Will the Internet kill off trade shows (including, presumably, Comdex, Macworld, and all the rest)? Not likely, according to Charles Davidson's "That's Show Business," Digital South (January 2000).
Just a reminder that there was another Valley before Silicon Valley: A new museum will tell the history of agriculture in the Santa Clara Valley: Michael Cronk, "Exhibit to Tell Orchard History," San Jose Mercury News (17 January 2000).
The San Jose Mercury News is running two interesting end-of-the-year series. "Orchards to Online" examines ten events that shaped Silicon Valley. Results of a new poll on the quality of life in the area, and a number of related articles on work, family, and social life bring the "The Cost of Living in Silicon Valley" section to a close.
Sunnyvale, Cupertino... Reno? The city on the California-Nevada border has emerged as a significant shipping hub for e-business, which now generates 20% of all shipping traffic in the US. Rick Overton explains in "Digital Desert," Business 2.0 (December 1999).
In the never-ending discussion of what makes Silicon Valley unique, comes Aryae Coopersmith's series on "Work in Silicon Valley" in the San Jose Mercury News . (Coopersmith is founder and organizer of the High Tech HR Executive Forum and an HR consulting company.) Part 2 appeared on December 14; Part 1 posted on December 1.
The ecology of high-tech investing has been diversifying for years, with "angel" investors joining venture capitalists in helping new companies. Now, angels are themselves starting to organize and further diversify: Vanessa Richardson describes how "The 'Indian Mafia' Muscles Onto the Web" in Red Herring (15 December 1999), while Renee Tawa explains why women's investment clubs are outperforming men's, San Jose Mercury News (12 December 1999). Likewise, venture capital is diversifying geographically: Asian companies are attracting funds from Japanese, Hong Kong, and American investors, while Bangalore is becoming a popular destination for bargain-hunting angels (Far Eastern Economic Review, 23 December 1999 and 30 September 1999).
Billboards along 101 are now as expensive as Times Square, according to Pham-Duy Nguyen's "Signs of Our ChangingTimes," San Jose Mercury News (12 December 1999).
The Indian Institute of Technology has one of the world's most competitive entrance exams (admission rates are around 1%, compared to 13% for Harvard), but its graduates are among Silicon Valley's technical elite. Alexander Salkever offers a view of the institution and its impact in "Technical Sutra," Salon (6 December 1999).
The current issue of Feed is devoted to "Works in Progress: 21st Century Inventions." Among the articles is Steven Johnson's survey of promising new interfaces; Gary Rivlin's report from the new Xerox Parc; and Mark Boal's analysis of In-Q-It, the CIA's new venture arm.
The editors of Technology Review list their votes for the century's ten "most ingenious and important interfaces" (November/December 1999).
Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson, presiding over Microsoft v. DOJ, has released his Findings of Fact, in which he concluded that Microsoft is a monopoly in the operating systems market. Download the complete Findings of Fact here (available, ironically, as an MS Word document), or go directly to the HTML version on the DOJ Web site; Microsoft's Web site has published a response. Of course, the Findings has generated a storm of discussion, which can be followed in any of the news sources we track.
Fast Company is one of the more interesting magazines documenting (and propagandizing) the "new economy," and is a valuable primary resource on emerging cultural attitudes towards high-tech work. Among its best features is the "Consultant Debunking Unit," which analyzes consulting buzzwords and mantras. This month it takes on comparisons of management and mountain-climbing.
Deborah Claymon surveys Valley research on ubiquitious computing in "The Post-PC Era," San Jose Mercury News (29 November 1999), while Cecilia King reports on information appliances at Comdex (20 November 1999). Prominent among the advocates of ubicomp was the late Mark Weiser, memorialized by friends and colleagues in a site hosted by Stanford.
The role of public relations firms in establishing the reputations of startups is the subject of Craig Bicknell's "Startups, Make Noise or Die," Wired News (11 November 1999).
Silicon Glen, Scotland's answer to Silicon Valley, is the subject of Robert McGarvey's profile, "Galvanizing Silicon Glen," Upside (11 November 1999)
Silicon Valley law firms have become major hunting grounds for in-house legal talent for startups; one way firms have responded is to allow associates and partners to take equity stakes in companies they represent. Sean Somerville describes the practice, and reaction to it, in "Start-ups Have a Stock Answer," San Jose Mercury News (15 November 1999).
The latest edition Venture Capital Survey has been published in the in the San Jose Mercury News (14 November 1999). Readers should also note the searchable database on the site.
Speakers at a recent Berkeley conference argued that semiconductor workers face job-related health risks: Chris Gaither reports on "The Low Side to High Tech," Wired News (11 October 1999). The San Jose Mercury News has also had ongoing special coverage of piecework in the semiconductor industry.
As we all know, the Valley's connections with Asia are growing. Intel is starting a venture fund for Japanese Web businesses (Nikkei BP, 7 October 1999), while other companies are setting up research laboratories in China to attract engineering talent (Nikkei BP, 12 October 1999).
