B-School May Abandon IBM Portable Computers

The Business School may be in the market for a more advanced personal computer for student use beginning next fall. The IBM Portable Personal Computer, which all students have been encouraged to purchase since 1984, has been surpassed by newer models, school officials said.

The IBM computer, which has been offered to students at the wholesale price, originally was chosen for its relatively small size and its unmatched software compatibility. The B-School had developed its own software which enabled students to use the computer, for specialized academic applications but now finds the machine lagging behind the state of the art.

"It is a question of progress," said Professor of Business Administration F. Warren McFarlan, who heads the B-School committee that supervises the personal computer program.

"To expect that one would go a third or fourth year with the same product in this industry would be unreasonable," McFarlan told The Harbus News, the B-School student weekly.

The microcomputer committee, which is made up of eight B--School faculty members, is currently looking into new computers with "exciting new technologies that will do the job and more," McFarlan said. The committee is expected to hand down a decision in mid-April in order to have the new computers available for next year's incoming class.

McFarlan gave no indication what machine might be chosen to replace the IBM portable. However, he told The Harbus News that the new computer would have to be compatible with IBM software and the B-School's specialized programs.

Although purchasing the IBM computer has not been mandatory, 787 out of 800 incoming B--School students last year heeded the school's recommendation.