Posted by
CmdrTaco
on from the insert-beowulf-cluster-joke-here dept.
ringbarer writes "BBC News are reporting a recent Gartner Dataquest statement that over one billion PCs have been sold worldwide. What's even more impressive is that this figure is set to double by as early as 2008."
And I've got parts from at least three-quarters of them hidden away in the spare bedroom closet.
Sigh. My girlfriend has the patience of a saint.
--saint
What about Macs, not just PCs?
by
Anonymous Coward
·
· Score: 3, Interesting
If the total is just PCs, what about Macintoshes and other non-PC computers?
Re:What about Macs, not just PCs?
by
FreeUser
·
· Score: 3, Informative
If the total is just PCs, what about Macintoshes and other non-PC computers?
PC:= Personal Computer
Macintoshes are PCs, just as Ataris, AT&T 3b2s, etc. were. Just because they aren't WINTEL boxes doesn't mean they aren't personal computers, marketing newspeak drivel (from both the Intel and Apple camps) aside.
That having been said, your question is a good one: does that statistic include non-intel PCs such as Macintosh, and does Macintosh make up a signficant enough portion of the market for the difference to be statistically relevant?
Yes, abillion served
by
Ass-Gas-Istan
·
· Score: 4, Insightful
But computers these days are almost a disposable item. A PC I bought in 1998 is on the verge of obsolescence, only 4 years later. Much new software is made for the processor (233 MHz Pentium) or higher. Any further power needs, and my PC won't be able to handle the software. Either I must upgrade it or replace it. And replacing means an artifially high number sold, IMHO.
Other consumer electronics like TV's and VCR's have a much longer life expectancy.
What matters more is what percentage of the units are still running today.
Old Computers / Disposal
by
mlknowle
·
· Score: 3, Interesting
The article touches on this briefly, but this raises the pressing question of what to do with computers once their usable life has expired... I think that the average user of home computer tends to dismiss this because he or she would only dispose of a single computer every several years, at most. In aggregate, however, the effect of lead, mercury, and other computer components could be devastating.
Add to this that almost all of the computer disposal services I have seen to date are pay-based services; asking people to chip in $40-$50 to dispose of an old computer will provide too great an incentive to simply trash the thing, methinks...
I hate it when people throw their computer into the landfill.
Most of the parts in a typical computer make great tools. All those electronic parts have great uses. Capacitors, transistors, PCI bridges, memory chips, level translaters, connectors, simple logic chips, stepper motors, etc...
When I was young, my best friend and I always dreamed of taking parts other people threw away and build a robot. Used computers are a goldmine for these parts. I once took a stack of old floppy drives, cut the stepper motor/slide assembly from the case and had great axis drives for a remote control webcam driven from the parallel port. Total time to build it was the spare time at work one night.
You can't go wrong with saving old parts. When the pile gets high, you know its time to build something, not throw something out!
doubling by 2008?
by
iritant
·
· Score: 3, Insightful
I'd normally believe that number, given that large numbers of people have NO computers, and those who do will probably go through at least two others between now and then, given planned obsolesence.
On the other hand, since the number did come from Gartner, I'd be inclined to disbelieve it on those grounds alone. These are the same people who told me in 1992 that ATM would take over the LAN market by 1994. Anyone remember LANE?
Disco records up 80%
by
mckwant
·
· Score: 4, Funny
over the period 1975-1978. If this trend continues....
"Ayyyyyy"
I seriously doubt we'll be seeing computer sales the way we used to in the future.
apologies to the simpsons.
-- ceci n'est pas un sig.
Re:One billion computer..
by
ch-chuck
·
· Score: 5, Funny
Yes, somewhere in Redmond this conversation is going on:
Bill: Hey Steve, this Gartner report says that over a billion PC's have been sold! Steve: Yeah, but we've only shipped 739,428,801 Windows licenses... Bill: Damn software pirates!!
This number is misleading...Still work to be done.
by
Navius+Eurisko
·
· Score: 4, Informative
When you read the headline "One billion PCs sold", the first instinct is to think about one billion people who have PCs spread over the world. This is not the case. First off, although I don't know how many people bought PCs to contribute to that number, I doubt it was anywhere close to 1 billion. More likely is the explanation that large corporations bought large volumes of PCs for their offices/plants/etc. Secondly, the distribution of those PCs are not even. For many of the poor in third world countries, they have yet to see or use a PC let alone own one.
Although it is great that technology is reaching the masses, the 1 billion milestone is not a cause for celebration yet.
Re:Stop the press!
by
cperciva
·
· Score: 4, Insightful
That's not really surprising: 90% of the population of the world has never seen a PC.
