Maybe PC Era Truly Is Coming to an End

choi

(1) Sharon Terlep, Shira Ovide and David Benoit, PC Slide Doomed Blackstone-Dell Tie. Wall Street Journal, Apr 20, 2013.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB ... 33063194818472.html

The first and second paragraphs:

"It really was that bad.

"That was the conclusion Blackstone Group reached about Dell Inc after it set a small army off to decide whether the private-equity firm should bid for the computer maker.

Note:
(a) Shira
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shira
(b) in the quotation:

set off (vt): "to set in motion : cause to begin"
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/set%20off
(c) The report states, "During the review, Blackstone officials didn't all see eye-to-eye on Dell, said people familiar with the matter."

That means Blackstone officials (initially) disagreed with one another, about Dell.

(d) The report says, "Another issue, some of the people said, was a seeming freefall in Dell's forecasted operating income. While some Blackstone executives initially had hoped the predictions were worst-case scenarios, in due diligence they concluded the predicted outcomes were spot on, and the numbers could come in even lower, the people said."
(i) due diligence (n)
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/due%20diligence
(ii) spot-on (adj; First Known Use 1949): "exactly correct"
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spot-on

choi

(2) Rolfe Winkler, Dell Bulls: Know When to Fold 'Em. Wall Street Journal, Apr 20, 2013 (in the half page Heard on the Street).
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB ... 33040921924704.html

Note:
(a) The Gambler (song)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Gambler_(song)
(singed by Kenny Rogers in 1978; Genre  Country; lyrics: "You got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em")
(b) The analysis comments,

"Dell, whose shipments declined 11% [compared to IDC's first-quarter PC shipments world-wide showing a record 14% year-on-year decline], sells most of its tech gear to businesses. Unlike consumers, business customers won't trade their PCs for tablets soon since they need machines to run enterprise software from the likes of Oracle and Microsoft. Still, the rate at which they upgrade their PCs appears to be slowing."

Mr Winkler here tries to explain why Dell registered a smaller decline than world's average.