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This RFQ is how the Gov't establishes pricing for a planned purchase, it is not an ITB (invitation to bid) which would be the purchase step, nor is it an RFP where the Gov't puts out a concept and asks respondents to devise and price a solution - Google apparently thinks an RFQ is an RFP, and that an RFP is the same thing as an ITB:

See: http://www.onvia.com/b2g-resources/article/responding-to-an-ifb-rfp-rfq-do-you-know-the-difference

RFQ is not a sign that MS won the contract, it is the way the Gov't establishes price - it is not a binding contract to buy anything, that would be an IFB (Invitation To Bid).

See:http://www.onvia.com/b2g-resources/article/responding-to-an-ifb-rfp-rfq-do-you-know-the-difference

How many people have firm opinions that the government did something wrong here - show of hands please?

How many people know the differences between an RFQ, RFP, and an IFB? Why did so many hands go down?

Seriously, an RFQ is a tool to arrive at market price for a defined solution, and it is non-binding.

An RFP is a request for respondents to define a solution, the Gov't is open to various solutions.

And an IFB is an Invitation To Bid - this is where the Gov't picks a vendor for a defined solution based on price.

Every response i see here has these three different documents conflated... I suggest you look here for guidance:

http://www.onvia.com/b2g-resources/article/responding-to-an-ifb-rfp-rfq-do-you-know-the-difference

*NSL* I meant, but eventually the alphabet soup of organizations and what-have-you boggles the mind. NSA, FBI, CJIS, NCIC, DOD, CIA, etc..etc...

• Feb 2: A "legal" TV descrambler, which appears to just be assembly plans, for "educational" purposes only. Apparantly they claim it'll let you want the pay-per-view and other pay channels, for $12 or something like that. (too bad I don't watch TV) Also some stuff about jamming police radar. Yeah, this questionably legal aspect is going to be a theme...
• Feb 1: Making over half million dollars every 4 to 5 months from your home for an investment of only $25 U.S. Dollars expense one time THANK'S TO THE COMPUTER AGE AND THE INTERNET ! What kind of an idiot sends $25 to something this absurd?
• Jan 31: If you are in debt or need extra cash, we can help you get the money you have been hoping for. Our services are FREE and we have already helped thousands of homeowners, just like you. Now that's pretty deceptive, since any refinance costs a 1% loan origination fee, and these sharks usually charge much more.
• Jan 31:: Save up to 70% on your Life Insurance! I don't know enough about life insurance to say for sure this is a scam, but is sounds too good to be true, so it probably is.
• Jan 31:: A "we've redesigned our site" (yet again), from Onvia. Admittedly, I did buy a printer there about 8 months ago, and I always make sure that any "send me emails" boxes aren't checked. At least they are a reputable vendor and they shipped my printer the same day.
• Jan 31: THIS IS ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE!!! PIANO OWNERS- we offer a patented device that sits on your piano keyboard and allows you to play the piano immediately!! They gave a toll free number to call.
• Jan 30: Start your mail order business by learning from an expert ... FREE Downloadable book for you to keep!!! ... My wife and I have been in the mail order business since December 1999. We have made over $100.000 since! The email urges you to visit their website, which I haven't done. They've been in the business for 15 months, and they're the "experts" I should learn from ??
• Jan 30: Super Sex Pill with no side effects! ... Finally, there is A Dream Come True Product ... This formula helps you with naturally triggered arousal and erections, not artificially triggered like Viagra. There's a link to a website, which presumably has more info.
• Jan 29: Mortgage Rates DROP!! Lenders COMPETE for your Business!. Just like all the other refinance crap.
• Jan 29: IMPORTANT! ANTI-AGING BREAKTHROUGH:
  • Reduce body fat and build lean muscle WITHOUT EXERCISE!
  • Remove wrinkles and cellulite
  • Increase energy and cardiac output
  • Lower blood pressure and improve cholesterol profile
  • Improve sleep, vision and memory
  • Restore hair color and growth
  • Strenghen the immune system
  • Enhance sexual performance
  To TURN BACK YOUR BODY'S BIOLOGIC CLOCK. Wow, now if only they make is stop this damn spam, they'd really have something :)
• Jan 28: ATTENTION BUSINESS OWNER/OPERATOR ... From time to time, most companies experience a cash flow problem. ... [name removed] is a national consulting company specializing in reducing problem debts for companies of all sizes. Yeah, that's why their email has a forged header... just the sort of folks I'd want to be dealing with.
• Jan 28: The "legal" tv descrambler again.
• Jan 28: Aggressive 125% of Value Home Loans Available Now ... We have loan programs that are unheard of It goes on about how they can get you a loan pretty much no matter how bad you are with credit. Kinda shy on details, though.
• Jan 26: Meet The Richest People On Earth ... the message about 99% html tags and 1% text, and I've reading it in VIM, so I'm going to skip trying to figure out what this one was. On the bright side, it looks like Jan 27 was one of those rare days without a single SPAM received
• Jan 25: You were referred to me as someone who was ready for a Financial Breakthrough! Bullshit, this is a damn spam, who do they think they're fooling, starting out with such an obvious lie? I am looking for a few motivated and teachable individuals who are ready to start earning at least $2000 per week starting right away. And a SEVEN FIGURE income within the next 2 years. I wonder how many people really bit on these get rich quick schemes.
• Jan 25: Do you have a Timeshare or Vacation Membership? Are you interested in renting it? We can help!
• Jan 25: Do you need help with your credit cards ... Reduce your credit card debt by up to 50% ... Decrease your payments by 30% On the bright side, Jan 24 was spam free.
• Jan 23: Let us Eliminate Your Debt.
  • Stop creditors from hassling you.
  • Cut your monthly payments in half.
  • Make you debt free in less than 5 years.
  • You can not be turned down for this program.
• Jan 22: Obtain Biotech IPOs!. This is another mega-html message, with a meta tag from MS frontpage at the top.
• Jan 22: New Findout About Anyone Fast Now! ... Download this today and discover the EASY WAY to find out anything about anyone
• Jan 22: Spainsh text and .EXE attachment, dictionary.com translates it as something about Snow White's 18th birthday. Maybe this isn't spam and a trojan or virus, but I saved it to my spam file anyways.
• Jan 22: VENTURE CAPITAL BUSINESS, CAREER AND INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY ... Our program entails interacting with CEO's of emerging growth companies and assessing and qualifying their financial needs. If accepted as a partner, there is an $9,750 investment required. Message gives USA phone number, but email header filled with forged and conflicting non-us email addresses.
• Jan 21: (this scam is one of my favorites) This exciting opportunity requires a very LOW START-UP COST and has already been TESTED AND PROVEN. We are in the information age, billions are made every year in the information industry and you can take part in making money by selling information. The basic idea is that you'll get rich quick by buying a cdrom, making copies, and selling to others on the net (via spam), who for some mysterious reason didn't already fall for this scam.

