Private pain: Dell layoff bloodbath to hit over 15,000 staffers – insiders

[Redfairen]

Source: The Register

Two sources have told us Dell is starting the expected huge layoff programme this week, claiming numbers will be north of 15,000.

The company is returning to private ownership to restructure its operations in the wake of a falling PC market, a commoditisation of the server market and a perceived need to better serve enterprises with their ever-increasing mobile and cloud-focused IT requirements.

We heard from people close to the Round Rock Dell HQ area that Dell management has every conference room booked, and every HR person and security staff member is at work. There are cuts in all departments, according to one of our sources, who says some of these have already been downsized and are now being told to cut 15 per cent more heads.

We hear the worldwide layoff number is now greater than 15,000 people.

Our insider commented: "It’s going to be a bloodbath.”



Read more: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/02/03/dell_layoff_bloodbath/

[onehandle]

1. Republican Dell's primary industry is now unemployment. nt

[kelliekat44]

37. I hope that means the 14,999 workers will come from the Indian outsourcing. nt

[CBGLuthier]

2. I have a friend who works for them, first job he could get after almost a year

But if he loses his job I am sure it will console him that a republican owned business is failing. Such a thought will help to keep him warm when he has no money to pay for heating or rent.

[LiberalEsto]

3. I suspect Windows 8.0 is hurting the computer industry

Office Depot and Staples have been trying to sell PCs and laptops at ridiculously low prices. Nobody wants them because of Windows 8.

[christx30]

5. I was reading the other day

that HP has started selling machines with windows 7 again. People j ust hate 8.

[blackspade]

14. That would be a blessing.

Win 8 is terrible.
I really wish they had just built on the XP platform. It just needed tweeks and some upgrades.
Maybe I'll have to deal with Win 7 if I can get a copy.

[tridim]

20. In what way is Windows 8 "terrible"?

Be specific please.

[blackspade]

34. Several things.

The user interface is clunky and not very intuitive.
Many of the familiar functions are missing or are hard to get to from the home screen.
It's program backward comparability is bad.
It's app based start menu adds unnecessary steps to access programs.

It is a hybrid OS that attempts to bridge the gap between tablets and PCs and does neither successfully.
It should be one or the other.

[Xithras]

40. Much of that is limitations based on the input format.

The user interface is clunky and not very intuitive.
The user interface is elegant and easy to use if you have a touchscreen. It sucks otherwise.

Many of the familiar functions are missing or are hard to get to from the home screen.
The home screen is the Start menu. You are limited to accessing Start menu items from that screen because of it. The desktop is one touch away...if you have a touchscreen. It sucks otherwise.

It's program backward comparability is bad.
Only for XP users, who make up a minority of Windows users. Nearly all programs and hardware designed for Vista or 7 work fine on 8. I genuinely can't fault Microsoft for not maintaining compatibility with a 12 year old dinosaur operating system that is now three versions out of date. You have to let go at some point.

It's app based start menu adds unnecessary steps to access programs.
This is an argument that I hear a lot and never quite grasped. If you have the icon on your Start screen, you can click that icon and open the program with a single click. If you don't have it bound, you just click the Apps button to view all the apps, and then click the application to open it. So that method has two clicks. That SAME action on XP generally takes FOUR clicks (Start>Programs>TheApplicationFolder>TheApplicationLink). Opening programs on 8 is actually much faster than previous versions of Windows. This one is even better with a touchscreen, but is still quicker even with a mouse.

It is a hybrid OS that attempts to bridge the gap between tablets and PCs and does neither successfully. It should be one or the other.
Microsoft really made the mistake of believing that all PC's would have touchscreens in no time. It was a dumb thing to assume. Few people are willing to change their screens just to upgrade their operating system, and most new PC purchasers still see touchscreens as a luxury item. Windows 8 actually runs incredibly well on a touch device so Win8 touch users generally like the operating system, but Microsoft assumed that mouse and keyboard users would only comprise a small portion of their legacy users, and included mouse support almost as an afterthought. That decision is really the biggest single failing in Windows 8, and it's one that I don't see them fixing anytime soon. Touchscreen desktop users only comprise a small percentage of Windows 8 users, which means that most Win8 users are struggling with mice and are unhappy with it. In the long term, that may go down as the decision that killed Windows.

[tridim]

19. What exactly do people hate about Windows 8, relative to Windows 7?

Because other than the new start menu, the desktop is the EXACTLY the same as Windows 7, with the addition many technical and speed improvements.

