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I, Cringely version 3.01

cringely.com

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Re: I, Cringely version 3.01

#11

Post by nikcub »

jpdoctor wrote: post #7

I find the drop-in-advertising rates the most interesting item. I don't follow this closely, is revenue-per-click actually dropping?

No, it is growing, and growing really well. At a macro level more and more advertising spend is moving to online. It is being sucked out of newspaper and television and sunk into online, which is now a $15B market (for display ads only) - 23% growth from 2011-12[1].

As for CPC rates, this link has a nice table showing the increase[0]. Anecdotally I can tell you that my own data corresponds with what they see (across a number of clients/startups I have worked with in past 5-6 years):

[0] http://www.hochmanconsultants.com/articles/je-hochman-benchm...

[1] http://cdn.crowdscience.com/blog/2011/11/online_advertising_...

Re: I, Cringely version 3.01

#12

Post by quomopete »

guybrush0 wrote: post #8

Watching Triumph of the Nerds with my Dad in the mid-ninties is one of my fondest memories, and played no small part inspiring me to study computer science and subsequently get involved with starting companies. Accidental Empires (the book), remains full of detailed insights into the emergence of Silicon Valley and startup culture. The fact the show was set in the mid ninties may make it seem a tad dated by today's s…

This may sound pendatic, but Accidental Empires is a must read, even after all these years. Particularly if you did not live through the initial rise of the personal computing industry or were too young for it to have any conscious impact on you.

I take it as a humbling record of just how grueling this industry is. But also just how much it spins on happenstance, timing and of course interpersonal politics.

If any lessons come out of that book, it may still be true that putting your effort being creating (or undermining) a standard is one of the core engines of this space.

Re: I, Cringely version 3.01

#13

Post by rhizome »

jmix wrote: post #9

I have mixed feelings about this announcement. On the one hand, I really enjoyed Triumph of the Nerds. On the other, Cringely came off as a self-oriented, egotistical guy (I remember the scene where he threatened the TV crew with a piece of bat when his plane build project wasn't going well) with few unique insights and little depth. Now that I think about it, these two facts are in line with his announcement. What h…

For me, Cringely was the documenter and Dvorak mistook his own place in history for credibility in analyzing the future. The tech industry is exhaustively self-documenting now, and so I hold out hope that Cringely can find his place in the modern world since I've looked to him as something like "Uncle Computers" ever since the before-times.
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