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ARE NETWORKS BECOMING A DRAIN ON WORKER PRODUCTIVITY
Once Microsoft Corp. of Redmond, Wash. could claim dominance
of the desktop. Netware from Novell Inc. of Orem, Utah dominated the
local area networks that tied these desktop computers together. Unix
dominated the client/server computing environments that were displacing
mainframe systems.
Then Microsoft put its development efforts behind Windows NT, a server-based
network operating system that could displace both Netware and Unix.
Only a year ago, NT was still not a sure bet in the corporate computing
market. Now, however, market research firms such as International Data
Corporation (IDC) of Framingham, Mass. predict by the year 1999, Windows
NT will edge out NetWare as the leader in the server operating environment
marketplace).
IDC's new research, Server Operating Forecast Update, says Windows NT
will ship more than 1.5 million units by the year 2000, and with a 31%
compound annual growth rate from 1994 through 2000. NetWare will remain
a solid number-two shipping 1.4 million units. Unix and OS/2 servers
will fight to stay competitive, realizing shipments of 928,000 and 498,000,
respectively.
The battle is for the workgroup server, which represents more than 50%
of new server sales, in medium to large companies. The workgroup computer
overlaps the user and the enterprise network. The issues impacting the
workgroup market include:
• User departments’ affinity toward the Microsoft suite
of solutions
• A push by MIS departments for a reliable, controllable, manageable,
often Unix, network environment
• The presence of a Certified NetWare Engineer (currently managing
many PC distributed networks)
These forces will determine who wins in the workgroup. Windows NT will
extend its control from users’ desktops to workgroup server, says
IDC. Novell will defend its over 65% LAN server market share.
No one server environment meets all users' needs. “The ability
of the different vendors to offer competitive solutions will determine
relative market share,” said Philip Johnson, director of IDC’s
Unix and Server Operating Environments program. “However, we believe
all the major server environments will remain viable market players.”
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