Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!ficc!peter From: peter@ficc.uu.net (Peter da Silva) Newsgroups: comp.arch Subject: Re: X-terms v. PCs v. Workstations Message-ID: <7162@ficc.uu.net> Date: 30 Nov 89 19:03:40 GMT References: <1989Nov28.125728.6774@jarvis.csri.toronto.edu> <40009@lll-winken.LLNL.GOV> <2992@uceng.UC.EDU> Reply-To: peter@ficc.uu.net (Peter da Silva) Organization: Xenix Support, FICC Lines: 37 In article <2992@uceng.UC.EDU> dmocsny@uceng.UC.EDU (daniel mocsny) writes: > Having to appeal to a bureaucrat to obtain resources you need to > accomplish work on a daily basis is degrading and stressful. So ask your manager to do it for you. That's part of what your manager's job is: to act as your gofer. Forcing technical people to be managers is just wasting resources. > People with a job to do and a distaste for politics will be willing > to pay an extra premium to free themselves from having to beg > every day. That's one of the reasons technical jobs have lower salaries than managerial jobs, and why "parallel path" career tracks top out sooner on the technical side. People are willing to pay more (give up some salary) to stay out of the business business. > But how many people prefer to drive an automobile instead of taking > mass transit? Depends on whether the Mass Transit system is answerable to the passengers. If they depend on fares then they *will* be responsive. If they depend on taxes, they don't care. "We're Metro, we don't have to care". Who is your central computing authority answerable to? > sure that some corporations have excellent MIS outfits, but once > people get a taste of being in control, they don't give up that > feeling readily. Even in a University it's possible to keep control in the user's hands. Competing comp centers is one good way. Since you don't have anyone in charge who cares about the users, you can't afford a monopoly. -- `-_-' Peter da Silva . 'U` -------------- +1 713 274 5180. "The basic notion underlying USENET is the flame." -- Chuq Von Rospach, chuq@Apple.COM Brought to you by Super Global Mega Corp .com