In a recent New Media class I had with Dr. Strangelove, the creator of Microsoft and billionaire Bill Gates was discussed. I haven’t ever really been taught or studied Bill Gates, other than to know him as the inventor of Microsoft which changed computer technologies all over the world and as being one of the richest mans in the world. After reading over his biography, I learned that he was on the ”Forbes 400″ from 1993-2007, and when his wealth surpassed a certain point, the media labelled him as a “centibillionaire.” And all of this, mostly because of his creation against the information appliance (the typewriter.) Dr. Strangelove comments that Microsoft is “first in making a reoccurring pattern network device, generative platform that generates culture connections.” It’s shocking to think that this all started to develop in the early 1980′s. Although it is possible that someone like Bill Gates could have come up with a similar concept such as Microsoft, it’s interesting to wonder what our society would be like if he hadn’t been around.
