The competition among producers of personal computers is essentially a race to get the best, most innovative(革新的)products to the marketplace．Marketers in this environment frequently have to make a judgment as to their competitors’ role when making marketing strategy(战略性的)decisions．If major competitors are changing their products, then a marketer may want to follow suit to remain competitive．Apple Computer, Inc．has introduced two new, faster personal computers, the Mackintosh II and Mackintosh SE, in anticipation of(预期)the introduction of a new PC by IBM, one of Apple’s major competitors．
Apple’s new computers are much faster and more powerful than its earlier models．The improved Mackintosh is able to run programs that previously were impossible to run on an Apple PC, including IBM－compatible(兼容的)programs．This compatibility feature(特点)shows computer manufactures’ new attitude of giving customers the features they want．Making Apple computers able to run IBM software is Applets effort at making the Mackintosh compatible with IBM computers and thus more popular in the office, where Apple hopes to increase sales．Users of the new Apple can also add accessories(附件)to make their machines specialize in specific uses, such as engineering and writing．
The new computers represent a big improvement over past models but they also cost much more．Company officials do not think the higher price will slow down buyers who want to step up a more powerful computer．Apple wants to stay in the high－price end of the personal computer market to finance research for even faster, more satisfying computers．
Even though Apple and IBM are major competitors, both companies realize that their competitor’s computers have certain features that their own models do not．The Apple line has always been popular for its satisfying color graphics(图形), whereas the IBM machines have always been favored in offices．In the future, there will probably be more compatibility between the two companies’ products, which no doubt will require that both Apple and IBM change marketing strategies．
(1)
According to the passage, Apple Computer, Inc．has introduced the Mackintosh II and the Mackintosh SE because ________．
[ ]
A．
IBM is changing its computer models continuously
B．
it wants to make its machines specialize in specific uses
C．
it wants to stay ahead of IBM in the competitive computer market
D．
it expects its major competitor IBM to follow its example
(2)
Apple hopes to increase Mackintosh sales chiefly by ________．
[ ]
A．
making its new models able to run IBM software
B．
improving the color graphics of its new models
C．
copying the marketing strategies of IBM
D．
giving the customers what they want
(3)
It can be inferred from the passage that both Apple and IBM try to gain a competitive advantage by ________．
[ ]
A．
copying each other’s technology
B．
incorporating features that make their products distinctive(特色)
Impressed by the persuasive technical advice which Trent Eisenberg gave online．computer powerhouse Compaq approached him about a job at the company's headquarters in Houston． But Compaq was forced to withdraw(收回)the offer when an important detail about Eisenherg was discovered：he was just 14．Two years later, Eisenberg now runs his own technical support company, F1 Computer, “I might be interested in getting a job in a few years, after college,” he says．”But this is just right for me now．”
Eisenberg is among an increasing number o| teenagers who are running their own eomputer-related businesses－and, for the most part, being successful at it．”Many kids in suburban homes have grown up operating very powerful computers, so technology is second nature to them in a way that it's not to many adults,” says Gene DeRose, president of a high tech research firm based in New York．
Danny Kalmick, the 14-year-old president of Kalmiek & Co．Computing took his first step toward becoming a neighborhood computer expert at age 11, when he broke down his first PC (a 486/DX2) to inspect its motberboard(主板)．When neighbors called him for comp-er advice a year later, Kalmick saw a husiness opportunity．So he printed up business cards, and took out an ad in a neighborhood telephone book．He now has about 10 regular clients, works 6 to 10 hours a week, and earns $ 20 an hour solving tech problems．
Low prices are usually an advantage in the marketplace, but so is age．Many young business people argue：Kids aren't as frightening to work with as their more senior adults．”We're professional, of course, but we are just kids, and people feel like they can talk with us and ask us whatever they want without being embarrassed,” says Charles Ross, 18, vice president of a Web services company that develops marketing sites for local businesses．Ross runs the firm with his twin brother, James, and their friend Matthew Baylis, 17．”Beside, a lot of our clients tell us that they would rather work with us because we've grown up with the technology and have a solid handle on it．”
(1)
The title of the passage “ Mini Computer Capitalists” refers to ________．
[ ]
A．
young computer business people
B．
new kinds of computer companies
C．
expensive, high-tech inventions
D．
very small high-speed computers
(2)
Trent Eisenbarg could not work for the Compaq computer company because ________．
[ ]
A．
Compaq didn't want to hire him
B．
he wanted a very high salary
C．
they thought he was too young for the job
D．
he didn't have enough experience
(3)
Most teenagers mentioned in the passage who run their own computer business are ________．
[ ]
A．
famous
B．
successful
C．
unsuccessful
D．
inexperienced
(4)
The underlined phrase “have a solid handle on it” probably means ________
[ ]
A．
are full of energy
B．
are familiar with computer technology
C．
understand it well and can do it well
D．
are experts and very wealthy
(5)
The last paragraph mainly talks about ________．
[ ]
A．
low prices are an advantage in the marketplace
B．
young age is an advantage in the marketplace
C．
people don't feel embarrassed when they consult teenagers
