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The Road Ahead (Comes with Companion Interactive CD-Rom - unopened)
by BILL with NATHAN MYHRVOLD and PETER RINEARSON GATES
Product Group: Book
Publisher: Viking Penguin (1995)
ISBN: 0670772895
EAN: 9780670772896
Dewy Decimal #: 004.67
Hardcover: 286 pages
Edition: Har/Cdr
SKU: 02886
Condition: Collectible: Very Go
Comments: Good condition from clean and non smoking home. First edition
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Customer Reviews
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Bill Gates does technology past, present and future
Rating  (4)
Date: 2008-01-10
4 out of 4 customers found this reveiw helpful
Bill Gates is a first class teacher. That is one of the most striking things you learn about him after reading what he writes. So to his talents of being a first class businessman, a first class programmer, first class mathematician and first class tech leader, you can add not a bad book author, given that this is his first incursion into the field of literature.
The big question however is why you would want to read a book that is dated 1996 about technology? The answer is four-fold. First of all, it's Bill Gates and how he thinks. Second, this book has an odd sort of history to it. Third, only some things in this book are coming to pass and much of it remains open or in development. Forth, you can still learn heaps from it although this stuff that has to come to pass doesn't have the same impact it did when he predicted it. However there is a little bit of controversy over how much he did predict and this is explained in the preface.
Preface
After launching the book in 1995, Bill Gates quickly revised it for a 1996 edition that focused on the Internet. It was only after releasing the 1995 book that Gates watched as the Internet unexpectedly achieved a mass sufficient to turn heads in the industry. Gates responded by making Microsoft Internet orientated and revising his book, The Road Ahead. So this book is a combination of how Gates predicts the future and how he suddenly reacted when the future came in unpredictably ahead of schedule.
1 - A Revolution Begins
Bill Gates discusses his history as a child growing up with computers. He describes what he was doing with very simple machines the size of a refrigerator and how he and Paul Allen in their teens developed software for businesses. He talks a lot about microprocessors and Intel.
2 - The Beginning of the Information Age
Gates talks about the dawn of computer technology and implementation, especially in war time. He talks about binary systems and how these techniques of communicating information changed the world.
3 - Lessons from the Computer Industry
In this chapter Gates walks us through the computer revolution which includes BASIC, VHS, IBM, PC-DOS, MS-DOS, Xerox developing the mouse, Apple's graphical interface, Compaq clones, Windows and the failure of IBM's OS/2 project that paved the way for Microsoft to become a mega player. It is a really good business story with many lessons to learn.
4 - Information Appliances and Applications
This is focused on the concept of asynchronous technology such as video on demand (VOD), the wallet pc and encryption technology. The principles are still valid although the forms they take differ in the 21st century.
5 - From Internet to Highway
Gates merges VOD with a need for better communication hardware to handle the technology such as fiber optics. Essentially he discusses bringing broadband to the home user cheaply, somehow, but states that the costs in doing so mean completely revolutionizing the way phone companies make money. It is a very detailed chapter in which Gates correctly asserts that this will happen no matter what.
6 - The Content Revolution
Gates discusses the differences between paper documentation and digital documentation including design techniques. He talks about the power of CD technology to capture large quantities of written data, such as the Encyclopedia Britannica and even mentions DVD technology. He talks about VR (virtual reality) and simulators.
7 - Business on the Internet
This is his view on how business will be conducted using computers to communicate, arrange meetings, video conferencing and how commerce will be conducted on-line. Gates is alerting business that they need to be computer Internet savvy or else the competition will drive them out of town.
8 - Friction-Free Capitalism
The Internet is predicted to increase sales and thus business will boom. Here Gates sees everybody improving across the world because the Internet gets businesses to serve a bigger community with more precision marketing. Business will move faster because of this revolution.
9 - Education: The Best Investment
He wants computers in schools to undergo a major upheaval. The computer lab needs to be transformed into the central focus of all knowledge based school activities. Gates emphasizes the need for public schools to undergo a major upheaval. He claims fears about computers replacing teaching jobs are superfluous.
10 - Plugged In at Home
Bill Gates describes his home. This is probably the main reason why most people bought this book when they heard that they could read about what the inside of this billionaire's house looks like. Needless to say he lives in a mansion the size of football pitch filled with all the toys you could image. One room is even a trampoline. Computers control everything from the lighting mood to paintings. Gates talks about robotics a bit here too.