Looking though these messages, that have a few things in common, which might allow a very effective filter to be written. Near all offer (a likely bogus) way "to be removed". This phrase almost occurs at the end of the message, often times with "remove" or "in error", and either an email address or url immediately following. The other style, which isn't usually present in normal emails, it a large number of 2-5 word PRHASES IN ALL CAPS, followed with lots of exclaimation points!!!!!

...but how many people change cpus every 2months? ...

Well, since new 700MHz CPUs cost ~$80, my guess would be people who can afford to spend $40 a month, or roughly $1.33 a day.

(Remove space between "duro" and "n%2" to view the link.)

The GeForce2 MX GPU is winning editor awards all over the place. Happenstancilly, I found a card with it for $104, shipped: come 'n get it.

Slashcode won't let me insert the URL correctly; it adds spaces. Please remove the spaces from the URL after clicking on the link in order to view. Should look like this:
http://www.onvia.com/CnetShopper/products/index.cf m? Task=Vi ewProduct&SearchText=geforce2%2520mx&IdCatalog=256 0321

The GeForce2 MX GPU is winning editor awards all over the place. Happenstancilly, I found a card with it for $104, shipped: come 'n get it.

Slashcode won't let me insert the URL correctly; it adds spaces. Please remove the spaces from the URL after clicking on the link in order to view. Should look like this:
http://www.onvia.com/CnetShopper/products/index.cf m? Task=Vi ewProduct&SearchText=geforce2%2520mx&IdCatalog=256 0321

Yes. The Duron 700 is an $82 CPU. This is low-end, kidz, and that price includes shipping, on your doorstep in three days from a reputable company.

Low end. Say it slowly and enunciate clearly.

To complement the Crusoe's power savings, I recommend dumping the built-in hard drive and sticking a 1GB Microdrive in on of the PCMCIA slots. (They just went on sale! $442 with the PCMCIA adapter and USB adapter, shipped!)

Description of Microdrive Roadwarrior and Deluxe kits.

frankie wrote:
If laptop hard drive prices drop below $15 per Gb, I'll expand my Wallstreet...

IBM 30GT 30 gigabyte 12.5mm laptop drives are only $437 shipped, at onvia.com:

Check the current best prices.