Analysts caution users from rushing into NT 5.0

Windows NT 5.0 is not ready to replace Unix in the high-end computing range, according to the latest research by the Butler Group Windows NT Forum.

Martin Butler, chairman of the Butler Group, claims Windows NT credibility as an enterprise level platform will only be secured once Computer Associates, IBM and SAP develop enterprise applications which run on NT 5.0.

The Butler Group report - called Enterprise NT - indicates that within the next 18 months, three out of four organisations will use Windows NT as their mid-range operating system instead of as a replacement for Unix. But the jury is 'still out' on whether NT would be a mainframe replacement.

Giga Information Group has issued a similar warning in a separate study.

Rob Enderle, director of desktop and mobile technology at Giga, told users at the Giga World IT Forum '98 last week not to upgrade to the 'foetal' operating system. He recommends that users wait until Windows NT 5.5 or 6.0.

Enderle said: "Since it won't be put into production by anyone but Microsoft before it is released, the first users are likely to run into a lot of problems that didn't come up during beta testing."