Monday, June 30, 2008

Onto bigger things

So every portal and every other blogger has been paying his respect to the super geek on his much publicized retirement day… so I am going to do the "me too" thing and say a few things… hopefully/probably Bill Gates is just about to begin a life that will make a difference to many other lives… yeah, yeah I know about the platform wars and the dominance of Windows… but somehow eradicating malaria has more of a meaning than does creating standards for the software industry.

Maybe Churchill was wrong… maybe you can make more of a difference when you start out as a hard-nosed conservative and then end up as a heart-felt liberal….

Sunday, June 29, 2008

Everything that they do

… is big news. But this is definitely news: Google announces Media Server.

If you were to ask Brin and Page, if they had thought that Google would one day become the most important media company… they would probably tell you Google was always a media company.

Monday, June 23, 2008

“Life is worth losing”

So says Carlin and so probably knows Carlin… Thank you George Carlin for shits n giggles... one of his very best (Courtesy HBO):


 

I'm a modern man,
A man for the millennium,
Digital and smoke free.

A diversified multicultural postmodern deconstructionist,
Politically anatomically and ecologically incorrect.

I've been uplinked and downloaded.
I've been inputted and outsourced.
I know the upside of downsizing.
I know the downside of upgrading.

I'm a high tech lowlife.
A cutting edge state-of-the-art bicoastal multitasker,
And I can give you a gigabyte in a nanosecond.

I'm new wave but I'm old school,
And my inner child is outward bound.

I'm a hot wired heat seeking warm hearted cool customer,
Voice activated and biodegradable.

I interface from a database,
And my database is in cyberspace,
So I'm interactive,
I'm hyperactive,
And from time-to-time,
I'm radioactive.

Behind the eight ball,
Ahead of the curve,
Riding the wave,
Dodging a bullet,
Pushing the envelope.

I'm on point,
On task,
On message,
And off drugs.
I got no need for coke and speed,
I got no urge to binge and purge.

I'm in the moment,
On the edge,
Over the top,
But under the radar.

A high concept,
Low profile,
Medium range ballistic missionary.
A street-wise smart bomb.
A top gun bottom feeder.

I wear power ties,
I tell power lies,
I take power naps,
I run victory laps.

I'm a totally ongoing bigfoot slam dunk rainmaker with a proactive outreach.
A raging workaholic.
A working ragaholic.
Out of rehab,
And in denial.

I got a personal trainer,
A personal shopper,
A personal assistant,
And a personal agenda.

You can't shut me up,
You can't dumb me down.
'Cause I'm tireless,
And I'm wireless.
I'm an alpha male on beta blockers.

I'm a non-believer and an over-achiever.
Laid back but fashion forward.

Up front,
Down home,
Low rent,
High maintenance.

Super size,
Long lasting,
High definition,
Fast acting,
Oven ready,
And built to last.

I'm a hands on,
Foot loose,
Knee jerk,
Head case.

Prematurely post traumatic,
And I have a love child who sends me hate mail.

But I'm feeling,
I'm caring,
I'm healing,
I'm sharing.
A supportive bonding nurturing primary care giver.

My output is down,
But my income is up.
I take a short position on the long bond,
And my revenue stream has its own cash flow.

I read junk mail,
I eat junk food,
I buy junk bonds,
I watch trash sports.

I'm gender specific,
Capital intensive,
User friendly,
And lactose intolerant.

I like rough sex.
I like rough sex.
I like tough love.
I use the f word in my email,
And the software on my hard drive is hard core, no soft porn.

I bought a microwave at a mini mall.
I bought a mini van in a mega store.
I eat fast food in the slow lane.

I'm toll free,
Bite sized,
Ready to wear,
And I come in all sizes.

A fully equipped,
Factory authorized,
Hospital tested,
Clinically proven,
Scientifically formulated medical miracle.

I've been pre-washed,
Pre-cooked,
Pre-heated,
Pre-screened,
Pre-approved,
Pre-packaged,
Post-dated,
Freeze-dried,
Double-wrapped,
Vacuum-packed,
And I have an unlimited broadband capacity.

I'm a rude dude,
But I'm the real deal.
Lean and mean.
Cocked, locked and ready to rock.
Rough tough and hard to bluff.

I take it slow.
I go with the flow.
I ride with the tide.
I got glide in my stride.

Drivin' and movin',
Sailin' and spinnin',
Jivin' and groovin',
Wailin' and winnin'.

