Resolve and Fortitude : Microsoft's ''SECRET POWER BROKER'' breaks his silence (54 page)

BOOK: Resolve and Fortitude : Microsoft's ''SECRET POWER BROKER'' breaks his silence
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Novell   ISV specializing in NOS and its development tools

North, Oliver   Retired Marine Corps officer, center of attention during Iran-Contra affair

NT   New Technology, MS’s OS for enterprises

NVidia   Semiconductor manufacturer for graphic subsystems and ARM processors

NYC   New York City

O

object oriented   Programming paradigm using data structures and fields and their interactions to develop software

OEM   Original equipment manufacturer, exchangeable with PC manufacturer

Office   MS’s suite of office productivity software

Oki, Scott   SVP of MS my first boss

Olsen, Ken   Cofounder and former CEO and chairman of DEC

open standard   Publically available specifications

Oracle   ISV producing databases and commercial applications

OS   Operating system, software managing computer resources and providing services for application programs

OS/2   Name for an OS jointly designed by MS and IBM

Osborne   Early PC pioneer

P

PAC   Political action committee, organization advancing political outcomes

Palmisano, Sam   IBM’s chairman

Panthera leo
   Latin, lion

Pascal   Procedural programming language

path-dependent outcomes   Results influenced exclusively by decisions made in the past

Patton, George S.   WWII US general

PB   Packard Bell

peripheral   Device attached and managed by a host computer

PC   Personal computer, range spanning from netbooks over notebooks to desktops and workstations

PCjr   PC junior, IBM’s first consumer PC (1984)

PDP-11/20   Programmed Data Processor, one of DEC’s 16-bit minicomputer models

Pentium   Intel’s successor to the 80486 CPU

per-copy license   Pay-as-you-go software license

per se rule violation   Illegal act by statue, constitution, or case law

per-system license   Licensing on a per-model basis

Pfeiffer, Eckhard   Former CEO of Compaq

PGL   Price guideline, comparable to a price list

Phillips   Netherlands-based consumer electronics company

Phoenix   ISV engaged in PC software tools

PlayStation   Game console created by Sony

Pogo principle   Shooting yourself in the foot

Posner, Richard   Judge at the Chicago appeals court, legal theorist, teacher, and book author

PostScript   Programming language for electronic and desktop publishing

PowerPoint   MS’s version of a slide-presentation program

PowerPC   IBM’s workstation computer

PPC   PowerPC

PR   Public relations

PRC   People’s Republic of China

prima donna   Italian, someone who behaves in a temperamental fashion revealing an inflated image of him or herself

Printaform   Mexican enterprise engaged in paper and PC manufacturing

processor   Short for CPU

program   Instructions written in a programming language to complete a computing task

programming language   Artificial language designed to communicate instructions to a computer system

Prussia   Kingdom and historical military state located in the northeastern part of Germany

Psion   UK manufacturer of rugged mobile handheld computers

Pyrrhic victory   Inflicts more long-term losses than immediate gains

Q

quid for pro   A favor for a favor

QDOS   Quick and Dirty OS, written by Seattle Computer Products Company

R

RadioShack   Tandy Corporation

RealNetworks   Provider of media software and services

Reback, Garry   Attorney specialized in antitrust law, hostile to MS

Red Hat   ISV, Linux distributor and support agent for Linux

Redmond   Town near Seattle, WA, where MS’s headquarter is located

rep   Representative

RISC   Reduced Instruction Set Computer, computer architecture containing only simple instructions for speedy execution and lower heat consumption

Rockefeller Standard Oil   American oil company in the early twentieth century

ROM   Read-only memory

ROMable OS   OS residing in ROM

Rose, John   Former DEC and Compaq SVP

royalty   Payment made by a licensee to a licensor

S

SA   South Africa

Sacramento   Seat of the CA state government

Salt Lake City   Capital of the state of Utah

Santelli, Tony   GM IBM power PC and VP IBM PC company

Samsung   Electronics conglomerate located in South Korea

sans lumière   French, without light

SAP   German ISV engaged in database software

Scharnhorst, Gerhard von   Prussian General and chief of staff (1755–1813)

Schneider   Once a German PC manufacturer

SCO   Santa Cruz Operation, ISV specialized in a UNIX version called Xenix and its development tools