11 - The Internet Gold Rush
This chapter compares the Internet to the American Gold rush and is devoted to broadband infrastructure. It is about the investment potential of the Internet but he specifies that the Internet itself will not make money but is a tool for making money.
12 - Critical Issues
This is mostly about the Internet and the law. Gates has a growing concern that Internet censorship will undermine this next technological leap forward and warns against being too strict. A lot of this chapter is devoted to the issue of a world where more video cameras will be present in both work and life. He highlights problems concerning piracy and forgery. In the end he states that the Internet is a journey everyone should be prepared to make.
Afterword
This is a brief synopsis of the entire book.
The Road Ahead is essentially about the birth of the home PC evolving into the Internet. There is an article called "The Road Ahead 10 years on" on the Internet that you should read after finishing this book to get an idea of how this book faired in its predictions. Things to keep in mind are that Gates maybe undermined how disc storage space would develop. He correctly predicted broadband television services (digital TV). His wallet PC is essentially mobile phone technology. Pen-based computers are the PDA. Wireless is here. There isn't a whole pile he is off-target on. In fact the reader will be surprised by how much he gets right.
There are some criticisms. It does repeat much of what is being said especially when it comes to telecommunications companies investing in broadband. Gates revised this book to reflect changes that had already taken place, namely the Internet revolution. He also doesn't tell everything about Microsoft's coming to power or how they essentially bought DOS and just sold it on. Probably most apparent of all is that Microsoft has tried relentlessly to maintain a monopoly and has been criticized for anticompetitive tactics that run contrary to the ethics and morals that Gates evangelizes in this book.
All in all, the book has lasted in people's memories (it sold 2.5 million copies) and there is no reason to not want to read it. I would recommend it to people who just want to get informed about why everyone is on the Internet or just want to be clearer about what is going on.
It maybe a historic piece of writing, but equally it is one of the most important books about computers ever written. If you like computers and if you like technology then read this modern classic. It is possibly the first book about computers that was scooped up a computer illiterate public.
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I owe a lot of things to this book
Rating  (5)
Date: 2005-11-23
5 out of 8 customers found this reveiw helpful
This book hit the stands in 90's when I was an undegrad doing my 4 year course in Computer Science and Engineering. I devoured this book with the kind of passion a teenager devours his first Playboy/Penthouse.
In hindsight whatever BillG has written in this book has happened.
This book Rocks.
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Classic Gates-- Before the Internet was Invented....
Rating  (3)
Date: 2005-03-12
10 out of 11 customers found this reveiw helpful
Seriously this is Bill Gates talking about the future but out of 300 pages about 9 are dedicated to talking about the internet -- and most of that is buried with other information. Lots of talk about applications and appliances that did not materialize....one book you need to read because-- then you know that all the gurus DO NOT KNOW everythng !! Wonderful for entrepreneurs who dont' doubt their own paths on their road ahead......
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Worth reading
Rating (3)
Date: 2004-05-20
9 out of 11 customers found this reveiw helpful
Definitely worth reading. I'd also, however, suggest that if you really are curious about the early years of computing, you use the internet to check up other opinions of Microsoft's origin. There's two sides to every story...Mr. Gates is is undoubtedly a phenomenal businessman, though not perhaps quite the visionary he perceives himself to be. Would a visionary have to rewrite his book a year after completion? The internet took off - and The Road Ahead received a complete overhaul to reflect the recent developments. More like, The Road Behind. He's also not quite such an innovator - Microsoft purchased "MS-DOS", rather than created it, and incorporated many other people's ideas into Windows (without permission, of course). This isn't just a Microsoft bashing session. I have the greatest respect for them. But, think twice before you believe every word in this book. There is a definite stretching of the truth in places. Having said that, buy it - it's an interesting comparison with other accounts of the dawn of personal computing. No doubt the truth is somewhere in between.
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"Not supported"
Rating (3)
Date: 2004-05-07
9 out of 24 customers found this reveiw helpful
Mr Gates didn't mention anything about Java running on any platform/machine
He didn't mention anything about Linux being free
He didn't mention anything "new" about IBM their Lotus Notes products
Didn't mention anything "significant" about future changes in graphics and companies like Pixar and Disney
He didn't mention anything about Oracle and middleware
He didn't mention anything about the POWER of Ebay, Yahoo, Google and Amazon to get you things!!
