Re: Monday announce - interactive tax

Rob,

>This capacity on demand is interesting.  If the financial investment from
>IBM is already in the box then how can they charge extra for it to turn in
>on?

What is the difference between that and shipping lots of LPP's on the install
CD's even if you don't order them?  The product is already there.  How dare they
charge you to actually use it? :)

Manufacturers -- particularly electronics manufacturers -- have been doing doing
this kind of stuff for decades, but it was just less widely known and you
couldn't "upgrade" it over the phone.  It required knowing what jumper to add or
remove, or resistor to replace, or whatever.

In electronics, it is common to try to use the same printed circuit board design
in multiple models to reduce design, manufaturing, and parts warehousing costs.
Nothing wrong with that -- it is good for the manufacturer and the consumer.

Do different models cost the manufacturer more to produce?  Not necessarily,
even when one has a much higher retail price.  So why don't they just make one
model and sell it at a single price?

One word:  Marketing

Doug