBM PC problem....who is going to establish
the market if noone can make enough margin to pay for the initial marketing?

Companies like DEC will have to make business decisions about whether
they want to have a handful of OEMs or sell to the general public. I think
that
there will be "limited" agreements, in which the manufacturers of ASICs keep
the specs under wraps for a year or two, letting the marketing companies 
recover their investments, and then flood the market for the taiwanese clone
manufacturers.

Dennis