Re: Re: Re: Article: Microsoft¹s Outrageous Office Profits

"Mitch" <mitch@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message news:120920070124182512%mitch@xxxxxxxxxxxx
In article <BVGFi.53440$YL5.33310@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, ed
<news@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Going to skip over the historical complaints; they aren't actually
relevant to the statement you made, and you are too challenging about
tidbits that seem not to mean much.

you mean you're going to skip over everything where you're downright wrong (like about the suites pricing, and ms bringing pricing down) and not bother to admit it? :D

> Most importantly, I'm saying that it was Microsoft's aggressive and
> illegal tactics getting manufacturers to buy the Windows/Office bundle
> that made it dominant.

quick question- how many computers have you bought tha CAME bundled with
office, out of how many total computers? i've NEVER bought a computer w/
office included...
It's actually the business sales that make the difference. Microsoft
doesn't think anything else matters.
I've never bought Windows for my own use; I had too much exposure to it
at work. But at work, MS Office has been included on maybe 2/3 of the
units.

and do you know if those were bundled?

> Now, I'd love to see a thread about whether there is any benefit that
> these are bundled in a software 'suite' -- does anyone think this is
> helpful from any but the producer's perspective?
they are helpful in that the full suite is cheaper than 2 of the programs
indivuidually- that's ALWAYS been the attraction of the suites.
RIGHT -- but they are NOT necessarily cheaper than the set of
alternatives.
In other words, if you are limiting your choices to buying MS Word and
MS Excel and MS PowerPoint separately, or buying MS Office, then you
get a better price with the suite.

or if you were buying wp or 1-2-3 or quattro (well, quattro got a lot cheaper when it wasn't selling...)

fwiw, i used to use wp and 1-2-3 (then quattro), before switching to office (in '94). you know why? it was WAAAY cheaper, and as a student at the time, it REALLY mattered. all your talk about office prices going way up in the early 90s is nonsensical, as you can see from the articles i posted, but i also remember when i switched the big price savings w/ going w/ the suite. and also fwiw, at the time, yes, word and excel was A LOT better than wp and 1-2-3. quattro was about on par with excel (quattro definately had better graphing), but hey, i wasn't going to pay extra for it, now was i? ;D

But that is neither how business
needs to work nor how people need to choose.

no, that's not now they 'need' to choose, that is how they DID choose!

You can also choose other programs, and very few users would need all
three of those programs at every seat.

but if you're going to get 2 of those why NOT get all three, since it's cheaper than buying two?!

So again, I ask -- is there an advantage in getting the suites? Again,
from the WORKERS perspective, not the buyer's.

i'm not sure it makes sense to separate the two, because if it doesn't make sense for the buyer, the user isn't as likely to see it, BUT, the two big advantages for *just* the user, in my mind:
1- it makes available a program that you may have *occasional* use for, and would not have had otherwise (because the buyer wouldn't have bought if for you at the extra cost)
2- for office in particular, around the time they were getting popular, it made things like OLE available

I'm suggesting that the suite offers no feature benefit for the user.
I'm also suggesting the price advantage is a scam. (Because few people
need those three programs, those three aren't the only ones they need
to choose from, and these programs, even as a suite, cost more than
comparable ones.)

it doesn't matter if you don't 'need' all the THREE programs, because the suites are typically cheaper than TWO of the programs. the big exception right now is, of course, free software.

If I'm right,

you're not. :D

MS Office is a scam Microsoft has tricked many people
into buying. One which tricked you into defending them and even
championing them publicly.

you just dislike ms so much you can't even remember history correctly, imagining huge price increases that don't exist, and ignoring that the suite prices are continuing to come down in price (in absolute terms, even ignoring inflation).

you can feel there are better options out there for cheaper / free, but that's a totally different point than making bogus arguments about office causing prices to go up.

.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Mobility Scooter
    ... Its been used twice so it would be like buying a new one. ... So when YOU sell something you dont try to get the best price you can. ... and I set my prices to something sensible so I get a quick sale at a good price for everyone involved. ... I think its still worth what I was asking cause its still cheaper than most of the other I've seen online and alot cheaper than the shops. ...
    (uk.adverts.other)
  • Re: Bush surprised at predictions of $4 gasoline
    ... The price is still cheaper than buying it by far. ... Hopefully the honey crop hasn't been affected too ...
    (rec.music.gdead)
  • Re: Bush surprised at predictions of $4 gasoline
    ... The price is still cheaper than buying it by far. ...
    (rec.music.gdead)
  • Re: Bumper "Action " ( withh high reserves on everything ) Melbourne Australia Auction
    ... course you can get parts much cheaper direct, ... We have sold a lot of pins on e-bay for 1400-1800 ... were told by myself it would not sell unless a high price was reached so ... why do you paint the picture for each auction as being ...
    (rec.games.pinball)
  • Re: Save 20% at the HMV today and Sat only.
    ... one of them is between £2 and £9 cheaper than elsewhere. ... || terms of price. ... those dvd comparison of price sites ... There are 2 options on find-dvd - one for the shop, ...
    (uk.media.dvd)
Loading