

A Bill Gates Comeback? - nate
http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2011/12/08/bill-gates-comeback/

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jordan0day
To echo what some others have already said, I don't see how coming back to
Microsoft could be more personally satisfying for Gates than what he's doing
now. Sure, it would probably feel pretty nice if he could right the ship and
get lauded in the same way Jobs has been as of late.

Let's be honest though: the stuff Gates is doing today is _way more important_
than any of the things Jobs did over the last decade. We can argue about the
relative merits of disrupting the cell phone handset industry and tablet
computing, long-tail effects thereof and the like, but at the end of the day
the best you can argue is that it will have trickle-down effects for the poor
and disadvantaged.

Gates, on the other hand, is working on goals to _directly_ improve the lives
of people. And the people his foundation is trying to help tends to be the
folks who _need help the most_ , not people who can afford expensive mobile
phones and even more expensive mobile phone rate plans. Gates is no saint by
any means, but I can't see how after working on such big-picture issues, he'd
want to come back and run a _business_.

~~~
zerostar07
Not to mention, it would probably be a big loss for his foundation. He didn't
just pour in the money for it, he engages fiercely with governments and
organizations for specific measurable goals with just as much passion as
business. Philanthropy may not sound exciting to techies, but at the scale
he's doing it (his ambition is to reduce the global death toll from diseases
by 80%) it must be pretty challenging.

And another thing: Gates led microsoft in its two most exciting eras (the PC
and the Internet). Both of these sectors have now been commoditized, leaving
little space for revolution (tablets? meh).

[http://www.forbes.com/sites/matthewherper/2011/11/02/the-
sec...](http://www.forbes.com/sites/matthewherper/2011/11/02/the-second-
coming-of-bill-gates/)

~~~
keeperofdakeys
What do you mean little space for revolution? I bet no one thought the PC,
Internet or tablet markets would take off long before the fact. It is called a
revolution exactly because it is unexpected.

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jphackworth
_One prominent chief executive told Fortune he'd heard from someone close to
Gates that he might be considering such a move._

It's hard to imagine a less reliable source. And that sentence is the only
real news in the article!

~~~
JanezStupar
That's a news speak for "Balmer said that Gates told him" but he wouldn't be
cited on the record.

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herval
How did u conclude that?

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JanezStupar
Obviously this is mere speculation.

But this is a device often used in media, when somebody would like to release
some information, but would obviously loose face doing so in person.

Whenever you read/hear that "sources close to X said...", It usually means
that X said it, but would not be cited on the record. It's all about plausible
denial and controlling one's image.

The device can be used to prepare public for some unpopular shift of policy,
to test the reaction of people to information or just to prepare ground for
some change.

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rajat
Without any source whatsoever other than what I can dream up (which is better
than some unnamed chief executive), I think this is bullshit. Bill Gates is
now looking at building a reputation worthy of Mother Teresa PLUS Andrew
Carnegie; why does he need to be CEO of Microsoft again.

Maybe if the stock price was going to completely tank, which would affect his
foundation, he would consider coming back. But the stock shouldn't do that;
the company is still remarkably profitable.

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andrewheins
Somehow,

"Bill, would you consider returning to lead Microsoft?"

"No."

Became a 1000 word article. Amazing.

The "HN Dream" has always seemed to be:

1) Make a startup

2) Strike it rich

3) Acquire millions (billions? I forget which is "cool")

4) With [bm]illions, change the world

Gates personifies that. Why on Earth would he backtrack to step 1 again?

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kalid
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betteridges_Law_of_Headlines>

"Any headline which ends in a question mark can be answered by the word 'no'".

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kylemaxwell
You know, in the 90s and early part of the last decade, I felt way too bitter
about Bill Gates. I didn't like Microsoft's business practices and I certainly
didn't like their software. Being young and full of piss & vinegar, I seethed
with rage.

Now I'm older and Bill Gates has become one of the public figures I most
respect. He's changing the world in ways that matter far more than Steve Jobs
or Michael Dell ever did. Schultz and the rest should be jealous of _him_.

This a man who talks seriously and realistically about eliminating malaria.
How does selling more or better enterprise software begin to compare with
getting up in the morning and knowing that what you do that day will give
thousands of children a chance at life?

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TheFuture
Rather see Gates start a nuclear energy company, with radical new designs that
focus on safety, widely distributed, low cost, zero emissions.

He's invested in such companies, but I'd love to see him really push it as
CEO. He's done/doing great philanthropic work in the 3rd world. Cheap, clean,
and available electrical power would do wonders for poor countries. 1MW
nuclear reactor in a shipping container, runs for 30 years with no
maintenance, no harmful radioactive waste? It could happen if we stop chasing
foolish "green" energy windmills and solar panels.

~~~
cryptoz
I agreed with you right up to the last sentence.

> It could happen if we stop chasing foolish "green" energy windmills and
> solar panels.

What? How are the two things even related at all? How are solar panels
foolish? Why put "green" in quotes?

The reason that nuclear power isn't getting the attention it deserves is not
that other 'alternative energy' projects get the attention. It's much more
that governments and corporations are locked in to dirty energy and are having
a tough time getting out.

Don't blame nuclear's current failures on solar panels.

~~~
redthrowaway
I would argue that ethanol subsidies are currently a barrier to wiser energy
policies, however.

~~~
TheFuture
Ethanol subsidies are terrible. We need to stop holding presidential primaries
in Iowa.

~~~
redthrowaway
Or just randomize the order you hold them in.

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andyl
Gates' recent initiatives in energy, education and health are interesting. We
need more leaders who can envision and execute projects that will make a
positive impact.

The software industry doesn't need fixing - I hope Gates continues to focus
his energy in these other areas.

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MatthewPhillips
Eh. Microsoft might not be as dominant in the post-Gates era, but their
products are more user-friendly without his narrow focus, their developer
relations are more cordial, their platform choices are more standards-
conscious.

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philwelch
I think the first thing journalists need to realize is that people like Gates,
Jobs, and Page don't care about short-term effects on stock price. The only
reason you'd care about that is if you were in a pump-and-dump.

Microsoft may not be "cool" anymore, but it's the biggest and most profitable
enterprise software company and it's a business that will last. What more
would Gates want?

~~~
eitally
Besides that, I would be surprised if he didn't enjoy philanthropy
substantially more than running a software company.

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grannyg00se
I couldn't imagine anything more depressing for Gates. I believe he has moved
on and found something more rewarding to do with his time.

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dlapiduz
He should run for President instead.

~~~
maeon3
What do you expect Bill Gates to do as president? Convince Congress to fix
healthcare with a brilliant solution he came up with? It would get crushed
because it does not preserve the power of and bribe the powers that be.

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OoTheNigerian
_One prominent chief executive told Fortune he'd heard from someone close to
Gates that he might be considering such a move._

And that is what this story was build on? A hear-hear-say?

Wow.

