Do you need a workstation?

There was a time when the definition of a workstation was crystal clear and so was the decision about having one. If you needed a workstation, you knew who you were and you knew how to get it: ask IT.  Alternatively, whine, bully, and demand it from IT. And, the machine you got would have a RISC-based processor, a customized UNIX operating system, and would likely be a branded model and possibly customized for your job and applications.  That all gradually began to change with the advent of the Windows-based OS for professionals, NT, in 1998. Microsoft allied with Intel