The First Hackers

I'm currently reading a short novel about the history of hackers. It brought me to a story about how a group of 6 young hackers in their freshman year in the 1950's placed a bet with the head of their department. A new computer was delivered to their school only days before and the young students were not overly enamored with the software that was on the computer. So they asked their professor that if they created a complete assembler package for this brand new computer by Monday, one that he had to be impressed with then they could use, adapt and improve that software as well as gain more rights to use the new machine.

The professor agreed and stated that the deadline was to be 3 days from then, Monday. And so began one of the most extraordinary software engineering feats that I have ever heard of. These 6 undergrads and one 12 year old began a mammoth coding session through which they vowed not to sleep until the job was finished. For 3 consecutive days, aided by mammoth caffeine consumption and endless supplies of pizza they designed a complete assembler program for one of the first computers to be ever in MIT. When the professor returned to the tech room on Monday morning he found a fully functioning application which may have taken years to create had it gone through the normal business processes of meetings and approvals and deadlines. These were the world's first undisputed hacker group. They let everyone use their software and add improvements to it if required. No infringements, no restrictions, no problem. This was possibly a by-product of all of the competitiveness that arose within their department in this era, I know for a fact that it is still there today.

This was the "golden age" of the computer hacker. The machines were large, slow, cumbersome to use, and it took an extraordinary effort to make them do even the simplest computation. Although this less than 40 years ago, to the programmer of today it is like looking through the mists of time into the genesis of computing. The legendary feats of the early hackers are made all the more amazing by the primitive nature of the machines they were using and the tools they had at their disposal. All I can say is that these guys paved the way for future advances within this industry. By the way the first ever video-game in the world was created by these same guys and it's success, royalty free, was a true monument to the original Hacker ideal and innovation.

So I come back to today's world, 40 years later, I wonder how they would feel about Intellectual Property rights being ruled with an iron fist. With companies patents earning millions of dollars whilst restricting coders freedoms with what libraries they can and cannot use or change. With conglomerates spending billions each year so that their MBA's can get in a word while wasting engineer's precious time with meeting after meeting. While corporate's argue over fonts and layout without even touching on frameworks and back-end compatibility and extensibility. We truly have come a long way in the computer industry, however with all of these innovations is it truly for the better? IBM was the original enema of the MIT hacker as they were never allowed to even touch the local IBM mainframes, perhaps its corporations that are now the new enemy, stifling innovation and creativity?

Anyhow this is a pure rant but if it starts to make at least one person think if they have the original hacker ethos then it's worth it.

Comcast, TV and religeon

Well I decided that I would work from my house today because of the lucky fact that I have a good friend who has a VPN so I decided to piggyback over their connection, cunning or what?

Well I actually had an ulterior motive, since last Sunday the cable television in my house in Atlanta has been cut. Nothing to do with the bills I'm afraid, rather it was something up with the connection. Anyhow as I speak a Comcast cable repair guy us here right now attempting to fix it up. Unfortunately the only channel he is interested in testing is Atlanta Live, and it currently has 3 white people discussing how wonderful the Lord almighty is! I'm just after hearing someone calling themselves an "Apostle/Bishop". Now that just goes to show how fucked up it can be to have a constitution protecting these nuts. Let them burn in hell.

Now I'm a Catholic and I have never seen such "devout" crap from anyone as what Im watching right now, even from the pope. At least the pope knows what he is talking about.

Anyhow Comcast is one of the major cable operators down in the Southern States, however their customer support service is pure and utter bullshit. I requested an engineer out here yesterday, I waited all evening for the engineer to come out and he was a no-show. Called up their customer support and they said that I had called up and cancelled the appointment, I can smell the bullshit that girl was talking from my beloved couch.

Anyhow seeing as St. Patrick's day is coming soon watching TV is certainly something that I won't be doing, well apart from watching Ireland demolish England to win the 6 Nations, however my vision should be well blurred at that time of the morning (08.30am) especially seeing as I don't plan on sleeping on St. Patrick's Night...

So I'll be leaving Atlanta on Monday morning at 7am so I'm trying to figure out how I can possibly fit a 60" into my suitcase to bring it back to China...any suggestions?

My slant on the Chinese IT Bubble

I was just completing the first year of college when the dot com bubble burst.  I remember one of my lecturers coming into the class, tears brimming in his eyes as he related to us how all of his shares in Ericsson had lost most of their value. Quite a substantial amount of money at the time.

