IT Debate: Windows 2000 Professional ROI

There would seem to be two main reasons not to migrate to Win2K at the moment. The first being the same as any new technology; that is the bugs that will no doubt be thrown up, and the second is that the new O.S. may not work satisfactorily with existing programs, whatever Microsoft may say.

We found that on migration to Windows 98 from Windows 95 there where some problems with older programs, which still adequately served their purpose.

Unless Windows 2000 is your very first installation, the implementation of Windows 2000 is tactical and not strategic. An M16 is better than and AR 15 and anyone in combat would trade up. It's the same weapon with improvements and enhancements

Acompany installing Windows 2000 is doing so not because the numbers say so but because they need help from what they are using. They want fewer re-boots, more uptime and better performance not just from their desktop but all the other software systems that they depend on.

They don't need an ROI to determine that they need change. They're happy to move on and all other options are too expensive, take too much time, cost too much and require too much training.

It is, however, strategic for Microsoft. It further ingrains current Windows customers into their product development cycle. And, makes it more expensive for companies to change in the future. You don't leave your wife when the divorce is too expensive.

You may not likemy metaphors but they are true. Managers, believe it or not, are moved and make decisions not only by ROI but by experience, intuition and gut feel.

Gene

http://www.internetservices.bigstep.com

I'm fortunate in that where I work our Information Systems are viewed as a strategic resource. We trade-out one third of our Client computers, Servers and Printers each year in an attempt to keep pace with evolving hardware and consumption. As luck would have it, we need only replace the already planned 33% to support our upgrade to Windows 2000. Aside from our expected benefits of windows 2000, ROI wasn?t really considered in our planning. Staying current with technology and its methods is ourdriving force.

Already having NT 4.0 in place helped a great deal with the migration and software compatibility issues. We found all of our software tools to be compatible. Windows 2000?s stability, the need for fewer re-boots, and improved administration capabilities are that which we are looking for.

We are converting servers and clients to Windows 2000 now for the advantages that it has to offer. We DO NOT intend to convert to AD until late next year.