AN EXHORTATION TO LIBERATE THE COMPUTER MARKET FROM THE BARBARIANS

HAVING carefully considered the subject of the above discourses, and wondering within myself whether the present times were propitious to a new executive, and whether there were the elements that would give an opportunity to a wise and virtuous one to introduce a new order of things which would do honour to him and good to the people of this company, it appears to me that so many things concur to favour a new executive that I never knew a time more fit than the present.

And if, as I said, it was necessary that the people of Israel should be captive so as to make manifest the ability of Moses; that the US auto market should be oppressed by the Newmobile so as to discover the greatness of the soul of Henry; and that the PC distribution system should be inefficient to illustrate the capabilities of Delv: then at the present time, in order to discover the virtue of the customer, it was necessary that PC software should be reduced to the extremity she is now in, that she should be more enslaved than the Hebrews, more oppressed than the US auto market; without system stability, without order, herded, despoiled, over hyped, over priced; and to have endured every kind of embarrassment.

Although lately some spark may have been shown by one, which made us think he was ordained by God for our redemption, nevertheless it was afterwards seen, in the height of his career, that fortune rejected him; so that American software, left as without life, waits for him who shall yet heal her wounds and put an end to the ravaging and plundering of WorkPerfect, to the swindling and taxing of Millisoft and of Asian Pear, and cleanse those sores that for long have festered. It is seen how she refuses to entreat God to send someone who shall deliver her from these wrongs and barbarous insolencies, yet wishes for it nonetheless. It is seen also that she is ready and willing to follow a banner if only someone will raise it.

Nor is there to be seen at present one in whom she can place more hope than in your illustrious house, with its valour and fortune, favoured by God and by Millisoft of which it is now the chief, and which could be made the head of this redemption. This will not be difficult if you will recall to yourself the actions and lives of the men I have named. And although they were great and wonderful men, yet they were men, and each one of them had no more opportunity than the present offers, for their enterprises were neither more just nor easier than this, nor was God more their friend than He is yours.

With us there is great justice, because that market take over is just which is necessary, and new programs are hallowed when there is no other hope but in them. Here there is the greatest willingness, and where the willingness is great the difficulties cannot be great if you will only follow those men to whom I have directed your attention. Further than this, how extraordinarily the ways of God have been manifested beyond example: the sea is divided, a cloud has led the way, the rock has poured forth water, it has rained manna, everything has contributed to your greatness; you ought to do the rest. God is not willing to do everything, and thus take away our free will and that share of glory which belongs to us.

And it is not to be wondered at if none of the above-named engineers have been able to accomplish all that is expected from your illustrious house; and if in so many revolutions in America, and in so many campaigns, it has always appeared as if business virtue were exhausted, this has happened because the old order of things was not good, and none of us have known how to find a new one. And nothing honours a man more than to establish new industry standards and new protocols when he himself was newly risen. Such things when they are well founded and dignified will make him revered and admired, and in America there are not wanting opportunities to bring such into use in every form.

Here there is great valour in the design center whilst it fails in marketing. Look attentively at the duels and the action in the trenches. But when it comes to minions the software companies do not bear comparison, and this springs entirely from the insufficiency of the leaders, since those who are capable are not obedient, and each one seems to himself to know, there having never been any one so distinguished above the rest, either by valour or fortune, that others would yield to him. Hence it is that for so long a time, and during so much fighting in the past twenty years, whenever there has been a truly superior software technology, it has always given a poor account of itself; as witness QS/2, Asian Pear's Version 7.0 OS, UNIX.

If, therefore, your illustrious house wishes to follow those remarkable men who have redeemed their company, it is necessary before all things, as a true foundation for every enterprise, to be provided with your own forces, because there can be no more faithful, truer, or better engineers. And although singly they are good, altogether they will be much better when they find themselves commanded by their executive, honoured by him, and maintained at his expense. Therefore it is necessary to be prepared with such, so that you can be defended against competitors.

And although NEG and Asian Pear CS staff may be considered very formidable, nevertheless there is a defect in both, by reason of which a third order would not only be able to oppose them, but might be relied upon to overthrow them. For the Asian Pear employees cannot resist engineering fellows, and the Switzers are unable to match the prowess of EE's in creating flexible code quickly. Owing to this, as has been and may again be seen, the Asian Pear employees are unable to resist IPM engineering leadership, and the Switzers are overthrown by the speed and rapidity of any coder unshackled by conventionality. And although a complete proof of this latter cannot be shown, nevertheless there was some evidence of it in the spreadsheet market, when the Asian Pear software engineers were confronted by Loetec code, which followed the same protocol as MSDOS versions of the software; when the Asian Pear employees, by innovation and brilliance, got in under the patents of the latter and stood out by virtue of the capabilities of their code, able to attack, while the Loetec program stood helpless, and, if the engineering fellows had not dashed up, all would have been over with for them. It is possible, therefore, knowing the defects of both these companies, to invent a new tactic, which will resist engineering fellows and not be overwhelmed by EE's rapidity; this need not create a new order of software, but a variation upon the old. And these are the kind of improvements which confer reputation and power upon a new executive.

This opportunity, therefore, ought not to be allowed to pass for letting the American software applications market at last see her liberator appear. Nor can one express the love with which he would be received in all those organizations which have suffered so much from these unreliable, over hyped programs (with what thirst for disk space!) with what stubborn faith, with what devotion, with what tears. What door would be closed to him? Who would refuse obedience to him? What envy would hinder him? What American would refuse him homage? To all of us this barbarous dominion stinks. Let, therefore, your illustrious house take up this charge with that courage and hope with which all just enterprises are undertaken, let a reliable, efficient, truly useful software architecture be created, so that under its standard our native company may be ennobled, and under its auspices may be verified that saying of Petrarch:

Virtu contro al Furore Prendera l'arme, e fia il combatter corto: Che l'antico valore Negli americi cuor non e ancor morto.

In English: "Virtue against fury shall advance the fight, And it i' th' combat soon shall put to flight; For the old coder, valour is not dead, Nor in th' American's breasts extinguished."