So in 2000, the bursting of the information technology bubble had marked economic implications for Sweden. Ericsson, the world's largest producer of mobile telecommunications equipment, shed thousands of jobs, as did the many of the world's once fast-expanding Internet consulting firms and dot-com startups.  Ericsson's shares nosedived from $20 to $0.98.  My lecturers warning about how quick things can change really rang loud and clear.

With America's economy now in crisis mode, everyone is now looking towards the next cash cow, which astonishingly to quite a lot of peoples surprise is now China.  Well, its not astonishing now but 10 years ago it was unknown for IT and B2B solutions.  I moved over to China in 2005 working for a large Chinese software company and although I was confident about taking quite a step into the unknown I was very excited about the industries future.  The industry was bouncing back.  At the time India was regarded as the main outsourcing capital of the world with many jobs from America being outsourced there for a long period.  Having entered the Chinese software market just when things were beginning to get interesting I am now starting to get extremely apprehensive about where things are now heading in the Middle Kingdom. 

So to date Microsoft, Intel, Oracle, GE, Google and Yahoo have committed their futures to the Chinese market.  Intel Corp, the world's largest chipmaker, won China's approval to build its first semiconductor manufacturing factory in a small place called Dalian (Awesome place, I recommend JD's nightclub for the uninitiated).  With many new graduates coming on-stream from second and third tier Chinese cities institutes of technology these companies are guaranteed a large talented workforce for years to come.  China is incredibly hot right now and everyone wants to get in on the act.  It doesn't hurt that the Chinese Yuan is unbelievably good value for money with a very cheap and affordable workforce with an extremely low corporation tax rate.

With these well established companies now gaining a foothold in the country there are now an enormous amount of startup Chinese IT companies in China being incorporated.  Many of these business are getting very high valuations even though they are not even making a profit yet.  Venture capitalists have been pumping large amounts of money into small Chinese startups that are by and large clones of existing applications for the past 3-4 years.  Many of these startups have been formed by 20 something talented Asian developers with little management experience and it certainly reflects in todays industry.  When youtube initially surfaced in the west, there were hundreds of clones created by Chinese developers.  Today it has whittled down to about 3 Chinese companies, the most popular of which, toudou, has not made had a single profitable quarter. Leasing thousands of servers around the country is not a cheap enterprise, especially when most Chinese couch potatoes like nothing more than watching their favorite version of Mandarin dubbed Heroes.  Seriously, Hayden Panettiere sounds very cute when speaking in Mandarin. /me does a french whistle.

Although much of the investment has been on individual websites, however there are many other areas where China are beginning to take over as world leaders, most notably on telecommunications devices, chip design, biomedical devices and many more.  There are many more places for the venture capitalists to invest in however all valuations are sky high right now.  People have reason to be worried, with the credit crunch in the US investors have perhaps over extended into the Chinese market.  If the Chinese economy even shows the slightest sign of slowing down then the entire world will feel shock waves and scream in Unison. 

Many of the changes that have overcome China in the past few years are astonishing.  Billions of dollars has been invested in the smaller cities of China with education being a priority for the people.  Software parks have been cropping up all over with the Oracle being the latest to open up shop in Shenyang, Liaoning.  Indian companies were seeking relationships with any outsourcing company who would have been interested in forming a partnership.  With prices in India beginning to rise much of the outsourcing is being transferred, Chinese accents are slowly replacing the Bangalore Kannada slang.

So where does the future rest?  The cost of living in the main cities of China is starting to increase exponentially.  Rent is rising as are salaries, it is only time before the Chinese government re-values the Chinese Yuan which will mean that it will cost even more to do business with China, however as China will have most of the expertise, local infrastructure, desire to succeed and innovate it will be absoloutely impossible to not do business with China in some form or other.  The world has too much vested in China to see the entire IT industry there implode.  China may be in a bubble but it is not just the IT sector that is floating within its confines.  The Chinese government actively promotes its citizens to invest in Chinese companies and so patriotism and national pride is certainly alive and kicking especially when investing in the likes of Baidu (Also the name of my favorite BBQ joint in Dalian, I wonder who would object to the name). 

So to leave on a lighter note I embedded a video below that has caused some controvesy over the past few weeks around the tubes.  Anyhow, its worth a look if your interested in the bubble that is the American IT industry.  Enjoy.  By the way, with this post I am officially declaring that my writers block has vanished.  Clarity has entered my life and I have officially become enlightened.  I should get drunk more often. 

