Anyone who was around for the last Dot-Com Flame Out (affectionately called DOT-BOMBS) remembers how that scam went. Valuations were mostly based on revenue growth (it was the new-new economy but old-old venture money). Groups of Dot-Coms started “trading services,” many in the form of advertising, to make the numbers exceed what the old economy investors wanted. Yes, a token few pointed out these companies weren’t actually making any money, but the hysteria over exponential … Dot-Com Flame Out 2.0Read more
Posted inInformation Technology
The ST506 Tale
I have been saving this brittle, yellow, tractor feed sheet of paper for a very long time. It was printed with a dot matrix printer back when dot matrix ruled the land. I saved it because it was a shining example of the writing quality we used to have during the time of RelayNet, FidoNet and Echomail. I’m posting it now so it might one day be picked up by the Internet Archive project and … The ST506 TaleRead more
Posted inInvesting
Will the Last One to Leave eBay Please Turn Out the Lights?
I have bought a lot of stuff on eBay over the years. I even bought a Jeep on there and had it shipped from New Hampshire. The site used to be known as “America’s Garage Sale” but lately it has devolved into “just another shopping mall.” Heck, I’ve even bid on keyboards I thought were being sold by individuals only to find out they were from Newegg.com. My New Years resolution was to finally clean … Will the Last One to Leave eBay Please Turn Out the Lights?Read more
Posted inInformation Technology / Thank You Sir May I Have Another
The Problem With Thumb Drives
I’m writing this while formatting floppies. No, this isn’t something I wrote in the 80s and reposted. It’s January and time to put a bunch of stuff which has been accumulating in my office up for sale. Most will probably end up on eBay. The stuff I don’t want to ship will either go straight to recycling or I will have to finally take a look at Craig’s List. I imagine some of the really … The Problem With Thumb DrivesRead more
Posted inInvesting
McDonalds Problem is Not the Menu
There has been a lot of chatter about the financial situation at McDonalds (MCD) lately. All kind of chatter about revamping the menu, loss of market share, allowing more local store independence, etc. All of it is wrong. All of it is focused on the typical MBA thought process of “How can we change nothing and start making money again?” This process never works. It is based on the luck of some temporary downturn which … McDonalds Problem is Not the MenuRead more