I don't snooze,
So I don't lose.
I keep the pedal to the metal,
And the rubber on the road.

I party hearty,
And lunch time is crunch time.

I'm hanging in,
There ain't no doubt.
And I'm hanging tough,
Over and out

Yep. Over n out…

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Edge Credibility

Now this is a super cool concept… the edge rates the core.

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Here they come...


Hey I am not a Mac user. I don't intend on becoming one... not yet anyways.

And borrowing the borrowed from my man Mukherjee... but Apple's "Think Different" commercial goes something like this:


Here’s to the crazy ones.
The misfits.
The rebels.
The troublemakers.
The round pegs in the square holes.
The ones who see things differently.
They’re not fond of rules.
And they have no respect for the status quo.
You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them.
About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them.
Because they change things.
They push the human race forward.
And while some may see them as the crazy ones, We see genius.
Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world,
Are the ones who do.

Monday, June 9, 2008

iPhone 2

I expected more…. Mr. Jobs – I am judging you by the same high standards that you have set for yourselves over the past 7 years. But this post is not without some love:

  • I loved the price tag. This was inevitable… AT&T was not able to subsidize the price to a level they wanted last time. They did so this time. Plus Apple did not want to argue too much… because the apps are coming!
  • LOVED, LOVED and LOVED the apps… the SDK… the vision… everything about iPhone apps is awesome!
  • GPS… hmmm the apps make the GPS fun.

I am going to stay neutral on MobileMe… I like the sound of it… but I don't know why Apple would charge money for a potential MS Exchange killer. Haven't you guys learned anything from Google?

Rest when I actually get to use it….

A Team of Rivals

Ann Winblad had recommended a book - A Team of Rivals to the Marcellus team at our last presentation. Apparently it was a recommendation from Bill Gates… not that I am implying that Gates knew anything about the dynamics of the team… or even knew the team itself… ;).

The point is: I am reading the book and it is by far the most engrossing book on history I have read in a long time. Cable news channels hosts (you know who you are) are referencing the book quite a lot in relation to the highly improbable Obama-Clinton ticket.

Speaking of rivals and Bill, this from Wall Street Journal came as a surprise… apparently Bill Gates was having a hard time letting go during the transition phase at MSFT.

On a side note: Firefox 3 is the best internet browser P-E-R-I-O-D

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

How to pick up a VC

Courtesy Guy Kawasaki and Sun Microsystems:

Many entrepreneurs ask me what is the best way to open a pitch to potential investors. I'll answer that question at the end of this posting, but first let me tell you the ten worst opening lines that you can use:

  1. You say: "I'm bright and ambitious." Investor thinks: "That's a relief because I usually invest in stupid and lazy people."
  2. You say: "I'm a blue sky thinker." Investor thinks: "You have no business model, and you don't know how to ship."
  3. You say: "I don't know much about your firm, but I thought I'd contact you anyway." Investor thinks: "You're a lazy idiot--why are you wasting my time?"
  4. You say: "I love to think of new ways to solve problems." Investor thinks: "Is this a high-school science fair?"
  5. You say: "I have lots of great ideas, but I have trouble figuring out which one to try. Let me tell you about a couple." Investor thinks: "I want to know which idea you're going to kill yourself trying to make successful, not which ideas have crossed your idle mind."
  6. You say: "I've always wanted to be an entrepreneur." Investor thinks: "I've always wanted to be a professional golfer. So what if you always wanted to be an entrepreneur?"
  7. You say: "I'm sure you are aware of the growing need for security. Web 2.0, Open Source, whatever." Investor thinks: "If you're sure I'm aware, why are you telling me you're sure I'm aware."
  8. You say: "If you sign an NDA, I'll tell you my idea." Investor thinks: "You are clueless. How can you not know that venture capitalists don't sign NDAs?"
  9. You say: "The last time I contacted you, I..." Investor thinks: "I'm going to fire my secretary for putting this clown on my calendar again."
  10. You say: "My goal is to build a world-class company." Investor thinks: "How about you ship and sell the first copy before we talk about world-class anything?"

Now you know what not to say. Here's what you should say:

"This is what my company does..."

It's that simple. What you're trying to do is get potential investors to fantasize about how your product or service will make a boatload of money. They can't fantasize if they don't know what you do. And they don't want to be your friend, mother, or psychiatrist until they understand what you do, so cut the crap and explain what you do.