Skip the navigation
Opinion

A Moving Experience

By Don Tennant
September 20, 2004 12:00 PM ET

Computerworld - I'm a sentimental fool. As we pack up to move to our spacious new digs a few blocks away, it seems every item I lovingly place in the moving crates opens another floodgate of fond memories. I need to pack everything very carefully because my colleagues took away my packing materials. (I think they're just jealous that they can't play "She Bangs" with a piece of bubble wrap.)
Here's the "Speedo" nameplate that adorned my cubicle wall throughout my tenure as News editor. The nickname stuck after I issued the disturbing warning early on that if our writers didn't file their stories on time and up to our exceedingly high standards, I would come into the office wearing a Speedo. It's amazing what the threat of seeing a middle-aged guy in a bathing suit will do for newsroom productivity. Can you say "Magazine of the Year"?
What's this? Ah - the transcript of my April 2003 interview with Novell CEO Jack Messman. That one was nothing if not entertaining. In the interview, Messman called Linux an "immature operating system" that needed Novell's steady hand and fatherly guidance to help it grow up into a robust, enterprise-ready OS. Within a few days he'd received so much hate mail from Linux enthusiasts (I would say "Linux loonies," but there's no sense in generating more hate mail) that he had to issue an oops-what-I-really-meant-to-say apology . What a hoot.
Well, what do you know? I was wondering where this was. Here's my signed copy of Bill Gates' book Business @ the Speed of Thought. I got it after having hooked up with the Big Guy for an interview on a chartered boat from Guangzhou to Hong Kong a while back. I have an idea, and I'm absolutely serious here: Let's auction it off to the highest bidder, with 100% of the proceeds going to The ALS Association (www.alsa.org). That's ALS as in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, better known as Lou Gehrig's disease, an advanced form of which has afflicted my dad, who's a really good guy. I know he'd appreciate it. So e-mail your bid to me by Oct. 1. I'll announce the top bid in the Oct. 11 issue, and the winning bidder will get the book upon providing me with proof of a contribution to the ALS Association in the amount of the bid. Deal?
That reminds me of something I just have to share. You know what kind of book Gates writes. But did you ever wonder what he reads? On



Additional Resources
Forrester Consulting - Optimizing Users and Applications in a Mobile World
WHITE PAPER
Solving application issues over the WAN requires careful consideration. Based on their independent research, Forrester Consulting offers recommendations on how to tackle application performance issues, insufficient bandwidth and the inability to quickly restore users in a disaster.

Read now.

Security KnowledgeVault
WHITE PAPER
Security is not an option. This KnowledgeVault Series offers professional advice how to be proactive in the fight against cybercrimes and multi-layered security threats; how to adopt a holistic approach to protecting and managing data; and how to hire a qualified security assessor. Make security your Number 1 priority.

Read now.

Cut Communications Costs Once and for All
WHITE PAPER
New IP-based communications systems are being deployed by small and midsized businesses at a rapid rate. Learn how these organizations are enabling faster responsiveness, creating better customer experiences, speeding office or mobile interactions, and dramatically reducing existing communications costs.

Read now.

Management and Careers White Papers
Overcome Top 7 Admin Challenges of Active Directory
As Active Directory's role in the enterprise has drastically increased, so has the need to secure the data. Gain insight on creating repeatable,...
Insiders Can Ruin Your Company. Take Action.
Did you know that 80 percent of threats to an organization come from the inside? The threat from insiders is often overlooked in...
Smarter Commerce is redefining value chain visibility
Smarter Commerce is redefining the value chain in the age of the customer. It starts with putting the customer at the center of...
Identity Governance: The Business Imperatives
This white paper describes the business challenges and opportunities that are driving interest in Identity Governance while discussing considerations your organization should make...
The Executive Buyer's Guide to Project Portfolio Management
The Innotas Executive Buyer's Guide provides you with a concise overview of Project Portfolio Management (PPM) and delivers important buying criteria to help...
All Management and Careers White Papers
Management and Careers Webcasts
Live Webcast
Integrated IT Operations Management in the Cloud
Join award-winning technology editor Stan Gibson and Andrew White, CMO at Numara Software, to learn how asset management and service management are converging...
Integrated IT Operations Management in the Cloud
Join award-winning technology editor Stan Gibson and Andrew White, CMO at Numara Software, to learn how asset management and service management are converging...
Optimizing Networks for the Cloud
Join guest speaker, Rohit Mehra, IDC Director of Enterprise Communications Infrastructure, to explore current trends, discuss best practices for optimizing Data Center and...
Apps QuickStart Series Part 2: Designing and Deploying SQL Server on VMware vSphere
Download this webcast to learn about the design considerations for virtualizing SQL workloads, performance and scalability information and high-availability options, as well as...
Apps QuickStart Series Part 1: Designing and Deploying Exchange 2010 on VMware vSphere
Download this webcast to learn the virtual hardware design considerations for Exchange 2010, deployment using the building block approach, options for high-availability and...
Customer Spotlight: How IPC The Hospitalist Company Implemented Oracle on VMware
Have you been looking to hear about customer's experiences with the new VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager product? View this webcast to learn...
All Management and Careers Webcasts
Newsletter Sign-Up

Receive the latest news test, reviews and trends on your favorite technology topics

Choose a newsletter
  1. View all newsletters | Privacy Policy
IT Jobs