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Wednesday, December
31, 1997
Tuesday, Iomega closed
at $12 1/2, up $1/8 (+1.01%).
TODAY'S RECAP: A variety of concerns kept the Iomega board busy yesterday,
not the least of which was the Nomai Zip disk and its potential usefulness
and impact. Also on the agenda were SyQuest's financial report (or lack thereof),
Zip-killers, refurbished Zips, IBM and some Iomega advertising.
Happy New Year!
INDEX: Use the Search or Find feature of your word processor to locate
the article number (Find: 1++, 3++, etc.) - or use AOL's Edit>>Find
in Top Window Feature. If Find in Top Window is dimmed, just click on some
text, anything, in the IOM Today window and try again.
1++ Duuwhee responds to the idea of refurbished drives.
2++ IraS1 comments on Iomega's reflector patent and Nomai disks.
3++ Warren5550 considers the Zip's future alongside the "Zip-killer"
drives.
4++ DaleVelk shares information about SyQuest's delay in reporting financial
information.
5++ Duuwhee (again) provides the reason (from IR) as to the refurbished Zip
drive supply.
6++ Manilla describes IOM's presence in the New York Times.
7++ HeyKerry answers concern over IBM's proposed entry into the removeable
storage market.
Recap written and posts compiled by TMF Weekly.
Edited and mailed by TMF Selena.
Kudos? Gripes? Questions? Let us know.
As always, the following posts represent the thoughts of our contributors,
not those of The Motley
Fool.
_______________________________
And now, the Best of the Board...Started 9:01pm ET 12/29/97.
1+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Subject: Re: Syquest's SparQ is Next Genetation ZIP
Date: Mon, Dec 29, 1997 22:19 EST
From: Duuwhee
This is wrong: "Refurbished means they fixed or repaired failed zip
drives."
The word refurbished has a pretty broad definition.
Lets look at a few reasons a Zip might need to be refurbished.
Reasons Quality Control at Penang might say were "failures"
Bad shrink wrap
Line ran out of documentation to insert
Plastic face plate doesn't fit perfect (remember the "parts" problem)
Green LED light fails
Insert instruction sticker crooked.
** MY FAVORITE**
Enable Retro Reflective device
It would sure be funny if the "refurbished" Zips couldn't read the Nomai
piracy.
PS: I'm no lawyer, but my understanding from reading Ira's great work, is
IOM made it very clear in their patents that they intended to move the light
source around. It would seem that those intentions or intellectual properties
would become part of the device design pre-dating the piracy. IOM can build
'em anyway they want within the design parameters specified and Nomai can
only whine.
My biggest unknown here is the licensing agreements with NEC and MCI. I suppose
they could refuse to implement line changes to defeat a piracy which does
not affect them financially. I'd be interested in seeing how IOM covered
that base in the Licensing Contract. That could be some tedious reading....
which reminds me to thank Ira and the others for wading through the
drudge.
2+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Subject: Re: German/French Rulings on Nomai Disks
Date: Mon, Dec 29, 1997 23:04 EST
From: IraS1
"Are you so sure that the Nomai diskettes do not work well cause if they
do, the results will be disasterous for Iomega."
They probably do work as currently configured and probably do not violate
the Iomega retroreflector patent. However, there are many technical steps
that Iomega could take to make the Nomai disks nonfunctional. There may be
other patents that apply (at least in the US (Ira?). I seem to remember quite
a while back that KE referred to booby traps (not his phrase) that could
make competition difficult. This is probably in one of the conference calls--does
anybody remeber this?"
In the US, there are several patents which are relevant, including the Design
Patent which covers the shape; the retroreflector patent, the patent which
regulates the standing waves in the spinning media, and patents on the liner,
and (I believe) several others. (I am using a different machine so I don't
have ready access to my patent database.)
I also believe that Dottie has "hit the nail on the head" with her observation
that the optical geometry in the laptop zip drive must be different than
that in the "big" Zips and that the Nomai reflector, which is optimized to
work in the "big" Zip without infringing the retroreflector patent, cannot
work in the presumed reduced pathlength of the laptop Zip. Time and the granting
of additional patents in the US and elsewhere will tell.
3+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Subject: Re: Syquest's SparQ is Next Genetation ZIP
Date: Tue, Dec 30, 1997 01:50 EST
From: Warren5550
"No one will deny the fact that Iomega had a great product during it's time
in the sun, but the next generation is here..... 1 gig and larger removable
hard drives."
So, why do you suppose sales of the 5.25" floppies continued, despite the
presence of the clearly superior 3.5" drive/disk, for years and years? Why
didn't the sun set on 5.25" the day the 3.5" was announced?
