Dell Computer offers free upgrade to Windows 2000

Dell Computer is the first major PC manufacturer to announce that it will be giving out free upgrades to Windows 2000 for customers that buy any of its Windows NT 4.0-based systems, be they laptops, desktops, or servers. This special promotion, which goes into effect September 1st, will provide customers with a special upgrade CD that will provide the drivers and software updates they'll need to seamlessly upgrade their systems to Windows 2000 when the new OS ships to PC makers in late 1999 or early 2000.

"[This promotion] will help [small businesses and other early adopters to] adopt Windows 2000 right away, because they don't have the same issues as our corporate customers do," says Carol Rylander, Dell's senior product marketing manager. "They are more careful about turning their entire corporate environment to a new platform."

While Dell isn't the first PC maker to announce a deal like this, it is the first one to offer it on every single Windows NT 4.0 machine they make