LECȚIE GRATUITĂ DE LIMBA ENGLEZĂ LA DNA …
On Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates: And they heard from Jim Clark. „When I left Silicon Graphics I had a net worth of $16 million and I invested $5 million to start Netscape,” Clark said.
„Microsoft has practically killed Netscape. I’ll never invest in another thing to compete with them. I’ll never touch another market that has anything remotely to do with Microsoft’s path. And if I’d known four years ago what I know now – that Microsoft would destroy us and that the government wouldn’t do anything about it for three fucking years – I never would’ve started Netscape in the first place.”
https://www.wired.com/2000/11/microsoft-7/
„My Published Comments About Those Evil Pricks Were Misconstrued,” Jackson Says
„When I said ‘Napoleon,’ I did not mean to imply that Mr. Gates’ ulterior motive was world conquest or the suppression of democratic principles,” Jackson wrote. „I only meant that he’s a little shit.”
„This step I would take to preserve the dignity of the bench, to restore integrity in our judicial system, and to prove that in the United States, it is possible even for a bunch of major league assholes to receive a fair trial,” he said.
„I had then, and still have today, no personal opinions whatsoever as regards those guilty lying bastards at Microsoft, or the evil prick son of a bitch who runs it,” said Jackson, adding that his earlier negative comments were taken out of context.
„I think he has a Napoleonic concept of himself and his company, an arrogance that derives from power and unalloyed success, with no leavening hard experience, no reverses.”
„Microsoft, as it is presently organized and led, is unwilling to accept the notion that it broke the law or accede to an order amending its conduct.”
Gates was clearly relishing his new role as chief software architect. In abundant detail and with avid enthusiasm, he described the genesis of .NET, its technical underpinnings, and his role in its concoction. He sang the praises of XML, of distributed computing; he lectured me with verve about „probabilistic input APIs” and „loosely coupled message-based programming.” Back in 1995, Microsoft had embraced the Internet, he said, but only as a feature. „It was the most important feature – but it was still a feature,” he explained. Now everything would be different. With .NET, the embrace was total; the Net was all.
When I’d mentioned Sun in our previous interview, Gates’ response had been as banal as it was disingenuous: „Every comment I’ve made about Sun has been positive – Sun’s a good company.” Now I raised the subject again, pointing out that Sun’s software wizards, who’d invented Java and Jini, had been talking for years about many of the ideas Gates was discussing today; they contended that .NET was, at bottom, an endorsement of their corporate motto: „The network is the computer.”
Gates, who’d been pitching back and forth in his chair, like a hummingbird at a feeder, dug his heels into the carpet, propelled himself bolt upright, and flapped his arms. „The most nonsense I’ve ever heard!” he exclaimed. „But it’s not unexpected. The business model of Sun is to sell overpriced hardware.” When it came to solving the complex software problems that .NET was addressing, he said, „Sun’s not involved in that. Sun has never had anything to do with that.”
At the launch event for .NET, Gates had called the initiative a „bet-the-company thing.” Didn’t it worry him to be undertaking such an ambitious project at precisely the moment when so many of his best and brightest were flying the coop? „Look at the top of this company,” Gates shot back. „We’ve had more continuity of management leadership than any technology company ever.” Maybe so, I said. But doesn’t it hurt to lose a Nathan Myhrvold? To lose a Brad Silverberg?
„It doesn’t diminish our ability to do .NET, absolutely not,” he said. „We have a team here that is the best software development team in the world. It just shows the embarrassment of riches Microsoft has had, that even without those two guys, we can go and do phenomenal things. But those are great guys. If they want to come back and work here, I’ll take them in a second.”
But not many of the others, apparently. Did Gates, like Ballmer, regard some of the senior people who’d left as dead wood? „I won’t name their names, but certainly,” Gates said. „Come on, give me a break. This is not simple stuff.”
I mentioned that Craig Mundie told me, „The trial has significantly diminished our ability to attract and retain people of the highest caliber.”
http://www.satirewire.com/news/0102/jackson.shtml
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/tech/news/2001-06-28-jackson-quotes.htm