Big Bill
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I saw this link for an interview with Bill Gates on Channel 9 on MSDN and immediately followed it for a listen.
First of all, I'm a Bill Gates fan and have been for a long time, ever since I really started working with Windows. I think he's done some amazing things in forwarding this industry and I'm not sure who else would have done a better job. He's a great mix of technologist, marketing whiz, businessperson, and geek. And I think the geek part, his passion for technology, is what really shows through. I've never seen him talk about or worry about money. I know he doesn't have to, but neither does Larry Ellison, Jim Clark, Steve Jobs, or many other super succeessful geeks. But I've heard all of them at one point or another talk about financial issues or their personal success. Not Bill Gates
But more than that, he's a really good speaker. I have been fortunate enough to see two keynotes live and a few more on video and he's engaging, he enjoys the work, and he's good at presenting his point. I was disappointed he wasn't at TechEd and more disappointed with Steve Ballmer's speech. To me they are worlds apart.
So I listened in and it's a few minutes in Bill's office by the Channel 9 crew, asking some questions, obviously a little nervous to be with the founder and richest man in the world, but there's some kidding and some laughing. It comes through how committed Gates is to tablet PCs and when he mentions a $500 one for a student, the interveiwer gives him a few joking laughs about where can you get one?
There were some other tough and good questions about why he still works and how he'd like to be remembered. That one I really liked. Bill thought about it a minute and then mentioned he didn't really worry about how to be remembered and I think I believed him.
Maybe that's why he's the more memorable one of Jobs, Ellison and others. He's not a big shot. He's a geek on a mission to spread the computer gospel.
Steve Jones
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Can't say I share your enthusiasm for the B-man, but good for you for sticking your neck out in his defense.
Like most people, I in fact have little to no actual, firsthand knowledge on this topic but I will say something anyway 🙂 ... Bill is/was a business and marketing genius, but a great deal of the technological innovation he was able to spread through that brilliant business/marketing model was not his, nor was it the best implementation. It tended to be a fair rendition of some idea, put in the marketplace at the right price, rather than the best. Which I guess is just the way of the world. If people are looking for a mop, or any product, most will buy the one that suffices, for the lowest price, rather than the best one or the original. It's the law of Walmart.
If you are an idealist, like I am, that's highly frustrating.
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I am a big fan of Bill Gates. With limited knowledge of his business style. I feel he is doing a great job. Go Bill !!!!!
Kindest Regards,Amit Lohia
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An interesting article on Big Bill can be found at http://www.unf.edu/~rlamb/Microsoftarticle.pdf
This is a copy of a Time Inc intreview with Gates in 1986 and details the IPO for microsoft good stuff.
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Good on ya, Steve! I agree heartily with your positive image of BillG. So much so, that I wrote this blog post last year:
http://therosenblog.blogspot.com/2004/10/happy-birthday-billg.html
BillG will turn 50 years old on October 28th this year - it's a Friday. I say that those of us in the Microsoft developer community should get together in groups as large as possible and celebrate.
Best regards,
Steve Rosenbach
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