Monday, April 8, 2002

Apparently Andersen continues to implode; according to Dann there's a big layoff tonight. I've been through a layoff with no severance. People are still angry, still suing, and the CEO probably still doesn't sleep well at night. I was very fortunate, but some were really devastated. Because of what? In that case, and apparently in this one, a very small group of people seriously screwed up, and pulled the rest down with them. Sucks. 9:34:49 PM

WSJ.  Microsoft tries to outgrow the "Bill and Steve" show. >>>The white-haired Mr. Herbold described being flummoxed by Microsoft's lack of traditional business processes when he first arrived as chief operating officer in 1994. He recalled watching officials make crucial decisions about new products after just one high-level meeting and sitting through board-of-directors gatherings that resembled unstructured rap sessions. For all its market might, Microsoft continues to struggle with the basic task of building a professional management structure.<<< [John Robb's Radio Weblog] John, another conclusion is that a "professional management structure" is not always desirable. Certainly most companies that have such things would prefer to have Microsoft's success. I'm quite skeptical of the value of "conventional" management in unconventional situations. 3:41:59 PM

Friday, March 22, 2002

DigitalConsumer.Org Congress is busy failing to understand the Internet, digital technology, customers, and the notion that the entertainment industry is not entitled to business as usual. The DMCA is bad enough, now Fritz Hollings, a senator apparently bought and paid for by entertainment execs, is working on something at least as bad. Go to DigitalConsumer.org to see what you can do about this. 1:58:53 PM

Monday, March 18, 2002

I've written some illustrated letters, although not in a long time. I started, I think, when I was in California and my daughters were in Connecticut. The exhibition below shows that (to nobody's surprise) some illustrated letters vastly exceed my abilities. But while they focus on the letters themselves, I'm remembering how engrossing and fun was the process of creating the letters. Perhaps I haven't written any like that in so long because of the time it took...but it was great. Probably better than getting one of my letters! Getting The Picture: The Art Of The Illustrated Letter. Often the expression of joy or affection, illustrated letters represent an irrepressible urge to picture language... [xBlog: Visual thinking linking | XPLANE] 5:19:05 PM

© Copyright 2002 Peter Harbeson.