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Biography & Autobiography. Business. Nonfiction. HTML:By his early thirties, Paul Allen was a world-famous billionaire-and that was just the beginning. In 2007 and 2008, Time named Paul Allen, the cofounder of Microsoft, one of the hundred most influential people in the world. Since he made his fortune, his impact has been felt in science, technology, business, medicine, sports, music, and philanthropy. His passion, curiosity, and intellectual rigor-combined with the resources to launch and support new initiatives-have literally changed the world. In 2009 Allen discovered that he had lymphoma, lending urgency to his desire to share his story for the first time. In this long-awaited memoir, Allen explains how he has solved problems, what he's learned from his many endeavors-both the triumphs and the failures-and his compelling vision for the future. He reflects candidly on an extraordinary life. The book also features previously untold stories about everything from the true origins of Microsoft to Allen's role in the dawn of private space travel (with SpaceShipOne) and in discoveries at the frontiers of brain science. With honesty, humor, and insight, Allen tells the story of a life of ideas made real.… (more)
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I supposed he wouldn't have been able to accomplish so much if he'd have to dilute his energy with a wife and family but I still can't help wishing those things for him.
How odd that I read this right after Steven's Pinker's 'the Language Instinct.' And I admit I'm fascinated with the problem of indexing and cataloging knowledge. It seems to me that if some one would use Pinker's logic to come up with an object oriented intelligence system that could be used to index the (unfathomable and undigestable) tsunami of information currently at our fingertips.
In 2007 and 2008, Time named Paul Allen, the cofounder of Microsoft, one of the hundred most influential people in the world. Since he made his fortune, his impact has been felt in science, technology,
In 2009 Allen discovered that he had lymphoma, lending urgency to his desire to share his story for the first time. In this long-awaited memoir, Allen explains how he has solved problems, what he's learned from his many endeavors-both the triumphs and the failures-and his compelling vision for the future. He reflects candidly on an extraordinary life.
The book also features previously untold stories about everything from the true origins of Microsoft to Allen's role in the dawn of private space travel (with SpaceShipOne) and in discoveries at the frontiers of brain science. With honesty, humor, and insight, Allen tells the story of a life of ideas made real.
I liked his candor...he paints Bill Gates fairly as a conqueror, regardless of the cost, but also acknowledges that there is still a friendship after the hurt. Steve Jobs is treated almost as an afterthought. And then the fun starts. I was almost put off by the title, because after Microsoft, what was there in the way of ideas? Well... quite a lot. Allen has vision to spare and he puts his not inconsiderable money in support of those visions, even at losses unimaginable to pretty much all of us, but he persists.
So, I've read Isaacson's bio of the miserable excuse for a human that was Jobs; Woz's autobio (which was as equally low key as Allen's); and this. I suppose something from Gates is next.