[Info-vax] OT: HP Poised to merge PC and printer divisions

[Rich Jordan]

On Mar 21, 6:44 am, Paul Sture <p... at sture.ch> wrote:
> "H.P. Is Said to Be Poised to Merge Business Units
>
> Hewlett-Packard will merge its personal computer and printing divisions
> in an effort to cut costs, improve its designs and become more efficient,
> a person briefed on the plan said Tuesday.
>
> The consolidation is the first major strategic move by Meg Whitman since
> she became chief executive last September. Until now, she had focused on
> understanding H.P.’s businesses, which are as various as home computers,
> corporate call centers and computing systems, and on communicating her
> ideas to employees. Last month, however, she warned of radical changes,
> possibly including significant layoffs."
>
> http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/21/technology/hp-is-said-to-plan-merge...
> computer-and-printer-units.html
>
> short URL:
>
> http://nyti.ms/GGE8S1
> ¨
> "Besides creating Apple-style ease of use between PCs and printers, H.P.
> is hoping for an increase in sales this year from Microsoft’s new
> operating system, which H.P. is expected to sell in regular PCs and new
> lightweight ultrabooks. The Microsoft product, Windows 8, is expected to
> be released at the end of summer."
>
> Unless Microsoft drop their insistence on the new Metro GUI interface for
> desktops as well as tablets, methinks that HP's faith in Windows 8 income
> for desktops is over-optimistic.  Corporates at least will probably stick
> with Windows 7.
>
> --
> Paul Sture

I expect that will mean even more broken printers with crippled
firmware and diminished font choices, moving UP the ladder of size and
price from their current moderate low end.  Printers that only work
properly with windows or other specially selected platforms.  And a
whole lot of debugging trying to work around why long established
print forms and setup modules work 'differently' on new PCL-5e
"compatible" printers running firmware generated by the 'new overseas
firmware programmers'.