Title: High St@kes, No Prisoners : A Winner's Tale of Greed and Glory in the Internet Wars
Author: Charles Ferguson
Verdict: Yuck. Well, ok, I didn't get very far. My time is precious and so I don't waste it on books I can't stand. I got maybe 40 pages in. The short summary of the book is that it is a story of Ferguson starting and then selling his software company to Microsoft, giving them the product that became FrontPage. Seems at least a little interesting, but I just could not get past his writing style. He was insufferably smug while trying to seem humble. He dropped names at every opportunity. He made bold but vague pronouncements in the manner of a not-quite-smart-enough 12-year old. His sentences weren't so much written as they were assembled. The non-narrative sections where he waxed prophetic about the future of the Internet were alternately annoying and laughable, clear (and weak) attempts to be a visionary. That the book was published in 1999 may give you some idea of how accurate they were. And then there was the horrid l33tification of the title; I cannot imagine the meeting that came up with th@t. I can't deliver a verdict because I didn't read it. I couldn't stand it. Take that for what it's worth. I'm moving on to greener pastures (well, actually, I'm about 60 pages from the end of a greener pasture).