Sounds like the "Everyone hates 8" meme might simply be the result of a small group of loud, ignorant people on the Internet who have hated Microsoft since the 80's, because I've never seen details posted with this meme, just the meme itself. Have you ever used Windows 8 or are you only interpreting/opining on something you have read?

Oh and do you have a link for the article you about HP dumping windows 8?

[blackspade]

35. The problem with your assumption:

Sounds like the "Everyone hates 8" meme might simply be the result of a small group of loud, ignorant people on the Internet who have hated Microsoft since the 80's, because I've never seen details posted with this meme, just the meme itself.

...is that I like Microsoft products. I have used them for the last 25 years and like them much more that Apple products.
XP was one of the best products that they ever produced IMO.
I just can't stand this app based OS crap for PCs.

[Heddi]

31. We just bought a new PC laptop (just got a new MacBook last month---we need one of each)

and specifically bought one with windows 7. Our previous laptop that is in the process of biting the dust is 8ish years old and has vista on it. Not a bad computer, just getting old and unreliable, and my husband and I are both full time students and we need 2 computers.

Prior to getting the Mac we got a Dell with Windows 8. It came out of the box and immediately had problems. I called tech support and the guy's walking me through this and that and he says "so I need you to restart your computer." I told him I had no idea how to do that. He didn't either. I was on hold for 20 minutes while he figured out how to find the restart button :-/

After that, he had me do a system update. "It should take about 45 minutes." It took 18 hours.

EIGHTEEN HOURS on a computer that was, at that point, 2 hours old, brand new, out of the box.

I'm not an IT Techie, but i'm not a moron with computers, either. I can do basic troubleshooting before I get on the horn to IT support.

The next day that computer was back at the store for a full refund and we were walking out with a MacBook Pro.

Laptop we bought this past week was Windows 7. I hunted up and down and finally got one. Fuck that nightmare called Windows 8

[PSPS]

38. You're right. And Dell has never stopped selling Windows 7 machines.

I've procured about 50 PC's for client offices since Windows 8 came out, some as recently as last week. All of Dell's machines in their business channel still come with Windows 7. At first, you had the option of either Windows 7 or 8 but, now, they usually don't offer the Windows 8 option because it just isn't suitable for a business environment and nobody wants it. Why stock something nobody wants?

On those occasions that a client got their own off-the-shelf machine (which all come with Windows 8,) I've had to tweak them to get them to work properly. Besides the routine installation of the excellent and free Classic Shell to return a semblance of rationality to the desktop (including a normal start button,) one has to change settings in the broken network stack as well as manually correct the broken VPN and Wi-Fi functions. Speaking of Wi-Fi, its operation in Windows 8 is reminiscent of the joke that was Vista.

Fan boyz will harp on about how "everyone is going to tablets," but that just isn't true. Many of my clients have and enjoy their tablets, but they don't use them as a substitute for a real computer. They get a tablet as an additional device to do other things when they're on vacation or otherwise mobile, not a replacement for their primary computer.

Even Microsoft's own Surface tablet reflects the general disfavor for Windows 8 -- the "pro" model, which comes with full Windows and can be "corrected" just like a Windows 8 desktop as I've described above, far outsells their cheaper Surface which is app-based and runs Windows RT.

Windows 8 is, indeed, the modern Vista.

[Nay]

6. Agreed. Windows 8 is a horror, and killed sales. I just am aghast that

Dell obviously did no consumer testing to see what all their customers thought about 8 -- they would have found out pretty quickly that people hated it.

[tridim]

21. Why is Windows 8 a "horror"?

Please be specific.

[rwsanders]

29. Well for me, I still like windows 3.1

Simple, 1 place for all icons, click and it starts a program. I couldn't make heads nor tails out of 8. My wife has it and I won't go near it. It is like your computer is hidden within a smart phone.
Kind of like newer electronics where holding a button is a different function than a quick press. I guess if I took the time to read the users manual it would help, but I think electronics in general is going in the wrong direction, the interface should be easy, especially to the new user. Instead functions are hidden and the user has to adapt to the technology.

[tridim]

30. Windows 8 launches programs exactly like Win 3.1

All of your icons are on the desktop (if that's where you want them), and all require one click.



As I suspected, people don't have a clue what Windows 8 is because they haven't used it.

[A Simple Game]

33. I have Windows 8, and a degree in computers, along with certifications. Funny my Win 8

computer didn't come with all of my icons on the desktop. I had to place most there myself after figuring out how. My pc is not a touchscreen. But this is the coming thing, not just with pc's but with Windows server 2012, smartphones, etc. probably a good thing to get used to it.