Whatever you do, do not walk on the grass

So its official, I've had my first professional interview in China. Some software engineering magazine thinks it's a great idea to interview two foreigners in China about the life we lead over here and we were the two suckers that got picked. Anyhow the first interview was today, I know well that my comments are certainly going to be edited and changed to suit the governments ethos so I want to make one thing straight. GRASS IS FOR WALKING ON.

In case you do not know it is forbidden to walk on grass in China. Maybe that is why there are so many astro-turf pitches here, but its next to impossible to find a good grassy flat area here where you can puck a ball around. If our outburst about grass changes current policy I shall be well pleased. By the way, I'm not talking about the smoking kind.

So this magazine wants to take us both out to see us while we "work, eat and play"; whatever that means. I wonder what kind of a lifestyle the Chinese imagine that foreigners are having out here. Eating, drinking, smoking, prostitution and hard core drugs? Well 2 out of five would be my lifestyle. Perhaps I'll bring them down to the local brothel, or to the nearest 5 star hotel for a slap up meal. Such is the choice a foreigner has in China. But above all, do not walk on the grass, otherwise prepare for a swift dose of "re-education". God how I love that word.

By the way, re-education was/is China's way of changing a persons beliefs through the form of harsh labor. I am unsure if this practice is still actively being endorsed. I first came accross this phrase when the government wanted to clean up the city of Shanghai. They got rid of the race-course and advised that all of the local prostitutes should be re-educated. Re-education usually took place outside of the large cities in the countryside. The people were kept under strict supervision with the understanding that if they reformed they could re-enter public life however many people accepted their fate and simply settled in the surrounding area.

A penguin,a panda & an animated paperclip go into a bar

Fortune magazine has an interesting article stressing the Chinese market's importance to Microsoft's long term strategy, and touching on Linux's involvement in the Chinese market.  

In the early days of Microsoft rampant piracy helped establish it as the de facto standard in PCs despite good alternatives. History may be unfolding again here, with the exception that having the Chinese government as an ally has huge additional benefits. Or perhaps Gates has met his match with the Chinese government.  

In another boost for Microsoft, the government last year required local PC manufacturers to load legal software on their computers. Lenovo, the market leader, had been shipping as few as 10% of its PCs that way, and even US PC makers in China were selling many machines "naked." Another mandate requires gradual legalization of the millions of computers in state-owned enterprises. In all, Gates says, the number of new machines shipped with legal software nationwide has risen from about 20% to more than 40% in the past 18 months.

I bought a new Presario laptop in Dalian last year, the initial machine was void of an operating system.  The nice clerk unwrapped the new machine and straight away brought out a nice new shiny CD of Microsofts XP OS.  Needless to say I never let the young fellah put the CD into the drive.  This is one user in China which China has not conquered. Should I have gotten the computer at a cheaper price without the OS installed?  Anyhow I left him with the words Debian Linux ringing in his ear.  

So has Microsoft truly conquered China?  I don't believe so.  Firstly should we define victory by having every single machine running a version of Windows?  Is it based on sales in which case Linux doesnt stand a chance.  Maybe defined by the number of home or business users?  By the way, even pirated software sellers do not stock linux in their cardboard boxes, why sell something which be obtained completely free.  Mission criticle systems in any business will continue to run on some nix based system, if they don't then their IT manager should be fired!  

The article I am referring to makes notes to how the current regime in China is very close to Mr Gates, who is actually treated like a rock-star in Beijing.  Hell, Hu Jintao even had dinner in Mr Gates humble abode, Microsoft must be great.  I should remind people that Microsoft made no secret of their dealings with the US government regarding encryption and purpose built-in back doors to their software.  Outrage from the Chinese people ensued which led to a brief boycott of the system for a time.  As a result of all of this subterfuge Microsoft has allowed China to have a look at the fundamental source code for its Windows operating system and to substitute certain portions with their own software - something Microsoft had never allowed in the past. Now when China uses Windows in President Hu's office, or for that matter in its missile systems, it can install its own cryptography.  China was very keen "to control our own destiny", while the People's Liberation Army Daily noted that "without information security, there is no national security in politics, economics, and military affairs."

Efforts such as this probably play a large part in Fortunes perception that Microsoft has conquered China.  When asked about why the people of the Middle Kingdom liked Linux Gates appeared upset and replied:

"What the heck are you talking about? I think what you're talking about is that you're assuming that the American does a reliable job in reporting on China. I doubt you read the government's press release... what the press in [the US] wrote and what the facts are is 100 per cent different."