Not true. The US, Canada, UK, Ireland, Netherlands, France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Spain, Portugal, Sweeden, Norway, Finland, Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong together constitute 14% of the world's population; I would be quite surprised if any of those countries had seen-a-PC rates below 95%, let alone 70%. Then, of course, there are all the people in countries like India -- sure, many of them will have never seen a PC, but many will.
It is possible that a majority of the world's population has never seen a PC, but the rate is certainly nowhere near 90%.
market penetration
by
Joel+Ironstone
·
· Score: 3, Offtopic
The beautiful thing about PCs compared to somethign like DVD players and VCRs is that market penetration will have little effect on curbing demand. Once you have purchased one computer you are very likely to purchase another in the next 5 years. Compare that to VCRs: I have the same one I had 9 years ago, in the same time I have purchased 3 or four PC systems (notebooks etc.)
My parents have spent the first 10 years fo this study without a computer, but when they bought one, they jumped on the band wagon and have upgraded and will do so again soon. There is no other product out there...Well i 'm sure there is and I will receive a bunch of commments abotu which product experience the same phenomen, but my point remains.
The last Billion computers...
by
MsGeek
·
· Score: 5, Interesting
Enjoy the PC reaching 1 billion sold, folks, because if Palladium is instituted this billion will be the last.
What will be sold in the PC's place will be a neutered ueber X-Box, which can do just enough to let you play Microsoft-approved games, let you surf to Microsoft-approved sites, spend money at Microsoft-approved shops, and run Microsoft applications and Microsoft-approved applications. You will not buy these games and apps...they will be rented to you.
You will be bombarded by ads, ads, ads...pop ups, pop unders, full-screen interstitials, etc. etc. And no way will you be able to block them. Use the ueber X-Box for a TiVo type device? You won't be able to fast-forward through commercials, because THAT WOULD BE STEALING.
Does this picture of the future disturb you? We need to get loud and vocal about this because this is the fondest wet dream of the RIAA, MPAA and Microsoft, and they will have scores of lobbyists and lawyers and will 0wn the vast majority of the Senate and House. (Except Rep. Boucher)
We killed Hollings 2002, we forced Intel to put an "off" switch on its PIII unique identifiers, but we mustn't be complacent.
Microsoft getting its way with Palladium will be the final nail in the coffin of geek culture. We need to get angry, get mad, and then DO SOMETHING.
-- Knowledge is power. Knowledge shared is power multiplied.
> How many of those billion are sitting in land fills?
I can account for one of them. A guy in the city I live in bought a brand new computer from a Gateway Country store. He claimed the thing was a lemon from the beginning, and eventually got sick of dealing with the service people. Instead of trying to get it repaired by a professional and sell it to help reclaim his losses, he placed the computer in the lobby of their store and took a sledge hammer and smashed it to pieces.
It made quite the news and I think people around here are nervous to buy from that store now, given the track record this one individual brought to light.
How many did Microsoft buy?
by
HanzoSan
·
· Score: 3, Insightful
Considering all the PCs they have most likely get infected by Virii, and how Microsoft has 40 billion in cash sitting in the bank.
I'm Sure Microsoft has purchased hundreds of thousands, add in all of the other big companies and you get millions, add in schools and colleges along with government and you get hundreds of millions
-- If you use Linux, please help development ofAutopac
Shoes. And Hand bags.
by
mekkab
·
· Score: 5, Funny
Shoes have established an incredible and enviable market penetration. In fact, they are legislated as a need for the right of entry into certain establishments! (along with shirts)
The easy case is that of children, who frequently need to upgrade their footwear simply due to size.
Another easy case is simple wear and tear. If you keep slapping something on the pavement and slogging it through rainy streets, eventually you will need a new one.
However the cobblers of the world have "conspired" with marketing types and have created a "fashion industry", whereby yearly dictates go out and as a result new shoes have to be purchased.
I admit, I am somewhat immune to these trends. I still have a 6 year old macintosh dual booting into linux with enough life left in it to grade students assignments. I also only have a few pairs of shoes.
However my wife and my sister are 31337 in terms of having the latest and greatest "walking processors", or footwear.
And don't get me started on handbags!
-- In the future, I would want to not be isolated from my friends in the Space Station.
Re:What happens when
by
morgajel
·
· Score: 4, Funny
we'll see something like this:
The Business Software Alliance and Microsoft have issued a joint statement demanding that the Planet Earth show liscense's for all software on the 1 billion computers known to exist. Gates said he'd be more than happy to slash the price to $200/OS-copy if everyone agreed to pay in full the $200 immediately.
I could go off on a rant here, but perhaps I'll offer the Idea to The Onion:)
Re:Six years to double???
by
markmoss
·
· Score: 3, Insightful
No, that would only be the case if there were a billion working computers that might be replaced in the next 6 years.