I'll repeat what has been said over and over - The zip hits a price and
performance point that allows the customer to take an AFFORDABLE step up,
which enables transfer and storage of larger and/or more files without great
concern for the cost of the disks. Removable hard drives with 1g capacity
are OBVIOUSLY "cheaper" in terms of cost/mb, but the up-front cost and per/disk
cost is very high. This is why SparQ and other higher-capacity high-cost
would-be "zip-killers" won't kill the zip. I'm sure SYQT will sell a few
SparQ's, just like I'm sure some people actually buy those 5 gallon buckets
of Catsup at Costco Wholesale because "it's cheaper!" - but far more Catsup
is sold in little packets and bottles than 5 gallon tubs.
Iomega has succeeded with Zip because they thought like a consumer, not strictly
like Mr. Spock. If I want to give 100mb of files to a friend, I give them
a zip - no big deal. If I need some digital artwork sent to me for review,
I say "Send me the Zip", and they say "No problem". I can't be as cavalier
with a SparQ disk, which will never be as cheap as a zip.
Now do you get it?
4+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Subject: SYQT delays the SEC
Date: Tue, Dec 30, 1997 16:22 EST
From: DaleVelk
SYQT apparently is having some problems with its financial reporting processes.
SYQT's fiscal year end was on Sept 30, 1997, and the SEC requires that companies
file their annual report no later than 90 days after the end of the fiscal
year, that date was today for SYQT. According to a 10-K NT (Non-Timely) filed
with the SEC this afternoon SYQT has been unable to file the report because
it still needs to send some information to its auditors. Apparently the auditors
will perform a "comprehensive analysis" of these materials this evening so
that SYQT can file by tomorrow or sometime in the next two weeks.
"THE REGISTRANT HAS BEEN UNABLE TO COMPLETE CERTAIN PORTIONS OF ITS
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS IN A TIMELY MANNER TO PERMIT ITS FORM 10-K TO BE FILED.
THE NECESSARY INFORMATION IS PRESENTLY BEING COMPLETED AND DELIVERED TO THE
REGISTRANT'S INDEPENDENT AUDITORS, AND REGISTRANT EXPECTS TO FILE ITS FORM
10-K BY DECEMBER 31, 1997, BUT IN NO EVENT LATER THAN THE FIFTEENTH CALENDAR
DAY FOLLOWING THE PRESCRIBED DUE DATE."
5+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Subject: Refurbs
Date: Tue, Dec 30, 1997 17:37 EST
From: Duuwhee
This may have been posted before.
According to IR. the reason we are seeing refurbished drives in quantity
is because they have been accumulated over the previous 2 year period and
just began to be refurbished and released over the past several
months.
Anyone have an idea how many drives this would be? I'm guessing around
150,000.
As to the "new drives sold as refurbed" rumor. Please. These drives are "as
good as new".... but not new.
Every time you repeat this dumb rumor, you help destroy a little piece of
the credibility of IOM.
I can't imagine a more stupid and counter productive marketing campaign,
than to sell new drives as returned and refurbed. Idiocy. Jeez... just lower
the price and don't jeopardize your reputation for quality. You want me to
believe that everyone in Roy is brain damaged and drooling.
I had more to say, but I deleted it.
Suffice it to say that I am sending the "Home Lobotomy Kit" as a belated
Xmas gift to some. The kit consists of an ice pick and an instructional video
and was refurbed by SYQT.
Oh yeah, speaking of refurbs, why don't the heads mount on the SparQ? Cheap
part? or poor design?
6+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Subject: NY Times
Date: Tue, Dec 30, 1997 18:10 EST
From: Manilla
Nice 1/2 page ad in the Times by J&R Computer World totally devoted to
Zip and Jaz. Zip for $89.99 when you buy a 10 pack and Jaz for $199.99 (must
read the small print to see it is refurbished). Ad is directly below NYT's
PC column (national edition).
7+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Subject: Re: Question
Date: Tue, Dec 30, 1997 19:44 EST
From: HeyKerry
"The news out today, 12-30-97, from IBM on their new Storage technology,
is this a threat to IOM?"
Absolutely.
Compaq, Dell, Micron, Apple, Gateway, HP and Acer are all standing in line
to buy storage from their Big Blue competitor.
For those of you unaware of what IBM announced, here it is...
"Scientists at IBM have doubled their own world record in hard-disk data-storage
density, surpassing the 10-billion-bit per square inch data-density milestone
just one year after they set their last mark."
Hard drive size is getting pretty much out of control, IMHO.....they're getting
so large that backing up the entire drive on a regular basis just isn't
feasible....
I do hundreds of megs worth of commerical graphics every month and only have
a 2.5mb hard drive. And even that's a hassle to back up.
So I keep each client's files on IOM media. That way I have each of my clients
organized in a library, PLUS I get to charge them for the cost of the IOM
disk.
That's why I especially love IOM storage. Cuz I can't bill a client for,
say, 1/20th of the price of a new hard drive to store their stuff.
_______________________________
End Report. Posts covered through 9:00pm ET 12/30/97.
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