SCP   Seattle Computer Company

Sega   Japanese game-console manufacturer

Seoul   Capital of the Republic of South Korea

server   Computer linking others together and providing storage and communication services across a network

server farm   A collection or cluster of connected computer systems

Shanghai   Large city in the eastern part of PRC

Sharp   Japanese manufacturer of electronic products

shell   User interface for operating a computer

Shirley, Jon   President of MS from 1983 to 1990 and board member until 2008

Siemens   German electro conglomerate

Silicon Valley   Southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern CA, home to many high-tech companies

sitz Fleisch   German, the flesh one sits on

SmartSuite   Lotus’s office productivity suite

SoCal   Southern California

software   Entities of programs, procedures, and algorithm providing computer instructions

software piracy   Illegal reproduction of computer software

Solaris   Sun Microsystem’s UNIX version

solid state drive   SSD, storage unit containing computer memory and no movable parts, acting like a hard drive

Sony   Japanese consumer electronics conglomerate

source code   Text written in a computer programming language

Soviet Union   Union of Soviet Socialistic Republics, from 1921 to 1991

spreadsheet   Application program simulating an accounting worksheet

Spindler, Mike   Former CEO of Apple

SR   Sales representative

Stac Electronics   SoCal ISV selling hard disk compression programs

stock options   Right to buy stock at a fixed price, corporate grants to employees

Sugar, Allan   Founder and former CEO of Amstrad

Sun Microsystems   Workstation manufacturer and ISV, now part of Oracle

SVP   Senior vice president

Sybase   ISV for relational database software, now part of SAP

Symantec   ISV engaged in security software

system builder   Tiny PC-assembly outfit

T

tablet   Lightweight, touch-operated computing devices not containing a hard drive

Taligent   ISV engaged in OSs and development tools, now part of IBM

Tandy   Reseller and producer of electronics goods

TCP/IP   Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol, rules Internet messaging systems

Technology Achievement Medal
   National Medal of Technology, granted by the president of the USA to American inventors and innovators for significant tech contributions

Texas Instruments   Semiconductor manufacturer

The Research Board   International think tank headquartered in NYC

thin client   Slimmed-down PC relying heavily on cloud computing

TI   Texas Instruments

TLC   Tender loving and care

Tokyo   Capital of Japan

TopView   IBM’s text-mode interface for MS-DOS powered PCs

Toshiba   Japanese IT conglomerate

touché   French, expression for acknowledging a telling remark

Triumph Adler   German company producing a variety of office systems

TRS-80   Tandy’s microcomputer model 80

Twitter   Phone-messaging network for short messages

U

UNIX   OS originated by AT&T and ported on several computer architectures

US/USA   United States of America

USB   Universal Serial Bus, cable, connector, and protocol standard for computer peripherals

V

Viglen   UK PC manufacturer later bought by Amstrad

virtual machine   Isolated guest OS working independently from the main computer OS

VisiCalc   Early spreadsheet realization by VisiCorp

VisON   Early GUI for MS-DOS powered PCs by VisiCorp

Visual BASIC   Advanced BASIC version from MS

VP   Vice president

VTech   Video technology, HK based manufacturer of consumer electronics

W

WA   State of Washington

Waitt, Ted   Cofounder and former CEO and chairman of Gateway

Warp   Name for late versions of OS/2

WikiLeaks   Organization publishing submissions from anonymous sources

Wind River   ISV specialized in tools and OS for industrial devices

Windows   MS GUI for PCs

Windows CE   Mini version of Windows for use in consumer electronics and industrial controllers

Windows NT   Third-generation Windows OS, since 2001 the tech underpinning of all MS Windows versions

Windows X   GUI for UNIX systems

Word   
MS word processor for MS-DOS, Windows, and the Mac

word processor   Application program used for composing, editing, formatting, and printing text material

WordPerfect   Word processor for PC OS from Corel

WordStar   Word processor produced by MicroPro International

Workbench   GUI for Amiga home computers

workstation   Stationary computer used for graphical design or heavy engineering work

Wright brothers   Two Americans credited for building the first self-powered airplane and making a successful flight in 1903

WTO   World Trade Organization

WW   Worldwide

WWI   World War I

WWII   World War II

WWW   World Wide Web, the Internet

X

Xbox   MS game console

Xenix   MS’s and later SCO’s version of UNIX

Xerox   Global document-management company

Y

Yahoo!   Internet portal provider for search and e-mail services

YouTube   Video-sharing website owned by Google

Z

Zenith   Consumer electronics manufacturer

Zilog   Z (the last word of) Integrated Logic, microcontroller manufacturer

REFERENCES

Auletta, Ken,
World War 3.0: Microsoft and its enemies
, Random House, 2001

Banks, David,
Breaking Windows:
How Bill Gates fumbled the future of Microsoft, Simon and Schuster, 2001

