I retired from personal blogging in July 2008.
But you can find me over at http://blog.xero.com.
Great photo posted by ChrisJ of Helen Robinson (MSNZ), the PM, Chris Liddell (MS CFO) and Steve Balmer (MS CEO).
It’s always easy to have a go at Microsoft but it’s hard to think of a company that has done more for the local New Zealand IT industry than Microsoft.
Since about 1994 I’ve based my career around Microsoft technologies. Originally at Ernst & Young and then Glazier. We’ve created hundreds of local jobs over the years based on partnering with Microsoft. For many of our developers, TechEd and hands on learning of each new Microsoft technology has been the basis for ongoing technical development. Intergen, Provoke, Synergy, Datacom, Simple, Gen-I are all examples of local companies with passionate teams that have grown up alongside Microsoft over the last decade.
What Microsoft does really well is build communities, and provide lots of opportunities for partners to create value. What I like most about Microsoft is how they completely understand the power of partners and work hard to make partners succesful. It’s hard to imagine the NZ IT scene without Microsoft.
Great coup for Helen Robinson (standing) to leverage her relationship with Chris to get the PM and Steve Balmer together.
So, look forward to the enivitable flame comments, but I’m thrilled that Helen was able to pull this meeting together.
Very bloody cool!
Update: Juha is running a caption contest.
My favourite:
Comment by Sycophant, on 26-MAR-2007 11:58
Ballmer: “Prime Ministers, Prime Ministers, Prime Ministers, Prime Ministers, Prime Ministers, Prime Ministers, Prime Ministers, Prime Ministers, Prime Ministers!!!!!”
Ballmer: “WHO SAID SIT DOWN?!?!!!”
In ref to this famous moment in IT history.
blog
Love it.
The expression/passion in Ballmers eyes is worth the picture alone. I reckon he was pitching an all-of-government tablet roll-out..once a salesman..
It is a great bit of PR work for MSNZ.
What is it with the ‘Helen’ thing in NZ at the moment ?
I’m sure Helen (R) didn’t have to leverage anything to get Helen (C) an audience with Ballmer and Liddell.
Anyway, where’s your contribution to:
http://www.geekzone.co.nz/juha/2518
?
> It’s hard to imagine the NZ IT scene without Microsoft.
I’d like to imagine it… ;-)
Perhaps Helen C should have asked Mr. Balmer to establish a Microsoft R&D center here in New Zealand, because we do have enough local talents.
Yeah right, I especially like the way they tried to patent XML in NZ. That really provided lots of opportunities for partners to create value.
But wait, don’t forget the way they’re trying to screw up our digital media so nothing will Just Workâ„¢ any more, and even content owners may be told they cannot view their content without first contacting MicroSoft.
Sam, MS are not trying to “screw up digital media” at all. If you just read the “sky is falling” type media comments then this is the impression you would get … or for that matter the Auckland Uni report which falls into the same category. If you read the counter position MS are simply implementing the technologies that are required to view the next generation of media (HD-DVD etc..). If they dont … then you wont be able to watch that content … seems simple to me.
I have worked with Microsoft technology since i left uni. My first job was working with Rod and the team at Glazier Systems. He is right, MS create more jobs in the local market than any other software vendor. That is a positive impact. I have a vibrant career now along with many others. I am thankful for that.
“We’ve created hundreds of local jobs over the years based on partnering with Microsoft.”
The broken window fallacy.
>> Sam, MS are not trying to “screw up digital media†at all.
Oh, no, but they’re succeeding rather well. I look forward to your detailed rebuttal of Peter Gutmann’s report that backs up your assertion that it’s “sky is falling” material, if such a thing is forthcoming.
The long and short of it is: DRM makes a mockery of the very basis of Copyright law, and Microsoft are proactively supporting it.
I agree that in the mid to late 80s and early 90s MS were hugely influential in taking IT in new directions, particualrly on the desk top. I wouldn’t be in IT today if they hadn’t been there with a semi-decent ‘c’ compiler for PCs in 1985.
However, since then they have not been. The Internet has been built on a totally different paradigm and this has far more potential for the local IT industry than MS ever did. The pity of it is, that MS is one of the few major IT corps that *hasn’t* bought into that paradigm.
Since seeing those Youtubers of Mr. Ballmer - I have been trying to encourage my CEO to say “Give it up for me!” at the start of every meeting.
>However, since then they have not been. The Internet has been built on a totally > different paradigm and this has far more potential for the local IT industry
> than MS ever did. The pity of it is, that MS is one of the few major IT corps
> that *hasn’t* bought into that paradigm.
Don, I thinking you’d actually have trouble providing that many major IT corps have embraced what you’re calling a paradigm, beyond a few specific examples. It simply isn’t the way multi-nationals work.
I also don’t think your point is valid. It’s very hard to find software companies that made as much, previously subscription, content available of the Web for free, at a time Microsoft did with Technet and MSDN. That’s just naming one example.
However before you want to talk about the history of the Internet you just try explaining to a youngster about how you used to get files in 10K blocks by e-mail. None of this P2P nonsense :-)