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Date:      Thu, 6 Sep 2001 00:17:00 -0700
From:      "Ted Mittelstaedt" <tedm@toybox.placo.com>
To:        "Giorgos Keramidas" <charon@labs.gr>, "Mike Meyer" <mwm@mired.org>
Cc:        "Kory Hamzeh" <kory@avatar.com>, <questions@FreeBSD.ORG>
Subject:   RE: Contributing to FreeBSD (was: userland firewall ?)
Message-ID:  <007901c136a3$eb927e20$1401a8c0@tedm.placo.com>
In-Reply-To: <20010905151243.A466@hades.hell.gr>

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>-----Original Message-----
>From: owner-freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG
>[mailto:owner-freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG]On Behalf Of Giorgos
>Keramidas
>Sent: Wednesday, September 05, 2001 5:13 AM
>To: Mike Meyer
>Cc: Kory Hamzeh; questions@FreeBSD.ORG
>Subject: Re: Contributing to FreeBSD (was: userland firewall ?)
>
>
>From: Mike Meyer <mwm@mired.org>
>Subject: RE: Contributing to FreeBSD (was: userland firewall ?)
>Date: Tue, Sep 04, 2001 at 04:28:15PM -0500
>
>> Kory Hamzeh <kory@avatar.com> types:
>>
>> > However, this client would have never attempted to migrate to a
>unix system
>> > by himself.
>>
>> I've had client install NT, then change their mind and go to
>> FreeBSD. They wanted NT to cut me out of the loop - but paying a
>> consultant to fix the system was cheaper than dealing with NT.
>
>Or paying a consultant to fix NT :-)
>Which would probably cost a lot more.
>At least I know that this is what *I* would do.
>
>When somebody calls me to install NT because 'they simply want NT',
>I ask for more money than when they leave /me/ to decide (even if my
>decision eventually seems to weigh towards NT for one reason or
>another - unlikely as that may be).
>
>Ooops, I hope nobody can accuse me of 'unfair practice'.
>

Why?  NT has absolutely horrible, horrible remote management.  Most times
troubles with NT servers must be fixed by going on-site, while UNIX can
often be corrected remotely.

As a consultant you cannot let all your time get sucked up by one client.
While nobody has published a study, my gut feeling is that freelance
consultants
that only do NT work have fewer customers that they bill a greater amount of
money for.  While both kinds can make a decent living, the consultant with
more
clients that they spend smaller hourly totals with is much better off than
a consultant with fewer clients that they spend large hourly totals with.

When someone brings you in to create an NT install they are putting you in
position where it creates a permanent support burden that is larger than
it should be.  YOu ought to do what you can to discourage that.


Ted Mittelstaedt                                       tedm@toybox.placo.com
Author of:                           The FreeBSD Corporate Networker's Guide
Book website:                          http://www.freebsd-corp-net-guide.com


>-giorgos
>
>
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