March 9, 1998
Michael Dell
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Dell Computer Corporation
One Dell Way
Round Rock, TX 78682
Fax 512 728 8366
Dear Mr. Dell:
We are writing to make a simple request -- offer your customers choices. Give them the option of buying a PC computer without Microsoft Windows. Continue to offer customers the opportunity to buy a PC with MS Windows pre-installed, but dont make this mandatory. Dont make this the only way that a customer can buy a personal computer.
Today there exist several alternative operating systems, and there
are customers who are willing to try and who want to try alternatives.
As you know, there are many benefits to the consumer when the
OEM ships a computer with an OS already installed. Among other things,
the consumer expects that the hardware will be a feasible configuration
for the OS. The ease of initial setup is also an important consideration
for many customers.
We ask that you offer the option of at least some alternative to the Windows OS. Alternatives do exist which should be available to consumers. For example, there is clearly a growing interest in the Linux platform. It is our understanding that major OEMs have rejected requests to offer PCs pre-loaded with Linux, even by mail order. This is a very large barrier for this increasingly popular alternative. There are other alternatives as well. Soon the highly reviewed BeOS will debut for the Intel platform. Other OS alternatives are or will be available for this hardware platform, including Calderas Open Dos/ Spider technology or Apples Rhapsody.
Yet another alternative to consider are dual boot machines, that would
run Window plus another OS. This is becoming far more appealing as
computers ship with large disk drives. With a dual boot option, which
works with off the shelf software, consumers could experiment, and have
the best of both worlds.
There is much talk about consumers having chosen Microsofts OS, but
if consumers can only buy computers with Windows pre-installed, competition
clearly suffers.
We believe consumers would benefit from more OS competition. Many of the alternatives to Windows are far more open systems, are far more fault tolerant, and require less hardware resources. The rise of the Internet has created an environment whereby consumers can easily exchange information using standard Internet protocols and standards, such as ftp, Internet email or HTML. The increasing use of Java makes cross platform program development easier. These developments in technology make alternative OSs more attractive to consumers, since data is less a prisoner to a legacy OS. While Microsoft has been accused of trying to destroy the Internets system of open standards, and Javas cross platform nature, this hasnt occurred yet. With more competition in the PC OS market, the entire Internet system, which is based upon interoperability, is more likely to grow and prosper.
Please let us know your firms plans to offer consumers a choice for
an OS.
Sincerely,
Ralph Nader
James Love