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CHAPTER 5 Managing the Dollars and Sense of End-User Computing Options 47 These materials are © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Any dissemination, distribution, or unauthorized use is strictly prohibited. This information also doesn't include operating system licensing because those models vary wildly for different types of organiza- tions. You ultimately need it in all environments anyway, so it doesn't always affect the cost. The first four rows of data in the table provide a high-level outcomes comparison and the remain- ing rows get into more detail. Dollars and Cents: Physical Desktops and Laptops The big question today is what kinds of desktops and laptops you need to buy for your users. It comes down to the type of environ- ment you intend to operate and the level of flexibility you want to offer your employees. Laptops are more expensive than desktops, though both have come down in price over the years. When you consider the portability of a laptop, you have to ask yourself if the additional flexibility provided by such devices will have a return in terms of employee productivity. Painting a Complete Economic Picture The following sections provide guidance about what to consider as you develop a total cost of ownership (TCO)for different types of end-user computing environments. These sections don't pro- vide dollar figures, but they indicate orders of magnitude and the options within each category. For each of these sections, I use a variation of Table 5-1 and list only the details for that category with an explanation for what to look for. Calculating the total cost of a traditional desktop environment A traditional desktop environment can vary wildly from cheap to expensive, depending on what you're trying to accomplish, as explained in Table 5-2.