[9892] in Commercialization & Privatization of the Internet
networkMCI ads
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Barry Shein)
Tue Jan 25 19:34:11 1994
Date: Tue, 25 Jan 1994 19:33:09 -0500
From: bzs@world.std.com (Barry Shein)
To: com-priv@psi.com
In-Reply-To: John [Francis] Stracke's message of Tue, 25 Jan 1994 11:48:34 +0500 <9401251648.AA08230@avalle.insoft.com>
Besides the MCI and AT&T ads there are also a bunch of evocative
cable-TV ads ("cable -- more than just a wire" I think is the slogan
used.)
I watch these things, all obviously fanciful animations, and wonder
what miracle is going to allow them to solve some rather hard software
problems that the past 20+ years haven't solved?
And although it may not hurt, I don't think the facile come-back
"MONEY" quite answers the question. Mere money sure as heck didn't
help IBM and some others, as one example, or AT&T/USL for that matter.
Actually, it's not at all clear that large quantities of money doesn't
hurt software development, considering all the miraculous garage
start-up successes versus the billions for not much at all monied
ventures.
Making software happen is a lot like being able to walk into a
racetrack and bet on all the winners every day, in an
intellectual/creative/managerial sense. It is not anything like
digging a big hole where mere money can facilitate. Creating software
is a whole lot more like writing best-selling novels then it is like
building bridges.
I'm tempted to videotape these ads for their potential humor value a
few years down this information superhighway. And what the heck
happened to flying cars and domed cities anyhow?
Color me skeptical.
-Barry Shein
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