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I need a new computer with Windows 98

I need a new computer with Windows 98

February 13, 2012 by Craig Sharp

Old vs new - outdated technologyMy business provides IT support to its clients. And increasingly, IT support isn’t just technology support; it’s business support. That’s because using IT as a strategic asset can set your company apart from its competitors, bringing you more sales and boosting your profits.

That’s the mantra I stick by and use as the yardstick for all my conversations with clients. Good IT will result in good business.

Not quite a straightforward upgrade

So, you can imagine my surprise when a new enquiry came in from someone who said they needed to update their IT equipment. On the surface it was a straightforward job: new computers, a server and updated software.

However, it turned out not to be quite as simple as I first thought.

Things took an unexpected turn when this potential client told me that the new computers had to run Windows 98. Yes, Windows 98, which was released nearly 14 years ago. It’s so old that Microsoft even stopped providing support for it in 2006.

When I pressed them on this, the conversation went something like this:

Me: “Why do you need to run Windows 98?”

Potential customer: “Well, we have this invoicing software that was set up for us years ago.”

Me: “Ok...”

Potential customer: “The guy who set it up doesn’t work here anymore.”

Me: “I think I see where this is going.”

Potential customer: “It only works on Windows 98 computers. We have a Windows XP machine but that won’t run the software, and our Windows 98 machines are dropping like flies.”
Me [after thinking for a moment]: “I think the key issue here is to look at the software and sort it out first, rather than try to just keep Windows 98 running indefinitely.”

Bespoke software can cause problems

This business was facing is an issue I see all too often. That’s software, written or installed by an individual (not an off the shelf product) which is ‘bespoke’.

It’s great for the first year or two, while the person that installed it is around and able to help. But 15 years later (yes, they said they’ve been using it for about 15 years!) it becomes a problem because the installer or designer is no longer around.

My plan in this case is to check out the software properly before making any further suggestions. I guess it’s probably some kind of customised spreadsheet or perhaps a bespoke database.

However, the key point is that this software is hindering the company’s ability to use IT effectively. It’s stopping them from being efficient, productive and responsive to new orders.

The lesson for us all is clear. It’s vital to get advice from IT professionals who understand your business and its needs both now and in the future.

Technical people are fantastic. They can do magic things to fix software or resuscitate a dying PC. But it’s my experience that they often fail to consider the needs of your business. When you’re looking at a big investment in new software and equipment, they are far more important.

Craig Sharp is MD of Abussi.

Comments

MaffRigby's picture

Hi Craig,

That's a classic example of a badly managed bit of software causing problems to the business further down the line. However I would argue that your headline "Bespoke software can cause problems" should actually read "Software can cause problems".

Software of any kind requires support, and without it you will run in to issues. Bespoke software simply requires a different kind of support than off-the-shelf software. Any company looking to implement bespoke software should understand the reasons for doing so, and assess the risks associated with it. When this is done correctly and plans are put in place to mitigate the risks, bespoke software can be extremely powerful for a business.

Cheers,

Maff

OpenSure's picture

We can really relate to this! We see this sort of problem all the time and take a similar approach, with the crucial difference that we encourage people not to be beholden to Windows at all and encourage them to go an open source route, but of course we have to be flexible or we're not providing a useful service either. There's so much fear around any change in IT, which must be preventing a great many companies reaching their potential.

trevorwood's picture

Been there, done that. Even had problems with moving people from XP to windows 7 with software that wouldn't work on Windows 7 - see http://www.redline.co.uk/blog/2010/11/20/windows-7-software-testing-part.... Fortunately in some cases I was able to use some different software to do the same thing, and in others it turned out the software hadn't been used for years, it was being kept "just in case" and "because we used to use it"

imanuelv's picture

Very amusing and can absolutely relate. A previous place I worked had some Win 3.1 software running (on XP though!) with loads of DIY Delphi apps holding everything together. Performance over the network was unbearably slow even with Gigabit NICs. Had to restart application every couple of hours as it would crawl to a halt. Aaaah *reminisces*

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