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OCLC has discontinued sales of workstations, modems, upgrades, add-ons and related hardware.
"OCLC has always viewed the sale of workstations not as an end in itself, but as a means to providing cost-effective access to its services," said Rick Bean, manager, OCLC User Support. "Member libraries can now obtain workstations to access OCLC services from a variety of alternative sources at economical prices."
Mr. Bean noted that the roles of telecommunications and workstations in OCLC’s service offerings have been changing with advances in technology. OCLC is moving from its proprietary network to Internet and dedicated TCP/IP links, which use ubiquitous open system protocols and are less complicated. Users are less dependent on OCLC for workstation setup, training and troubleshooting. Users can also obtain workstations directly from manufacturers or vendors at favorable prices. "Member libraries no longer need to have OCLC in the workstation business," said Mr. Bean.
Also, effective June 30, 1999, OCLC will discontinue monthly maintenance on the M386, M386SX, M386SX25, M466, M466DX, M466DX2, M486, M486DXI and M486SX25 workstations. OCLC will honor Extended Maintenance Options commitments through the end of the committed period per machine. All other OCLC workstation models not specifically mentioned will continue to be supported and maintained.
Mr. Bean noted that for optimum performance of OCLC applications, a Pentium-based workstation with Windows 95 or higher is recommended.
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