The Quiz
About 1000 representatives of large and small organizations have taken this quiz. I've presented it at Windows & .NET Magazine Connections and other industry conferences, and many people tell me that it has at least opened the doors for discussion. The quiz assigns point values to each major Windows 2003 feature or scenario. You simply add or subtract points based on your company's size and your use of the technology, then make a judgment based on your final score. Remember, this quiz is simply a guideline to help further discussions inside your organization—don't use it as a rigid gauge for whether you should upgrade.
You'll see that some questions ask whether your organization experiences light, medium, or heavy use of a specific technology. These rules certainly aren't hard and fast; you'll have to use your judgment in each scenario.
Start by giving your organization 10 points.
Question 1: Is Your Business Mostly NT or Mostly Win2K?
This first question might be the quiz's most important question. As you know, Microsoft is retiring Windows NT, and support for the OS is already waning. If you're using mostly NT, you might be aware that you can no longer get boxed NT products, NT-specific Client Access Licenses (CALs), or NT through Microsoft's OEM System Builder channel. Additionally, you'll have to contend with two hard drop-dead dates that Microsoft has set on the horizon (no nonsecurity hotfixes after January 1, 2004, and no paid or online support after January 1, 2005).
If your organization is mostly NT and you have a
- large business, add 12 points
- midsized business, add 8 points
- small business, add 4 points
The scoring for this first scenario is vastly different for large businesses versus small businesses that run NT because small businesses typically require less Microsoft support than larger businesses do. Most small businesses can simply "set it up and forget about it." Although businesses of all sizes will need to contend with Microsoft's forthcoming NT-support deadlines, large organizations will feel more of a support ache if they don't migrate off NT in time.
If you're a mostly Win2K environment, the news is better. Win2K support is officially available for many years to come (at least through 2007). Your Win2K rollout probably resulted in quite a stable platform, and you're likely already happy with the fruits of your labor. However, Windows 2003 brings some compelling new features to the table (as you'll see), and an upgrade from Win2K to Windows 2003 is relatively painless. With these factors in mind, here's my scoring for your scenario:
If your organization is mostly Win2K and you have a
- small business, add 2 points
- midsized business, add 3 points
- large business, add 5 points