Win 8 boots much quicker and seems to be speedy even with the slow processor I got in my pc, but Win8 still sucks.

[jsr]

32. The software problem lies with Microsoft

Windows 8 is a piece of crap across all brands.

[n2doc]

11. Tablets are killing them

And the lack of killer applications that require a newer more powerful computer.

If you just need to check e-mail, do social media, and surf the web/play games, a tablet can do all that and be more portable and cheaper than the usual PC. I am still amazed at how expensive new desktop computers are (unless you get a totally stripped down one).

[BrotherIvan]

12. That's right

Look for tablet prices to go up and desktops to go away. Apple for the most part is going that way. Laptops are the new desktop.

Also, Dell used to see quite a lot of hardware like monitors. They obviously had a stupid management structure that couldn't adapt to the changing market. Their only answer I could see was making colors--clever. Sorry to see so many people lose their jobs because their probably overpaid management was so damn stupid.

[blackspade]

17. Tablets aren't all that useful for most office and business work.

I like having an OS that I don't have to download an app for the most basic functions that a desktop includes as standard.
I use tons of graphics/GIS applications, things tablets can't do.

[n2doc]

18. Didn't say they were

How many people do GIS work? How many do high end graphics? A relative handful in the total market.

[hack89]

26. But they are perfect for home use

I was thinking about getting a new laptop for home use - but then my wife and I got iPads and they do everything we need them to do.

[progressoid]

28. Agreed.

I need a big color balanced monitor (or two) lots of ram, speed and storage space. A tablet won't cut it.

Tablets are great for my mother-in-law to play candy crush and surf the web.

[tridim]

22. Do you have a link for the claim that "nobody wants them because of Win 8"?

[TexasTowelie]

4. This will have a significant effect on the job market near Austin.

I had friends that worked for Dell, although I don't know if they are employed there. Let's hope that the layoffs are smaller than expected.

[BodieTown]

7. How Did ALEC Work Out for You, Dell?

Yeah, yeah, yeah: You confirmed on June 21, 2012 that you would not be renewing your ALEC membership.

But why did it take you so long to stop feeding the Kochs?

[markbark]

8. I believe this is what they call "Karma"

In 1997, when Apple was in the midst of a corporate meltdown, Michael Dell offered this suggestion:

What would I do? I'd shut it down and give the money back to the shareholders

Taking your own advice, Michael?

[liberal N proud]

9. Sounds like the same shit our company went through last year

Those that are left, wonder if there is a future.

[Berlum]

10. "Pull yourselves up by your own freaking bootstraps. Sneer." - Republicons (R - 1%)

[HughBeaumont]

39. Stealing. That's right on the money.

[Sunlei]

13. "worldwide layoff number" Roundrock home office it's 15%, still painfull of course.

Places like TI in Houston had pinkslipped thousands regular workers over past 20 years as they romneyedTM the jobs overseas. (My Dad was management at TI) TI main place has been closed now.

We have to build our own kickass gamers PC now with generic stuff

[Dopers_Greed]

15. So will Perry take credit for this?

Since he is such an economic genius and responsible for the "Texas Miracle"

[dem in texas]

16. Their Bad Service didn't help

Over the years, I have purchased six or seven pcs or laptops from Dell. I bought a new PC about 18 months ago and was sent two computers instead of one. It took a month and many, many phone to get the mess cleared up. When you got customer support (always in India), they would tell you anything just to get you off the line. Plus part of the products included would not install and there was no copy of the Windows 7 operating system, you had to sign on to dell to download it, I did that three times and every time it failed, so I have no back for my operating system. I am done with Dell, they deserve all the grief they get.

I am saving to buy a tablet and I think I will get an (gasp) Apple product.

[DeSwiss]

27. ''I am done with Dell....''

- That's what Foamy The Squirrel always says. Only he calls them "Smell Computer''

[Ezlivin]

23. Dude, you got a layoff!

[tammywammy]

24. I noticed that the large Fortune 500 company I work for is replacing Dells with HPs

We get a new computer every three years. This year the replacement machines are HP and not Dells.

[Yavin4]

25. It's never the hardware. It's always the software.

In the early days of TV, you could make a good living in making and repairing TVs. By the 70s, that all changed, and the real money in TV was in making TV shows.

[blkmusclmachine]

36. Start getting rid of the jobs, before you start getting rid of the people.