Clausewitz, Carl von,
Vom Kriege (About the war),
Ullstein, 1980 (Dümmler 1832/1853)

Condell, Bruce and Zabecki, David,
On the German Art of War: Truppenführung,
German army manual for unit command in WWII,
Stackpole Books, 2009

Eisenach, Jeffrey and Lenard, Thomas,
Completion, Innovation and the Microsoft Monopoly: Antitrust in the Digital Marketplace,
Kluwer Academic, 2001

Ellig, Jerry,
Dynamic Competition and Public Policy: Technology, Innovation, and Antitrust Issues,
Books LLC, 2010

Evans, David and Fisher, Franklin and Rubinfeld, Daniels and Schmalensee, Richard,
Did Microsoft harm Consumers: Two Opposing Views,
The AEI Press, 2000

Gerstner, Louis,
Who Says Elephants Can’t Dance: Leading a Great Enterprise through Dramatic Change,
Harper Collins, 2003

Gordon, Allan,
Antitrust Abuse in the New Economy: The Microsoft Case,
Edward Elgar 2003

Isaacson, Walter,
Steve Jobs,
Simon & Schuster, 2011

Jordan, Jonathan W., Brother Rivals Victors, Eisenhower, Patton, Bradley and the Partnership that Drove the Allied Conquest in Europe, NAL Caliber, 2012

Kotter, John P. et al., “On Leadership”, Harvard Business Review, 2012

Levy, Robert,
Shakedown: How Corporations, Government, and Trial Lawyers Abuse the Judicial process
, Cato Institute, 2004

Levy, Stephen,
In the Plex: How Google Thinks, Works and Shapes Our Lives
, Simon & Schuster, 2011

Liebowitz, Stan and Margolis,
Stephen, Winners, Losers and Microsoft: Competition and Antitrust in High Technology
, The Independent Institute, 1999

Maxwell, Fredric,
Bad Boy Ballmer: The Man Who Rules Microsoft
, Harper Collins, 2003

McKenzie, Fredric, Trust on Trial:
How the Microsoft Case Is Reframing the Rules of Competition
, Perseus, 2000

Miller, Fredric and Vandome, Agnes, and McBrewster, John,
Bill Gates
, Alphascript, 2009

Page William and Lopatka, John, The Microsoft Case: Antitrust, High Technology and Consumer Welfare, University of Chicago Press, 2010

Phelps, Marshal and Kline David,
Burning Ships: Intellectual Property and the Transformation of Microsoft
, John Wiley & Sons, 2010

Posner, Richard,
Antitrust Law
, University of Chicago press, 2002

Rand, Ayn,
The Voice of Reason: Essays in Objectivist Thought
, Penguin Group, 1991

Reback, Gary,
Free the Market
:
Why Only Government Can Keep the Market Place Competitive
, Penguin Group, 2010

Simson von, Ernest,
The Limits of Strategy: Lessons in Leadership from the Computer Industry
, iUniverse, 2009

Sugar, Allan,
What You See Is What You Get: My Autobiography
, Macmillan, 2010

Endnotes

 

