SALON

Wednesday, May 26, 2010 8:11 AM UTC

A farewell to Microsoft: “The unicorn was real”

J Allard's parting e-mail is a passionate reminder of how new technology can mean more than just minting cash

By

Topics: Microsoft, How the World Works, Apple, Smart Phones,

A farewell to Microsoft: J Allard, the Microsoft corporate vice president overseeing the software development of the new Xbox, speaks about the new XBox 360 during the Xbox 360 E3 kick-off celebration at the Electronics Entertainment Expo at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles May 16, 2005. REUTERS/Robert Galbraith RG/PN (Credit: Reuters)

It’s a rare day when I manage to enrage supporters of both Microsoft and Apple. But it’s strangely invigorating, a nice change of pace from relentless excoriation for my Keynesian fantasies or accused of being in the tank for Wall Street.

But in light of the lively discussion inspired by my Microsoft post, I thought readers might be interested in the farewell e-mail penned by J Allard, one of the newly departed Microsoft executives after yesterday’s corporate shakeup, and the guy, as I noted yesterday, who was most instrumental in getting Microsoft focused on the Internet.

Allard is classy and passionate, and I especially liked this passage, where he talks about his initial recruitment to Microsoft:

The “computer on every desk…” rhetoric was a ruse, the real purpose and ambition of these people was much, much broader:

“Make the world a better place through technology.”

Like every idealistic college hire, this was the unicorn I was looking for. I wanted to do something bigger than me — “change the world!” — with a bunch of people who respected and could augment my superpowers. I had visited the Justice League of Geeks and they had invited me in and had shown me the secret handshake.

…

At my two year checkpoint, things were going along “better than expected.” It was simple to extend my commitment — I was charged up by the progress we were making, the friends I had made, the plans we had made together and the culture and purpose that bound us. I even was allowed to expense copies of “Snow Crash” as a pre-read for team offsites! The unicorn was real!

As someone who, as a struggling freelancer, reviewed “Snow Crash” for the princely sum of $50 for the San Francisco Bay Guardian in the summer of 1992, I remember all too well the moment when it first became clear to me that the Internet embodied my cyberpunk dreams. I love the notion of infecting your colleagues with a Neal Stephenson mind virus in the service of explaining the promise of the Net. I think Microsoft could have used a bunch more J Allards.

But to all the letter-writers who kvetched at my use of the phrase “also-ran” to describe Microsoft’s current relevance, I just have to reiterate: iPhones and Google’s Droid OS come a lot closer to capturing the essence of that sci-fi future than, say, Vista.

And yes, everyone is right about the Xbox. It must be regarded a success. It’s cool, my son worships it, (and to him “Snow Crash” hardly raises an eyebrow). Yet, two of the men most associated with its development are no longer in charge. Where did the unicorn go?

Andrew Leonard

Andrew Leonard is a staff writer at Salon. On Twitter, @koxinga21. More Andrew Leonard.

Next Article

Related Stories

More Related Stories

Featured Slide Shows

The week in 10 pics

close X
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 11
  • Lisa Montgomery embraces her nephew Thursday after a tornado tore apart her home in Cleburne, Texas. The twister killed six people and destroyed entire swaths of the North Texas town.
    Credit: AP/LM Otero

  • Jack McMahon, the defense attorney for abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell, speaks outside the Criminal Justice Center in Philadelphia Tuesday. His client was convicted of killing three babies in his clinic, and will serve multiple life sentences.
    Credit: AP/Matt Rourke

  • A photo taken Monday captures Vice President Joe Biden's response to a Milwaukee second-grader's innovative proposal to end America's epidemic of gun violence. This guy!
    Credit: AP/Jenny Aicher

  • Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., flanked by a grouper-eyed Michele Bachmann, addresses the IRS' admission that it targeted Tea Party groups in advance of the 2012 election. In an op-ed for CNN Thursday, the Kentucky senator slammed the president for his faux outrage.
    Credit: AP/Molly Riley

  • Ousted IRS chief Steven Miller is sworn in on Capitol Hill Friday. Miller testified before the House Ways and Means Committee on the extra scrutiny the agency gave conservative groups applying for tax-exempt status.
    Credit: AP/J. Scott Applewhite

  • Attorney General Eric Holder pauses as he testifies on Capitol Hill before the House Judiciary Committee Wednesday. Holder is under fire, among other things, for the Justice Department's gathering of phone records at the Associated Press.
    Credit: AP/Carolyn Kaster

  • O.J. Simpson sits during an evidentiary hearing at Clark County District Court in Las Vegas, Nev., Thursday. Simpson, who is currently serving a nine-to-33-year sentence in state prison for armed robbery and kidnapping, is using a writ of habeas corpus to seek a new trial.
    Credit: AP/Las Vegas Review-Journal/Jeff Scheid

  • Major Tom to ground control: On Sunday astronaut Chris Hadfield recorded the first music video from space, a cover of David Bowie's "Space Oddity."
    Credit: AP/NASA/Chris Hadfield

  • When it rains it pours. President Barack Obama speaks during a news conference Thursday with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, inexplicably inspiring an #umbrellagate Twitter meme.
    Credit: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

  • A smoke plume rises high above a road block at the intersection of County A and Ross Road east of Solon Springs, Wis., Tuesday. No injuries were reported, but the the wildfire caused evacuations across northwestern Wisconsin.
    Credit: AP/The Duluth News-Tribune/Clint Austin

  • Recent Slide Shows

  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 11

Related Videos

Comments

 1 Comments

Comment Preview

Your name will appear as username

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href=""> <b> <em> <strong> <i> <blockquote>

follow salon

Most Read

Popular on Reddit

links from salon.com

From Around the Web

Presented by Scribol
listener_new_rect The Listener: Chekhov's story mirrors Russia's own

Recommendations