bill gates
Bill Gates
Vocabulary
wiz | achieve | root (2) |
deal | acumen | widespread |
invent | launch | contrary |
defunct | negotiate | executive |
set up | stain | worldwide |
VIP | series | domination |
iconic |
The Richest Man in the World
Most people think Bill Gates achieved super success because he is an extra-ordinary computer wiz.
However that is only part of the story.
Gates certainly possessed technical talent.
But the real roots of his success lie in his business acumen, specifically his dealmaking abilities.
DOS
Contrary to widespread belief, Gates did not invent the DOS operating system that launched Microsoft into a multi-billion dollar corporation.
What he did do was make the deal of the century: in 1980, he negotiated the purchase of DOS (known at that time as “86-DOS”) from a now-defunct company called Seattle Computer Products.
For $50,000!
More Deals
But Gates was just getting started.
He then turned around and set up a meeting with top executives of IBM.
At that session, the corporate VIPs wore pin-striped business suits.
Gates meanwhile showed up in a stained T-shirt.
Nevertheless, he managed to negotiate another deal: he got IBM to agree to install DOS on all of IBM’s PCs.
The Icing on the Cake
But Gates still wasn’t through yet.
He reserved the right for Microsoft to license DOS to other companies — something IBM didn’t see as a particularly big item to agree to when negotiating.
This series of deals laid the foundation for Microsoft’s worldwide domination of the software industry . . .
And Gates became one of the richest persons in the world.
The Developer
As a side note, though Bill Gates made history and become an iconic figure, hardly anyone knows the guy who actually developed the original DOS program.
So let me tell you: his name is Tim Paterson, a twenty-two-year-old programmer.
Paterson earned a regular salary from Seattle Computer Products, where he created 86-DOS in four months.
Questions
1. Bill Gate became rich, famous and successful because he was a computer genius. Is this entirely true?
2. Did Bill meet IBM executives in a business suit? Did they take him seriously? What happened?
3. What was the third deal that Bill closed? Were the IBM officials fully aware of the significance of the proposal?
4. How did these deals enable Microsoft to dominate the software industry?
5. Bill invented DOS. Is this correct or wrong? Where did DOS come from?
6. Is there a lesson or moral in this?
A. Is there any irony to the story of Microsoft and Bill Gates? Do you think what happened was “right” or “fair”?
B. Can you think of other similar cases?
C. What should inventors like Tim Paterson or Tim Berners-Lee do?