What about AOL?, and what about the fact that he didn't even once mention Netscape, the superior company who revolutionized the Internet with their browser.
Don't get me wrong it is a very good book. However somewhat lopsided
I guess I must be on a different road than the one Mr Gates is traveling on.
btw: I happen to be one of the many Microsoft Certified Professionals that invested a significant amount of my own money and time supporting his products.
(10 grand and 12 years)
I think this book is as much about what is NOT in the book as opposed to what IS in the book!!
Buy it anyway! (Maybe used - it is some what dated) You will learn something just by being exposed to it.
The concept of The Web as being "self publishing" was an eye opener for me.
My favorite chapter and quote was from Chapter 8 Friction-Free Capitalism. "Our success in the PC world has come from working in partnership with such great companies as Intel, Compaq, HP, DEC, NEC, and dozens of others. Even IBM and Apple, with whom we have occasionally been in competition, have had an immense amount of our cooperation and support. We created a company that was dependent on partners. We bet that somebody other than us would do great chips, somebody other than us would build great PCs, somebody other than us would do great distribution and integration. We took a narrow slice and focused on that. In this new world, we want to work with companies from every industry to help them make the most of the opportunities the information revolution will bring." page 182
Well here are some other technology people and companies you might want to investigate as I am sure they too will have an impact on the direction of the road we will all be traveling: (unless of course, he buys them or squeezes them out)
Doug Humphrey - Founder, Digex ; Chairman and Founder, Cidera
Jonathan Klein - Co-founder and CEO, Getty Images
Tom Stockham - President of Access and Emerging Markets, Ticketmaster
Chip Perry - President and CEO - AutoTrader.com, former VP, Los Angeles Times
Jim McCann - Founder, Chairman and CEO - 1-800-FLOWERS
Brooks Fisher - Vice President (Strategic Initiatives), Intuit; former VP, Infoseek
Micheal Rubin - Founder, Chairman and CEO - Global Sports
Robert Covington - Chief Technology Officer and EVP, MerchantWired
Rob Burgess - Chairman and CEO - Macromedia; former SVP, Silicon Graphics
Steven Snyder - founder and chairman - Net Perceptions
Kenneth Cron - CEO, Flipside, Inc; former President of Publishing, CMP Media
Emerick Woods - President and CEO - Vicinity
Glenn Meakem - Founder, Chairman and CEO - FreeMarkets
Ted Meisel - President and CEO - GoTo.com
Nicholas vanDyk- President, Artisan New Media; EVP, Artisan Entertainment
Glenn Meyers- Founder and CEO - Rare Medium Group
Mark Goldstein - President and CEO - K-Mart's BlueLight
Charles Johnson - Founder and CEO - PurchasePro
David Perry- Founder, Chairman and CEO - Ventro
Alan Meckler- Founder, Chairman and CEO - INTMedia Group
Christopher Jenkins - former President, Ziplink; former VP, Arch Communications
Michael Levy -Founder and CEO - CBS Sportsline
John Schwarz - CEO - Reciprocal; former General Manager, IBM Solutions
Chris MacAskill - Founder -FatBrain.com, CEO - MightyWords
Harry Motro - Chairman, MotroVentures, former CEO - Infoseek
Zach Nelson - CEO and President, Mcafee ASaP
Joe Chung - Founder and Chairman, Art Technology Group
Jeet Singh - Founder and CEO, Art Technology Group
Royal Farros - Chairman, CEO and Founder, iPrint Inc.
Pehong Chen - Founder and CEO, BroadVision
Jeffrey Smith - Founder and CEO, Tumbleweed Communications
Scott Kurnit - CEO and Founder of About Inc.
Bob Young - Founder and Chairman, Red Hat Software
Scott Mednick - Founder, Think New Ideas; former Chairman, Worldwide Exceed
Tom Rogers- President and CEO, Primedia, former President, NBC Cable
Russell Horowitz - Founder and former Chairman, Go2Net Inc.
Naveen Jain - Founder and Chairman, InfoSpace
Michael Rosenfelt - Venture Partner, Impact Venture Partners; Founder, Powered, Inc.
Charles Conn - Co-founder and former Chairman, TicketmasterCitySearch.com
Mark Walsh - Chairman, VerticalNet; former SVP, America Online
David Goldberg - Founder and CEO, Launch Media
John Holt - Founder and CEO, The Cobalt Group
(From the book eFront! by Mattew W. Ragas)
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