Hardly a day goes by without ground breaking on a new corporate office park or tech campus; the San Jose Mercury News has a special section on the architecture of Silicon Valley.
Silicon Valley was once known as "The Valley of Heart's Delight" for its agricultural bounty; now one of the last vestiges of that former life, the Del Monte cannery, is closing: Geoffrey Tomb describes its "Final Poignant Production Run," San Jose Mercury News (10 October 1999).
Despite the difficulty of explaining just what makes a Silicon Valley work (and many failed attempts to replicate it), other cities are experiencing growth driven by marriages between universities and high-tech: Carey Goldberg explains in "Across the Country, Universities Generate a High-Tech Economic Boom," New York Times (8 October 1999) (registration requred). The role of high-tech in urban economic growth is also the subject of the Milken Institute's July 1999 research report, "America's High-Tech Economy: Growth, Development, and Risks for Metropolitan Areas."
The tumultuous career of Atari founder Nolan Bushnell is the subject of Michael Learmonth's "Back to the Garage," Metroworks (16 September 1999).
Stanford computer scientist Donald Knuth in profiled by Steve Ditlea in "Rewriting the Bible in 0s and 1s," Technology Review (September/October 1999), and Mark Wallace in "The Art of Don E. Knuth," Salon (16 September 1999).
Martin E. Hellman, "The Evolution of Public Key Cryptography," Xerox PARC forum.
Curtis Carlson (CEO, SRI International), "Inventing the Future Through Technology Innovation: The SRI Story," Haas School of Business, U.C. Berkeley (registration required).
Gary Rivlin, author of The Plot to Get Bill Gates, at Cody's Books, Berkeley. (Read Rivlin's "My Five Minutes With Bill Gates," in Salon.)
Leonard Shlain, author of The Alphabet Versus the Goddess: The Conflict Between Word and Image, at Black Oak Books, Berkeley.
Computer Museum History Center Fellows Ceremony, Palo Alto Hills Golf and Country Club (tickets required).
Leonard Shlain, author of The Alphabet Versus the Goddess: The Conflict Between Word and Image, at Kepler's Books, Menlo Park.
Simon Singh, author of Fermat's Enigma and The Code Book, a history of encryption, at Cody's Books, Berkeley.
Simon Singh, author of Fermat's Enigma and The Code Book, a history of encryption, at Kepler's Books, Menlo Park.
Konrad Zeus Colloquium, Computer Museum History Center, Mountain View (RSVP required).
The Vintage Computer Festival, Santa Clara Convention Center, Santa Clara (registration required).
The Internet Goldrush of '99, sponsored by Computer Scientists for Social Responsibility, Stanford University (registration required).
Florida Prepaid Panel Discussion (on new decisions in intellectual property law), Berkeley Center for Law and Technology, UC Berkeley.
Avron Barr and Shirley Tessler, " Software Entrepreneurism in Korea," Asia/Pacific Research Project's Silicon Valley Networks Project, Stanford University.
Michael Lewis discusses The New New Thing: A Silicon Valley Story, at the Santa Clara Marriott, in an event sponsored by the Churchill Club. (registration required)
Curtis R. Carlson (CEO, SRI International), "Entrepreneurial R&D," A/PARC Silicon Valley Networks Project, Stanford University (RSVP required).
Charles H. Ferguson, author of High Stakes, No Prisoners: A Winner's Tale of Greed & Glory in the Internet Wars, at Printer's Ink, Palo Alto.
Clifford Stoll reads from High-Tech Heretic at Kepler's Books, Menlo Park.
David Haumann, "A Peek Inside Pixar Animation Studios: Working the Magic of Computer Animation," at the Lawrence Hall of Science, Berkeley.
Leonard Shlain discusses The Alphabet Versus The Goddess at Printer's Ink, Palo Alto.
Bill Lessard and Steve Baldwin, authors of NetSlaves: True Tales of Working the Web, discuss the view of new media from the ground floor at Stacey's, Palo Alto.
Rex Briggs (Millward Brown Interactive) discusses "Internet Branding" at the Stanford Computer Industry Project (SCIP) seminar series.
Novelist Lawrence Coates reads from The Blossom Festival, a novel set in Santa Clara Valley between the World Wars, when "the orchards gave way to urban development" and the Valley of the Heart's Delight became Silicon Valley, at Stacey's Books (Palo Alto).
Michael Lewis discusses The New New Thing: A Silicon Valley Story at A Clean, Well-Lighted Place for Books, San Francisco.
David Kaplan reads from The Silicon Boys and Their Valley of Dreams at the Stanford Bookstore, Stanford University campus.
The Churchill Club presents Tony Perkins and Michael Perkins on "The Internet Bubble," Hyatt Rickeys Palo Alto (reservations required).