Of course it is well known that the Chinese governments press releases are always 100% correct and valid.  Anyhow, I digress.  On another note I find it hard to imagine that no-one seems to be paying attention to Red-Flag Linux.  During the latest launch for Red-Flag  Linux the Ministry said it would give its full support to the development of Red Flag Linux, as well as all the other Linux systems.

Red Flag Linux has gained around a quarter of the server market since it was launched at the end of last year and the Chinese government also reported that software sales in the first half of this year grew to 9.1 billion yuan ($1.1 billion), with the domestic proportion being 30 per cent.  There is additional support in that Jiang Mianheng, the son of Chinese president Jiang Zemin, plays a prominent role in the management of Red Flag.  It's been a while since anything worthwhile was released by this company.  The last release was in 2005, with 5.0.  Time for some Chinese to get patriotic and do their duty to update this Microsoft killing Chinese beheamoth.

So in conclusion, Microsoft has a "a great market share in China but not a lot of revenue". Microsoft software is just too damm expensive for the market. Personally I think 5RMB for a DVD of Microsofts complete software catalog is just simply way too much.  China's operating system heart is still up for grabs, Canonical, Red-hat, Solaris and many more different nix enterprise providers have set up shop in China.  I don't think this press release will cause them to lose much sleep. 

For Microsoft, there is a dangerous possible downside to this: the Chinese government still may decide to avoid any anti-piracy enforcement problems by declaring Linux to be the official operating system for the government in the future. If the world's biggest potential market went Linux, it is easy to envisage a consequent domino effect that would not just strengthen Linux in the rest of Asia, but have a profound effect in the western world as well.  For a company that has spent billions investing in the Chinese market perhaps they should be the ones experiencing the sleepless nights.

Disclaimer: I live, breath and dream Linux when not dreaming of beautiful girls...(I think it's impossible to breath and live beautiful girls, one can but try though).

Defining success and getting outta dodge

So you've built your prototype and are suddenly making money.  Now what direction do you take?  In what sense do you measure your companies success?  For many software companies they are always asked "What's your exit strategy?" by VC's.  It's something that I've been giving a great deal of thought to, at what point will I stop doing what I love so much?

Now that you are now the hottest shit since "Vampire Zombie battles" in the tubes and you have developed the coolest application ever, what are you defining your success to be? When looking at an investment I would imagine that questions will be asked of your user base.  Whats your demographic, how many do you have and are they paying money for your app?  You can have a million people using your service, if you are not making revenue off of them, well, what use are they?  Obviously you have not thought this whole business thing out properly then eh?  With Google having re-defined free service offerings apparently no-one wants to pay for anything anymore.  Just remember that if it's a good enough service, the money will come.  But to get them hooked, give them an incentive, get them thinking that this is the best service since bread was sliced and they just cannot live without it.  

So, the business is now profitable, money is coming in, but you want to go to the next level.  So now you are suddenly being told to sell, sell, sell your baby to a larger organization.  Being bought out by the larger business is heartbreaking stuff, Watching it being taken in the wrong direction is something which would tug on the heartstrings of any entrepreneur.  The wad of cash that is now your bed will defintely help, as will the steady supply of toilet paper printed with presidents faces but should you give up something that you have worked so hard for for so long? I guess that is a decision everyone must grapple with one day, take the money, live the life of luxery, pay some bills or continue on with your company.  

A huge wad of cash, is that success?  It's everyone's wet dream, the VC's swoop in, give you loads of lolly to go public with your company.  This is the pipe dream, something that can happen to the rare few in their wildest fantasies.  You would want to be offering something truly unique in order to get to this level, not everyone can be the next Google or VM-Ware.  The founders are usually kicked off to the side at this point, left to come out during press conferences and used as the face of the company, in the meantime, a new CEO is hired and all the important decisions are now made by the board of directors.  Everyone has a price, it's just finding what the currency is that is the problem.

Normal startups outside of the Internet space take years upon years to flesh out and develop, software startups are no different.  Give them a chance, give them some love, sweat and blood and they will repay you back tenfold.  The reason why I'm looking to commence my own business is that I want to develop something that that succeeds, something that gives people a bit of freedom in their day to day lives and something that I am satisfied with.  I just hope that I never forget the reason I wanted to build a company; corporate life does not interest me. Being like any other company does not interest me, being exciting, unique, innovative and loved by your customers, I don't know a single entrepreneur who does not dream of that.  To me, that defines success, not money nor fame.  Doing a good decent job and knowing that you have helped people out, that is my motivation.  How many of you feel the same?