Some of the big web personalities want to come out to play. I caught Craigslist founder Craig Newmark on the Daily Show with Jon Stewart last night, following his Der Spiegel interview of a week or so ago. He seems to be a funny and clever fellow, pointing out to Stewart that the tech billionaires he knows personally don’t seem any happier than the average person. In the newspaper interview, he goes even further in asserting independence from market forces, with his bold declaration “We often operate by what feels right or not. No business plans. We’re engineers.” Indeed, it seems that Craigslist’s tremendous success can in some ways be ascribed to the fact that it was never purchased by a big player with the intent of turning a profit (though one of the other founders did sell out to eBay some years ago, so they have a stake of some sort in the project).
Elsewhere (specifically, the Washington Post), Bill Gates provides his practical advice for “How to Keep America Competitive” – given the timing, it’s unsurprising that he suggests we all upgrade to Vista… Actually, he doesn’t, and makes a sound argument for education and immigration to help to foster traditional American innovation and excellence. It’s worth a read.
Currently reading: Craigslist
Currently hearing: Panic Prevention – Jamie T
Currently watching: The Prestige (dir. Christopher Nolan)
Craig vs Bill – clash of the titans
Some of the big web personalities want to come out to play. I caught Craigslist founder Craig Newmark on the Daily Show with Jon Stewart last night, following his Der Spiegel interview of a week or so ago. He seems to be a funny and clever fellow, pointing out to Stewart that the tech billionaires he knows personally don’t seem any happier than the average person. In the newspaper interview, he goes even further in asserting independence from market forces, with his bold declaration “We often operate by what feels right or not. No business plans. We’re engineers.” Indeed, it seems that Craigslist’s tremendous success can in some ways be ascribed to the fact that it was never purchased by a big player with the intent of turning a profit (though one of the other founders did sell out to eBay some years ago, so they have a stake of some sort in the project).
Elsewhere (specifically, the Washington Post), Bill Gates provides his practical advice for “How to Keep America Competitive” – given the timing, it’s unsurprising that he suggests we all upgrade to Vista… Actually, he doesn’t, and makes a sound argument for education and immigration to help to foster traditional American innovation and excellence. It’s worth a read.
Currently reading: Craigslist
Currently hearing: Panic Prevention – Jamie T
Currently watching: The Prestige (dir. Christopher Nolan)