as told by Annerieke

BOO HOO

2005-10-19T11:19:00.000+02:00

BOO HOO, it sounds like a cry and probably the writer of this book, Ernst Malmsten, choose this title because the end of boo.com was a big cry.

The story of boo.com really give me butterfly's in my stomach. I felt in love with the laid back attitude of doing business and the optimistic minds of the founders book makes starting up your one business a love story, only they create a bad end for them selves. I think the concept of boo wasn't that good, But Ernst and Kajsa believed in their ideas. That was the strong spirit of boo and that is what take them so far. (besides some really stupid investors who were "tricked" by them)
The bankruptcy was their one fault. If they take care of their business with a little more responsibility the company would have survive this bad period. But of al the choices the had to make in the end, they made the wrong ones.

The book gives you a overview about how boo.com become a phenomenon while it even wasn't that successful at al, on financial grounds. But with the help of the media the boo founders create a soapbubble of expectations. These expectations couldn't become reality and that is why the bubble burst.

While reading the book, there were two things I noticed over and over again. It is like the red line in the story that wasn't really positive for the founders.
As further you read in the book you will notice that the founders made the same mistake over and over again. They are always got trouble with their finance and administration. I learned at the university in my home town that this is one of the most important issues doing business, otherwise you can't be answerable to your investors, boardmembers and shareholders. And if you can't make money of your one, your are depending on somebody else his money. In the end boo.com couldn't makes promisses for the futhur because their one finance and administration was a mess.
The other part the founders made a big mistake was at the point of technology. In the first place they didn't want to be a software company, they let a extern company take care of that. But while the doing business, they didn't stay with there feet on the ground. The thought they could do the technology part on their own. A big mistake because they didn't have the skills to do it.

Before I red BOO HOO, I finished the book of Alan Cooper; "the Inmates are running the asylum". Everything Cooper warns for in his book, the founders ok boo.com are doing wrong. The book made by Cooper confuses me sometimes, because I couldn't place it in real life. But with the story of boo.com you will see that Alan Cooper made sense!

AMAZON.STOM

2005-10-11T11:56:00.000+02:00

why amazon.stom instead of amazon.com?
Stom is the dutch word for stupid and at this point I think amazon is stupid. I orderd the book boo.com and untill last week I didn't received anything so I contacted amazon. They told me there was a problem and that they will send me the book as soon as possible. BUT I have to waith 6 or 7 days.
My reaction? SHIT that is after the deadline for blogging about the book.
So that means I have a problem then? Yeah probebly. I'm gonna do my best to get the book on time. If there is anybody who already read it.
CAN I BORROW YOUR BOOK?

"Triumph of the nerds"

2005-09-30T13:00:00.000+02:00

Unwillingly I took place behind my computer last thursday to watch 3 episodes of the set "triumph of the nerds". With the expectations of an out of date set of the rise of the compuer, I began to watch. The first thing that noticed me were the thick glasses every "computer freak" wore. Isn't it a bad stereotye? Of is it the prove ore idea about nerds is right? Anyway, this stereotipical picture of nerds is the begin of a set out of the nineties were the makers wanted to tell the rise of how computers came into our daily lives. This with the enthusiasm of a little kid who found the answer to world domination. But after the three episodes I can say the producer tells the story in their point of view and very pro-Bill Gates. Out of other sources I heard this isn't the complete story of the rise of the computer ore personal computer.

That doesn't mean the information, wich is given to us, is false ore useless for me a a communications student. It is not really the story of the history of the pc that attracts me. It is the socialogical thing that you can place in every incident, in every decenium with what kind of people you want. This story tells us typically how a human being have adapt to the new technology around us. It shows me that there are always some innovaters who wants to impress society with their new "tools". Just like the nerds wanted to improve their friends with the newest "home made" computer stuff. But is is very clearly that these episodes are far behind today's technology. Just like the said on the end of part 3, funny is't is, how things turn out". And you can say, at some parts the were right about their vision of the future

Welcome

2005-09-29T09:58:00.000+02:00

Well here we are, the first message for the communication & technologie course from the Jönköping unviversity were I will run around for the next 4 months. In this weblog you can find my experiences with this course. The bad and good things, the tears and the laughs.
Enjoy!