A Bill Gates Comeback? • Hacker News Board

Re: A Bill Gates Comeback?

#21

Post by MichaelGG » Fri, Dec 09, 2011, 9:40 PM UTC

jordan0day wrote: post #15

To echo what some others have already said, I don't see how coming back to Microsoft could be more personally satisfying for Gates than what he's doing now. Sure, it would probably feel pretty nice if he could right the ship and get lauded in the same way Jobs has been as of late. Let's be honest though: the stuff Gates is doing today is way more important than any of the things Jobs did over the last decade. We can…

Exactly. I didn't fully grasp this until I read some of Bill's letters on what he's working on now.

http://www.gatesfoundation.org/annual-letter/2011/Pages/home...

Without considering it, one might think that with billions of dollars, accomplishing any task should be a rather straightforward issue. Reading his letters provides a view on how much work and how big their challenges are.

Re: A Bill Gates Comeback?

#22

Post by kylemaxwell » Fri, Dec 09, 2011, 9:47 PM UTC

You know, in the 90s and early part of the last decade, I felt way too bitter about Bill Gates. I didn't like Microsoft's business practices and I certainly didn't like their software. Being young and full of piss & vinegar, I seethed with rage.

Now I'm older and Bill Gates has become one of the public figures I most respect. He's changing the world in ways that matter far more than Steve Jobs or Michael Dell ever did. Schultz and the rest should be jealous of him.

This a man who talks seriously and realistically about eliminating malaria. How does selling more or better enterprise software begin to compare with getting up in the morning and knowing that what you do that day will give thousands of children a chance at life?

Re: A Bill Gates Comeback?

#23

Post by zerostar07 » Fri, Dec 09, 2011, 9:49 PM UTC

jordan0day wrote: post #15

To echo what some others have already said, I don't see how coming back to Microsoft could be more personally satisfying for Gates than what he's doing now. Sure, it would probably feel pretty nice if he could right the ship and get lauded in the same way Jobs has been as of late. Let's be honest though: the stuff Gates is doing today is way more important than any of the things Jobs did over the last decade. We can…

Not to mention, it would probably be a big loss for his foundation. He didn't just pour in the money for it, he engages fiercely with governments and organizations for specific measurable goals with just as much passion as business. Philanthropy may not sound exciting to techies, but at the scale he's doing it (his ambition is to reduce the global death toll from diseases by 80%) it must be pretty challenging.

And another thing: Gates led microsoft in its two most exciting eras (the PC and the Internet). Both of these sectors have now been commoditized, leaving little space for revolution (tablets? meh).

http://www.forbes.com/sites/matthewherper/2011/11/02/the-sec...

Re: A Bill Gates Comeback?

#24

Post by OoTheNigerian » Fri, Dec 09, 2011, 10:18 PM UTC

One prominent chief executive told Fortune he'd heard from someone close to Gates that he might be considering such a move.

And that is what this story was build on? A hear-hear-say?

Wow.

Re: A Bill Gates Comeback?

#25

Post by absconditus » Fri, Dec 09, 2011, 10:20 PM UTC

jordan0day wrote: post #15

To echo what some others have already said, I don't see how coming back to Microsoft could be more personally satisfying for Gates than what he's doing now. Sure, it would probably feel pretty nice if he could right the ship and get lauded in the same way Jobs has been as of late. Let's be honest though: the stuff Gates is doing today is way more important than any of the things Jobs did over the last decade. We can…

Some counterpoints to consider:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123758895999200083.html

http://www.dissentmagazine.org/article/?article=3781

Re: A Bill Gates Comeback?

#26

Post by JanezStupar » Fri, Dec 09, 2011, 10:49 PM UTC

jphackworth wrote: post #2

One prominent chief executive told Fortune he'd heard from someone close to Gates that he might be considering such a move. It's hard to imagine a less reliable source. And that sentence is the only real news in the article!

That's a news speak for "Balmer said that Gates told him" but he wouldn't be cited on the record.

Re: A Bill Gates Comeback?

#27

Post by rimantas » Fri, Dec 09, 2011, 10:51 PM UTC

jordan0day wrote: post #15

To echo what some others have already said, I don't see how coming back to Microsoft could be more personally satisfying for Gates than what he's doing now. Sure, it would probably feel pretty nice if he could right the ship and get lauded in the same way Jobs has been as of late. Let's be honest though: the stuff Gates is doing today is way more important than any of the things Jobs did over the last decade. We can…

  > Let's be honest though: the stuff Gates is doing today is
  > way more important than any of the things Jobs did over
  > the last decade.

That's bullshit. Not in the sense that what Jobs did is more important, but in the sense that these things are not comparable at all.

Re: A Bill Gates Comeback?

#28

Post by keeperofdakeys » Fri, Dec 09, 2011, 11:56 PM UTC

zerostar07 wrote: post #23

jordan0day wrote: post #15

To echo what some others have already said, I don't see how coming back to Microsoft could be more personally satisfying for Gates than what he's doing now. Sure, it would probably feel pretty nice if he could right the ship and get lauded in the same way Jobs has been as of late. Let's be honest though: the stuff Gates is doing today is way more important than any of the things Jobs did over the last decade. We can…

Not to mention, it would probably be a big loss for his foundation. He didn't just pour in the money for it, he engages fiercely with governments and organizations for specific measurable goals with just as much passion as business. Philanthropy may not sound exciting to techies, but at the scale he's doing it (his ambition is to reduce the global death toll from diseases by 80%) it must be pretty challenging. And an…

What do you mean little space for revolution? I bet no one thought the PC, Internet or tablet markets would take off long before the fact. It is called a revolution exactly because it is unexpected.

Re: A Bill Gates Comeback?

#29

Post by redthrowaway » Sat, Dec 10, 2011, 12:11 AM UTC

TheFuture wrote: post #19

redthrowaway wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would argue that ethanol subsidies are currently a barrier to wiser energy policies, however.

Ethanol subsidies are terrible. We need to stop holding presidential primaries in Iowa.

Or just randomize the order you hold them in.

Re: A Bill Gates Comeback?

#30

Post by Fliko » Sat, Dec 10, 2011, 3:02 AM UTC

rimantas wrote: post #27

jordan0day wrote: post #15

To echo what some others have already said, I don't see how coming back to Microsoft could be more personally satisfying for Gates than what he's doing now. Sure, it would probably feel pretty nice if he could right the ship and get lauded in the same way Jobs has been as of late. Let's be honest though: the stuff Gates is doing today is way more important than any of the things Jobs did over the last decade. We can…

> Let's be honest though: the stuff Gates is doing today is > way more important than any of the things Jobs did over > the last decade. That's bullshit. Not in the sense that what Jobs did is more important, but in the sense that these things are not comparable at all .

Exactly! Jobs is great but Gates' work is so much more important then Jobs' iPhone that it's incomparable.