But then Gartner is also expecting PC's to finally get out into the rest of the world. Unfortunately, I couldn't figure out how to get to the real data, just their short announcement... As fast as the PC market has been growing in the last few years, I'd expect at least 1/3 of all the PC's to still be in use somewhere, and most of those will be replaced TWICE by 2008. That doesn't leave a whole lot out of the two billion for exponential growth of PC's in the less wealthy countries.
So it seems to me that either they're misquoting Gartner (entirely possible), or Gartner's estimate is actually rather on the pessimistic side. Of course, it's entirely possible that it's accurate - it's getting harder and harder to find real reasons to keep on replacing PC's all the time, and I think to reach much wider of a market PC's must become cheaper in third world countries and easier to use for Americans. (And maybe the third-world market is going to consist of our discarded 100-233MHz machines running Linux, which will suck for PC manufacturers and MS...)
Re:Gateway sledgehammer url
by
gmajor
·
· Score: 3, Informative
i thought the parent was bending the truth, but apparently not.
Slashdot Mirror
How many of those billion are sitting in land fills?
FoundNews.com - get paid to blog.,
We all know that "there is a world market for maybe five computers."
Fault loves the past, worry loves the future, but content enjoys the present.
over one billion PCs have been sold worldwide.
And I've got parts from at least three-quarters of them hidden away in the spare bedroom closet.
Sigh. My girlfriend has the patience of a saint.
--saint
If the total is just PCs, what about Macintoshes and other non-PC computers?
But computers these days are almost a disposable item. A PC I bought in 1998 is on the verge of obsolescence, only 4 years later. Much new software is made for the processor (233 MHz Pentium) or higher. Any further power needs, and my PC won't be able to handle the software. Either I must upgrade it or replace it. And replacing means an artifially high number sold, IMHO.
Other consumer electronics like TV's and VCR's have a much longer life expectancy.
What matters more is what percentage of the units are still running today.
The article touches on this briefly, but this raises the pressing question of what to do with computers once their usable life has expired... I think that the average user of home computer tends to dismiss this because he or she would only dispose of a single computer every several years, at most. In aggregate, however, the effect of lead, mercury, and other computer components could be devastating.
Add to this that almost all of the computer disposal services I have seen to date are pay-based services; asking people to chip in $40-$50 to dispose of an old computer will provide too great an incentive to simply trash the thing, methinks...
I'd normally believe that number, given that large numbers of people have NO computers, and those who do will probably go through at least two others between now and then, given planned obsolesence.
On the other hand, since the number did come from Gartner, I'd be inclined to disbelieve it on those grounds alone. These are the same people who told me in 1992 that ATM would take over the LAN market by 1994. Anyone remember LANE?
over the period 1975-1978. If this trend continues....
"Ayyyyyy"
I seriously doubt we'll be seeing computer sales the way we used to in the future.
apologies to the simpsons.
ceci n'est pas un sig.
Yes, somewhere in Redmond this conversation is going on:
Bill: Hey Steve, this Gartner report says that over a billion PC's have been sold!
Steve: Yeah, but we've only shipped 739,428,801 Windows licenses...
Bill: Damn software pirates!!
try { do() || do_not(); } catch (JediException err) { yoda(err); }
When you read the headline "One billion PCs sold", the first instinct is to think about one billion people who have PCs spread over the world. This is not the case. First off, although I don't know how many people bought PCs to contribute to that number, I doubt it was anywhere close to 1 billion. More likely is the explanation that large corporations bought large volumes of PCs for their offices/plants/etc. Secondly, the distribution of those PCs are not even. For many of the poor in third world countries, they have yet to see or use a PC let alone own one.
Although it is great that technology is reaching the masses, the 1 billion milestone is not a cause for celebration yet.
That's not really surprising: 90% of the population of the world has never seen a PC.
Not true. The US, Canada, UK, Ireland, Netherlands, France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Spain, Portugal, Sweeden, Norway, Finland, Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong together constitute 14% of the world's population; I would be quite surprised if any of those countries had seen-a-PC rates below 95%, let alone 70%. Then, of course, there are all the people in countries like India -- sure, many of them will have never seen a PC, but many will.
It is possible that a majority of the world's population has never seen a PC, but the rate is certainly nowhere near 90%.
Tarsnap: Online backups for the truly paranoid
The beautiful thing about PCs compared to somethign like DVD players and VCRs is that market penetration will have little effect on curbing demand. Once you have purchased one computer you are very likely to purchase another in the next 5 years. Compare that to VCRs: I have the same one I had 9 years ago, in the same time I have purchased 3 or four PC systems (notebooks etc.)
