US Army Signs $471,000,000 Deal for Microsoft Software

zero_offset writes "According to this article at Yahoo, Microsoft will provide software for 494,000 Army computers during the next six years. At roughly $950 per computer this clearly involves more than just the OS, although the article unfortunately doesn't provide details, and I was unable to find any references to this on the Microsoft website." The great things about this deal: the Army is going through a reseller, when clearly they have the purchasing power to buy direct; and most of the computers they purchase are normal consumer machines which will be purchased with Windows and Office already installed, so the Army will be paying twice for each machine.

Comments

Re:Yeah Buddy!

[anthony_dipierro]

C'mon, admit it. You posted that using IE on Windows.

$471,000,000?!?

[rampant mac]

$471,000,000 dollars? That's like SIXTEEN hammers!

Re:$471,000,000?!?

[scoove]

494,000 sets of software licences

hmmm... wonder if this has anything to do with things:

Microsoft intruduces powerful-new military battle interface
"GI Bob" software to unify army command and control systems

REDMOND, Wash., May 23, 2003 -- American combat military personnel may get upgraded this year following Microsoft's release of a new battle user interface. The new product, Microsoft GI Bob for Windows, is based on the innovative user interface system initially released by Microsoft in 1993 to consumer sectors.

Featuring a powerful new intuition engine and updated interface, GI Bob represents common combat tasks in a easy-to-navigate windowpane, complete with the a refreshing new theme called QuansitHut(TM). Designed to simplify all aspects of military combat, experts acclaim GI Bob as an interface that "even a private from Arkansas could master," yielding strategic benefits to training and combat readiness requirements.

Within GI Bob, soldiers can access battlefield data by selecting convenient icons like Sgt. Carter's desk (for current tasks), file cabinet (for archived materials), a desktop radio (for communications) and other readily-identifiable items. With the updated VirtualPyle assistant, GI Bob's audiovisual experience is complete with voiceovers and animated interactions with the on-screen helper.

Microsoft GI Bob is available to authorized military purchasers and retails for $999. Contact your authorized Microsoft partner for details.

Re:Yeah Buddy!

[Anonymous Coward]

And if the US was a country that didn't pander to corperate intrests, the headline would read,


No, it would read US Army signs $0 Deal for Linux software if we wanted our soldiers to "RTFM, j00 n00b l4m3r" instead of, say, killing people and breaking things.

Re:Yeah Buddy!

[notque]

C'mon, admit it. You posted that using IE on Windows.

Yes, but I have a valid reason.

I.. uh... umm...

If I used lynx, I wouldn't see Slashdot's ads, and would be circumventing the system, Which would not only be a violation of the DCMA, but would also..

I give up. Revoke my Slashdot card.

That's not even half of it.

[notque]

Just wait until while in the middle of cordinating an attack, they recieve a windows messanger popup for increased penis size.

Priceless!

alternately...

[ed.han]

"what, you think they really paid $700 for a hammer?"--judd hirsh, independence day.

Re:uh oh

[aborchers]

Oh, wait, that's the old slogan.

Yeah, the new one is "Who do you want to go to war with today?"

Army of One...

[Dr. Bent]

...reboot per day. At least the rifles aren't running Windows yet.

New attacking front

[EdMack]

In related news, the US has dropped millions of computers off to terrorist hot-spots.
Military Analyists estimate Bin Laden will be bankrupted by the additional fees within 3 years.

Well goodbye and thanks for all the POSIX!

[steve_of_AR]

Well, that's great. (1) Government requires purchased OS's to adhere to new set of standards called POSIX. (2) UNIX vendors jump through hoops for a decade or more to develop and meet the standards. (3) Government buys MS instead.

Re:Yeah Buddy!

[stinky wizzleteats]

...killing people and breaking things.

You know, this story didn't really make sense to me until I read that. If your task is to kill people and break things, Windows is clearly the OS for you.

Re:Yeah Buddy!

[InnovativeCX]

Yeah, uh, well we'll also have to remove your tattoo.

(pulling out a cheese grater)

But I haven't gotten one yet...

rats....

Re:Paying twice?

[Eunuchswear]

Yes, I know /. is slanted. It still irritates me though.

Well, if it wasn't slanted it'd be |.

Wow

[stinky wizzleteats]

I'm really impressed. Microsoft must really have it on the ball. An organization known to pay $800 for a hammer chose Microsoft as their software vendor.

Re:Anyone here use Win for anything other than gam

[Anonymous Coward]

Yeah, only those of us who have jobs and don't live in our parents' basement use Windows.

Re:Yeah Buddy!

[stinky wizzleteats]

Does the BSOD count as friendly fire?

What are you, kidding? The contract strictly stipulates that all BSODs are to be characterized as training incidents.

Re:uhhhh, open source can't be classified...

[notque]

Christ, not everything is a corporate-pandering conspiracy theory.

Or is that what they want us to beileve.

Re:Anyone here use Win for anything other than gam

[Anonymous Coward]

You've got to be kidding me! Using IE for pr0n is shooting yourself in the foot!

Mozilla has popup blocking, tabbed browsing, and most important of all: mouse gesture controls. That's right, you can do everything one-handed