1
We called them OEMs, original equipment manufacturers.

2
An operating system originally developed and licensed by AT&T.

3
Führungsstil
in German.

5
A programming language called Beginner’s All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code.

6
Large computer systems used for commercial and scientific computing tasks.

7
The book
Steve Jobs
published in 2011 sheds some light on this.

8
Central processor unit, electronic component capable of executing the binary instructions for a computer system

9
Santa Cruz Operation

10
Basic Input/Output System

11
Quick and Dirty Operating System

12
Very small PC manufacturers

13
Graphical user interface

14
New Technology

15
Lucky Goldstar

16
Called
baijiu,
approximately 120 of deadly proof!

17
Intellectual property

18
The name contains the initials of the first names of her founders.

19
Let’s see how this holds up in 2012.

20
In February of 1962

21
Friend of the court

22
I will reveal this for the first time later.

23
According to the United Nations

24
The so-called Gore Bill

25
A scientist working at CERN

26
Everything on the Internet seemed to be free of charge.

27
Maybe this is the first time he will read about my long-ago offer?

28
King Pyrrhus of Epirus defeating the Romans at Heraclea in 280 BC suffered irreplaceable casualties.

29
Lasting a total of fourteen months!

30
In computer system specific assembler code

31
A tool, which, like an interpreter, translates instructions into executable computer code

32
The one software programmers need to write executable applications for a computer platform

33
The ’94/’95 consent decree

34
The antitrust laws congress had passed in 1890

35
Hypertext markup language, the most used programming language for Internet applications

36
Often called netbooks or thin clients

37
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

38
Stands for “Gnu’s Not UNIX,” a complete and freely distributed UNIX-compatible OS

39
Translates into “Humanity towards others”

40
Intellectual property

41
World Trade Organization

42
Today he is CEO and chairman of GE.

43
German word expressing “not having the patience to sit it out on one’s flesh or behind”

44
Meaning June 30 of 2001

45
I later learned Paul Maritz had done the same.

46
The true number later discovered in a document validated by Netscape was 22 percent.

47
It extended over more than three pages in his famous 1901 book
Die Buddenbrooks
.

48
Attorney generals

49
I have several friends who stopped buying PCs when handheld devices became powerful enough and were fitted with rich Internet communication features.

50
A lot of them eventually were!

51
Jefferson Parish and Eastman Kodak

52
Judge Jackson, in his logic, would have labeled our plan suicide because of the famous barrier to entry, which in this case Sony and Nintendo were guarding.

53
Some of these implementations later got us awarded a joint patent.

54
Paul Maritz supposedly said this once and was chastised for it.

55
Acquired and operated since 1996 and earlier called MSN Hotmail

56
Outlook is MS’s personal information manager contained in her office suite.

57
A popular e-mail and collaborative workspace software package form the mid-1990s

58
Nine billion US dollars in 2011 alone—the largest in the IT industry

59
With 8.4 billion shares outstanding, this translates into about seven cents of profit per share.

60
In this context, I consider Steve Jobs, after running NeXT and Pixar, an Apple outsider.

61
SVP in charge of Xbox and mobile devices

62
A leading market research company

63
PCjr, IBM’s first PC launched to specifically attract consumers

64
Called SkyDrive

65
Consumer Electronic Show

66
Capable of functioning as a complete computer system on a chip (SoC)

67
Called Metro, which debuted in Windows 7–powered phones in 2010

68
Easing the transition for the nostalgic crowd, the familiar interface will still be available.

69
Called Windows 8 RT—standing for Runtime

70
Barnes & Noble’s e-book reader based on Android

71
Profit and loss

72
Storage units based on computer memory with no movable parts acting as hard drive

73
An easy to use service allowing music and streaming video downloads and subscriptions

74
A MS research project using a thin film TV screen like wallpaper

75
These type of controllers let you interact with devices through motions like hand signals

76
Initial Public Offering of stock

77
And if this principle is violated, competitors like Google march in and take market share away as we have seen with the Chrome browser

78
Beginner’s All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code

79
A software application simulating an accounting worksheet

80
A company in business to develop and sell software for a variety computer systems

81
Defined as a hard or impossible to overcome hurdle for a competitor

82
Control Program/Monitor

83
Quick and Dirty Operating System—released as 86-DOS

84
The designator 86 indicated both OSs were to run on the Intel family of 8086 CPUs.

85
Microsoft Disk Operating System

86
A software license is a contract governing the usage or redistribution of software. In general, it does not transfer the ownership of the software from the licensor to the licensee.

87
Now called RadioShack

88
AT means Advanced Technology

89
A formula translation language suited for scientific and engineering computations

90
COmmon Business-Oriented Language suited for financial computations

91
Original equipment manufacturers stands for PC manufacturers.

92
The numbers of transistors on a CPU will double every eighteen months.
Read more at
http://www.answers.com/topic/moore-s-law#ixzz1hrV9tsp5
.

93
Advanced Micro Devices

94
The larger the number, the more advanced is the CPU

95
Apparently named after Steve Jobs’s daughter

96
Developed by Quarterdeck Office Systems

97
Graphic Environment Operating System

98
A programming language normally used for desktop publishing applications

99
Stands for Computer Dealers’ Exhibition

100
A GUI operating system for Commodore’s proprietary and PC-like Amiga system

101
Hard to imagine anymore. Apple’s iPod, her media player, today has millions more.

102
Comparable to a master degree in the USA

103
Large computers used in scientific and commercial applications

104
Downsized computers compared to IBM mainframes

105
We will meet him again as Apple’s chief executive officer.

BOOK: Resolve and Fortitude : Microsoft's ''SECRET POWER BROKER'' breaks his silence
4.23Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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