Technology in Business and Government
“Moore’s law” is the observation that about every two years the capacities of computers about double and the price remains about the same. Nicholas Carr claims that computer hardware is no longer a source of competitive advantage. Early adoption of “bleeding edge” technologies can be both costly and risky. Government agencies/departments in general are not too much concerned about competitive advantage and cities expect politicians and administrators to save money when possible. And yet, in any crisis the first instinct seems to be that there must be a technology solution to the crisis. Given these considerations, does it make sense to you for government administrators to buy the latest technologies and “max out” such a purchases with the idea to keep the equipment for many years; or to buy for near-term needs with the intention of discarding and replacing computer equipment frequently? Why? From an environmental perspective what is the problem with replacing used computers within two to three years? How should that problem be addressed?
