Direct from Dell

       What I saw was a great opportunity to provide computing 1 technology in a much more efficient way. That was the core idea of what became Dell Computer Corporation, and it’s one that we’ve stuck with ever since.

       I started the business with a simple question: How can we make the process of buying a computer better? The answer was: Sell computers directly to the end customer. 1)Eliminate the reseller’s markup 2 and pass those 2)savings on to the customer.

       It hadn’t occured to me that others hadn”t 3)figured this out. I thought it was pretty obvious. I’m sure if I had taken the time to ask, plenty of people would have told me that my idea wouldn’t work - I’ve heard that a lot in the fifteen years since starting the business.

       Sometimes it’s better not to ask - or to listen - when people tell you something can’t be done. I didn’t ask for permission or 4)approval. I just went ahead and did it.

       On January 2, 1984, I went back to Austin earlier than I would have to attend classes, and I did all the things you need to do to set up a business. I registered the company with the State of Texas as “LC’s Limited” I placed  ads in the 5)classified section of our local newspaper.

       Through my previous contacts with customers and the small ad I placed in the paper, I was already getting a lot of business. I was selling between $50,000 to $80,000 a month of 6)upgraded PCs, upgrade 7)kits, and add-on components 4 to people in the Austin area. Not too long after starting school, I was able to move from a 8)stuffy 5 dorm that I shared with a roommate to a 9)condominium with high ceilings and two bedrooms. (I didn’t, however, tell my parents for a few months that I had moved.)

       In early May, about a week before I took my final exams to complete my freshman 6 year, I 10)incorporated the company as “Dell Computer Corporation,” doing business as “LC’s Limited.” We moved the business from my condo to a 1,000-square-foot office space in a small business center in North Austin. I hired a few people to take orders over the telephone and a few more to fulfill 7 them. Manufacturing consisted of three guys with 11)screwdrivers sitting at six-foot tables upgrading machines. Business continued to grow, and I began to think hard about what the potential could be if I could devote myself to the 12)venture, full-time 9.

       Where I come from, not going to college is not an acceptable 13)option. Convincing my parents to allow me to leave school would have been impossible. So I just went ahead and did it, whatever the 14)consequences. I finished my freshman year, and left.

       After a while, my parents forgave me. And a little bit after that, I forgave them, too.

       People ask me now, “Were you scared?”Sure.

       But it turned out, the 15)timing 10 for PC’s Limited couldn’t have been better. CE

19、戴尔指导

当时我看到一个大机遇，就是以更有效的方式提供电脑技术。那后来成为戴尔电脑公司的核心理念，自此后我们便一直坚持不懈。

我是从一个简单问题开始创业的：我们如何使购买电脑的过程变得更方便？答案是：直接把电脑卖给终端用户。去除转售商这一层并把省下的钱归还用户。

当时我并不知道其他人没认识到这一点。在我看来，那是相当明显的。我确信如果当时我肯花点时间问人的话，会有许多许多人说我的法子行不通——创业后的十五年我听过很多这样的话。

有时不问不闻是最好的办法——当别人告诉你行不通的时候。我就没去问别人的许可和赞同。我只是一往直前地做了。

1984年1月2日，我比开学时间略早一些回到奥斯汀，我做了一切成立新公司所需要的准备。我注册了个得州公司，名为“个人电脑有限公司”。我在当地报纸的分类广告上登了一则广告。

通过我与客户的早期接触以及在报纸上登的广告，当时我已经接到了很多业务。我在奥斯汀地区出售升级电脑、升级工具、附加零件的每月营业额达5万至8万美元之间。开学后不久，我便从和一名舍友共住的闷热的宿舍里搬出来，住进有高高天花板、两个卧室的公寓套间里。（然而我是在好几个月后才把搬家的事告诉父母。）

五月初，大约是我一年级期末考试前一周吧，我的“戴尔电脑公司”落成，以股份公司形式经营“个人电脑”。公司地址也从我的公寓搬到奥斯汀北部一个一千平方尺的小商业中心写字间里。我雇了些人接电话订单，还有一些人负责填单。生产部有三人，拿着螺丝起子坐在六英尺的桌旁升级电脑。业务逐渐庞大，我也开始认真考虑如果我全心全意地扑在生意上，公司是否还有潜力。

不上大学在我来的地方是难以被接受的。要说服父母同意我辍学是根本不可能的事。因此我毅然不顾地我行我素。在念完一年级后，我便离开了学校。

后来，我的父母原谅了我。再后来，我也原谅了他们。

人们现在问我：“你当时害怕吗？”当然害怕。

而结果证明，那个时机成立个人电脑公司最好不过。CE

1) eliminate [i5limineit] v. 除去，消除

2) saving [5seiviN] n. 储蓄

3) figure out 想出

4) approval [E5pru:vEl] n. 同意

5) classified [5klAsiraid] a. 分类的

6) upgraded [Qp5greidid] a. 升级的

7) kit 3 [kit] n. 成套工具，工具箱

8) stuffy [5stQri] a. 乏味的，闷热的

9) condominium [kCndE5miniEm] n. 由个人占用的一套公寓房间

10) incorporate [in5kC:pereit] v. 组成公司

11) screwdriver 8 [5skru:draivEr] n. 螺丝起子

12) venture [5ventFEr] n. 投机

13) option [5CpFEn] n. 选择

14) consequence [5kCnsikwEns] n. 后果

15) timing [5taimiN] n. 时间选择