From: mike 

On Sat, 24 Feb 2007 11:28:45 -0500, "Robert Comer"
 wrote:

>> Contrary to what Microsoft thinks, one office suite is not the solution
>> to everyone's problem.  I, for one, like to see alternatives.  Some
>> companies may see $50 per year per seat (with volume discounts) as an
>> excellent substitute to MS Office.   I was surprised to see General
>> Electric in that category.  But then again, not.
>
>I'm not all that much of a supporter for Office, I only like it because of
>retaining compatibility and a few things I've extended it with.
>
>I figure a PC's life is at least 5 years, so at $50 a year, that's $250,
>which is quite a bit more than Office Standard OEM, and that's what I was
>basing my cost comparison on...


As I said, others (especially some SMBs) may want a different financial
model, especially (as in my case) Office Standard OEM did not provide a
solution to the problem at hand, but the free version of google's
spreadsheet application did.

So long as the problem is solved in a manner considered to be
cost-effective to the business, why not use the solution that is
appropriate?

btw, my company (a SMB) is on a 3-year cycle for PCs and software...

 /m

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