Connection Made
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| Author | Content |
|---|---|
| beirwin Mar 09, 2007 12:44 PM EDT |
I'm glad to see the connection being made about Linux reducing e-waste. |
| azerthoth Mar 09, 2007 1:14 PM EDT |
Contrarily its bad for business. Manufacturers count on obsoleting equipment relatively quickly so that their customers have to come back. Slowing down the obsoletion cycle just isn't in their best interest. |
| jimf Mar 09, 2007 1:27 PM EDT |
> Slowing down the obsoletion cycle just isn't in their best interest. Lol, I have an old PII Dual rig that's built like a tank. You won't see many like that, and not because they're now using Aluminum and carbon graphite. Pure plastic, light and cheap is the order of the day. Ships cheaply and breaks easily. |
| beirwin Mar 09, 2007 1:45 PM EDT |
>Contrarily its bad for business.
True, for dinosaur businesses. The automobile was bad for the buggy whip industry as well. :-) Green is good for business. |
| azerthoth Mar 09, 2007 2:02 PM EDT |
While I'm not arguing that going green is a good thing, I'm just curious how reducing sales by up to 50% is good business sense? The costs then must be passed on to the consumer to maintain the levels of profitability that shareholders expect. The raising of the consumer price then has the effect of slowing sales further by having to face the increased cost to upgrade. Then again I may be wrong. I just cant picture a business model where a reduction volume can make a company as much while not creating the consumer catch 22. |
| tuxchick Mar 09, 2007 2:04 PM EDT |
Remind again where it says we are obligated to prop up businesses by continually buying crap just because they need us to. |
| azerthoth Mar 09, 2007 2:25 PM EDT |
Depends on your definition of "we" TC. WE the portion of consumers who have taken the time to be aware of various possibilities. or WE the masses of humanity who have no clue and dont use our wallets to force manufacturers into creating a quality product. Heck we cant even get government to stop subsidizing things we know shouldn't even be legal like tobacco. Its the uneducated consumer who drives this bus. Even so it still doesnt change my question of how you can have a business model of reduced volume and maintain profitability levels without smacking the consumer right in the wallet. I can see convincing people that going green is worth the added cost, now explain to me how that the little girl that helios wrote about not so long ago will be able to afford to have a computer when groceries are enough of a challenge for her family. |
| jimf Mar 09, 2007 2:26 PM EDT |
> continually buying crap just because they need us to. You got it TC. The theory says 'no expanding sales = no expanding economy'. Got to keep buying or the country's gonna go belly up. |
| jezuch Mar 09, 2007 2:31 PM EDT |
Isn't it something like the broken window fallacy? (no pun intended!)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parable_of_the_broken_window I'm not an economist but it sounds kinda familiar. |
| dcparris Mar 09, 2007 2:32 PM EDT |
How could you _not_ intend a pun like that? |
| techiem2 Mar 09, 2007 2:33 PM EDT |
Quoting:The theory says 'no expanding sales = no expanding economy'. Got to keep buying or the country's gonna go belly up. So THAT'S how MS is gonna spin that report in their favor.... |
| tuxchick Mar 09, 2007 2:44 PM EDT |
I see, so the current economic theory driving the US economy is a science-fiction short story, "The Midas Plague" by Fred Pohl. I'll get all worked up over the pressing needs of useless, redundant businesses that churn out tons of useless product that we MUST buy, MUST I tell you, when they exhibit equal concern for my needs. |
| jezuch Mar 09, 2007 2:46 PM EDT |
Oh, and another story, this one based on facts... In the old times of People's Republic of Poland we had a greatly working economy. Mines dug for coal and iron. All this coal and iron went to the steel mill (some genius build one in Warsaw, LOL), the steel mill produced steel which *all* went back to the mines. Great way to keep people "employed" and to ruin the environment. |
| jimf Mar 09, 2007 2:47 PM EDT |
> So THAT'S how MS is gonna spin that report in their favor.... Heck, if it's good enough for the US Government, it's certainly good enough for MS. |
| swbrown Mar 10, 2007 1:27 AM EDT |
I blame Gentoo for Global Warming. |
| dinotrac Mar 10, 2007 2:07 AM EDT |
>Then again I may be wrong. I just cant picture a business model where a reduction volume can make a company as much while not creating the consumer catch 22. It ain't gonna be easy, and it will require some change if it can be done at all. Think of a product like the Toyota Camry. Oh sure, it's no Porsche and it's no Beamer, and it's no Hyundai, either. It's just the most popular car in America. Might be the most popular in the world, but I haven't seen that list. Toyota made it's reputation in the 60s and especially in the 70s when they sold a boatload of Coronas (remember those, anybody?) and Corollas. People bought them because they were cheap and didn't use much gas. People kept buying them because they worked and worked and worked. The old Corollas remain my definition of the cockroach car -- you can kill it, but it ain't easy. Anybody who has priced a Camry knows they're not cheap. The entire Toyota line has taken a step upmarket. Consumers pay through the nose, but the get a good car that holds its value. Not a bad deal over all. Need more money, but offer more in return. Of course, the example breaks down a bit because consumers have liked the deal enough to buy a gazillion Toyotas. |
| bigg Mar 10, 2007 5:34 AM EDT |
This reminds me of the debate over the "Do Not Call" list. Telemarketers said it was bad for the economy because it would put them out of business. What is bad for the economy is to block technology that eliminates waste. There's no reason to throw away a computer that can do the job. You could just as well pay those workers to sit at home and watch TV. Every company, including proprietary software companies and hardware vendors, have to adjust to changes in the world. This is no different. I didn't shed any tears when they stopped making 8-track players. |
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