My parents have spent the first 10 years fo this study without a computer, but when they bought one, they jumped on the band wagon and have upgraded and will do so again soon. There is no other product out there...Well i 'm sure there is and I will receive a bunch of commments abotu which product experience the same phenomen, but my point remains.
Enjoy the PC reaching 1 billion sold, folks, because if Palladium is instituted this billion will be the last.
What will be sold in the PC's place will be a neutered ueber X-Box, which can do just enough to let you play Microsoft-approved games, let you surf to Microsoft-approved sites, spend money at Microsoft-approved shops, and run Microsoft applications and Microsoft-approved applications. You will not buy these games and apps...they will be rented to you.
You will be bombarded by ads, ads, ads...pop ups, pop unders, full-screen interstitials, etc. etc. And no way will you be able to block them. Use the ueber X-Box for a TiVo type device? You won't be able to fast-forward through commercials, because THAT WOULD BE STEALING.
Does this picture of the future disturb you? We need to get loud and vocal about this because this is the fondest wet dream of the RIAA, MPAA and Microsoft, and they will have scores of lobbyists and lawyers and will 0wn the vast majority of the Senate and House. (Except Rep. Boucher)
We killed Hollings 2002, we forced Intel to put an "off" switch on its PIII unique identifiers, but we mustn't be complacent.
Microsoft getting its way with Palladium will be the final nail in the coffin of geek culture. We need to get angry, get mad, and then DO SOMETHING.
Knowledge is power. Knowledge shared is power multiplied.
> How many of those billion are sitting in land fills?
I can account for one of them. A guy in the city I live in bought a brand new computer from a Gateway Country store. He claimed the thing was a lemon from the beginning, and eventually got sick of dealing with the service people. Instead of trying to get it repaired by a professional and sell it to help reclaim his losses, he placed the computer in the lobby of their store and took a sledge hammer and smashed it to pieces.
It made quite the news and I think people around here are nervous to buy from that store now, given the track record this one individual brought to light.
Considering all the PCs they have most likely get infected by Virii, and how Microsoft has 40 billion in cash sitting in the bank.
I'm Sure Microsoft has purchased hundreds of thousands, add in all of the other big companies and you get millions, add in schools and colleges along with government and you get hundreds of millions
If you use Linux, please help development of Autopac
Shoes have established an incredible and enviable market penetration. In fact, they are legislated as a need for the right of entry into certain establishments! (along with shirts)
The easy case is that of children, who frequently need to upgrade their footwear simply due to size.
Another easy case is simple wear and tear. If you keep slapping something on the pavement and slogging it through rainy streets, eventually you will need a new one.
However the cobblers of the world have "conspired" with marketing types and have created a "fashion industry", whereby yearly dictates go out and as a result new shoes have to be purchased.
I admit, I am somewhat immune to these trends. I still have a 6 year old macintosh dual booting into linux with enough life left in it to grade students assignments. I also only have a few pairs of shoes.
However my wife and my sister are 31337 in terms of having the latest and greatest "walking processors", or footwear.
And don't get me started on handbags!
In the future, I would want to not be isolated from my friends in the Space Station.
we'll see something like this:
The Business Software Alliance and Microsoft have issued a joint statement demanding that the Planet Earth show liscense's for all software on the 1 billion computers known to exist. Gates said he'd be more than happy to slash the price to $200/OS-copy if everyone agreed to pay in full the $200 immediately.
I could go off on a rant here, but perhaps I'll offer the Idea to The Onion:)
Looking for Book Reviews? Check out Literary Escapism.
No, that would only be the case if there were a billion working computers that might be replaced in the next 6 years.
But then Gartner is also expecting PC's to finally get out into the rest of the world. Unfortunately, I couldn't figure out how to get to the real data, just their short announcement... As fast as the PC market has been growing in the last few years, I'd expect at least 1/3 of all the PC's to still be in use somewhere, and most of those will be replaced TWICE by 2008. That doesn't leave a whole lot out of the two billion for exponential growth of PC's in the less wealthy countries.
So it seems to me that either they're misquoting Gartner (entirely possible), or Gartner's estimate is actually rather on the pessimistic side. Of course, it's entirely possible that it's accurate - it's getting harder and harder to find real reasons to keep on replacing PC's all the time, and I think to reach much wider of a market PC's must become cheaper in third world countries and easier to use for Americans. (And maybe the third-world market is going to consist of our discarded 100-233MHz machines running Linux, which will suck for PC manufacturers and MS...)
i thought the parent was bending the truth, but apparently not.
l ocal_3204626.shtml
http://www.wisinfo.com/postcrescent/news/archive/
(i usually post AC to prevent any whoring, but I am sick and tired of those "it's been 20 seconds since you last posted" messages)