David McKendrick (Research Director, Information Storage Industry Center, UCSD) speaking on "Location and Competitive Advantage in Global Industries: Evidence from Hard Disk Drives," sponsored by the Silicon Valley Networks Project of the Asia/Pacific Research Center, Stanford University.
Stacey's Books' (San Francisco) 415tech events calendar features Steve Harmon, author of Zero Gravity: Riding Venture Capitol from High Tech Start-Up to Breakout IPO, at San Francisco Galleria Design Center.
Stanford University's Symbolic Systems Student Society's 1999-2000 Distinguished Speaker Event features Douglas Engelbart (director, Bootstrap Institute) and Steven Johnson (editor-in-chief of Feed and author of Interface Culture) discussing "Augmenting the Human Intellect." (4 PM, Annenburg Auditorium, Stanford University)
While not related to Silicon Valley and modern high-tech, some readers might be interested in the historiographic and theoretical aspects of the talk by David Bloor (University of Edinburgh) on "Why Did the British Fight World World I with the Wrong Theory of the Aerofoil?" sponsored by the HPS and STS programs at Stanford University.
Dimitris Assimakopoulos (Visiting Scholar, Department of Sociology, Stanford University), speaking on "Esprit (European Strategic Programme in IT): A Dark Alley in the Global Village," sponsored by the Silicon Valley Networks Project of the Asia/Pacific Research Center, Stanford University.
Michael Crichton reads from his new book, Timeline, at Stacey's Books (San Francisco). Maybe it has something to do with Silicon Valley; maybe not. But it's Michael Crichton, and I have a weakness for timelines.
Corporate Portal Conference, Claremont Resort and Spa, Berkeley. Speakers include Douglas Engelbart and Ray Kurzweil. (registration required)
The Churchill Club presents a symposium on "Serious Play: Innovations in the Workplace" moderated by Michael Schrage (author of Serious Play). (registration required)
Paul Freiberger and Michael Swaine discuss the expanded edition of their classic book, Fire in the Valley, at Stacey's Books, Palo Alto.
Dr. Irving T. Ho (Chairman of the Board, EiC Corporation, and former Director General of the Hsinchu Science-Based Industrial Park) will speak on "Taiwan's Silicon Valley: The Evolution of Hsinchu Industrial Park." Sponsored by the Silicon Valley Networks Project, A/PARC.
Gary Brechin discusses his new book on on the history of San Francisco, Imperial San Francisco: Urban Power, Earthly Ruin, at Kepler's Books, Menlo Park.
Graphics pioneers Dick Shoup and Alvy Ray Smith discuss their work on the development of Superpaint at Xerox PARC in "Recollections of Early Paint Systems," at the Computer History Museum, Mountain View. (Note: Registration required.)
Charles Townes, who won the Nobel Prize in Physics for his invention of the laser, discusses his new book How the Laser Happened: Adventures of a Scientist, at Cody's Books, Berkeley.
Patricia Wallace, author of "The Psychology of the Internet," will speak at Printer's Ink in Mountain View.
The Associates of the Stanford University Library present Paul Saffo, Director of the Institute for the Future, speaking on "The Book of Sand: Technology and the Printed Word," 3:00 PM in Building 260 (Piggott Corner), Stanford University.
The Asia/Pacific Research Center at Stanford University presents Henry S. Rowen (Director of the Asia/Pacific Research Center at Stanford University) speaking on "The Mysteries of Silicon Valley Unveiled."
The Berkeley Center for Law and Technology presents a roundtable discussion on "Overprotection or Just Compensation: Can Database Legislation Survive a Constitutional Challenge?"
Stanford Law School hosts a symposium on Cyberspace and Privacy, Stanford Law School. Four panels will discuss privacy as it relates to electronic space, communications, property, and personality. (Register here.) The symposium will also be broadcast live over the Internet.
Doug Henton (President of Collaborative Economics) on "Innovative Regions in America: Silicon Valley, Route 128, Northern Virginia, Austin and San Diego," A/PARC Conference Room, Encina Hall, Stanford University. Sponsored by the Silicon Valley Networks Project.
Stanford Presidential Symposium in the Humanities and Engineering presents the first part of a two-day event on "Special Effects," a series of symposia bringing together scholars, engineers, and effects artists.
Stanford Presidential Symposium in the Humanities and Engineering presents the second set of "Special Effects" events.
Yukio Yoda (Chief Executive Director, Japan External Trade Organization, San Francisco) discusses "The Revitalization of Japan Through Entrepreneurship," A/PARC Conference Room, Encina Hall, Stanford University. Sponsored by the Silicon Valley Networks Project.
Adrian Johns, author of the recent Nature of the Book, speaking on "Piracy: Intellectual Impropriety from Gutenberg to Gates," Lane History Building Room 307, Stanford University, at 4:30. Sponsored by the History and Philosophy of Science Program.