“For high school graduation in Finland, you wear a fluffy white hat with a black band. There's a ceremony in which they hand out diplomas, and when you come home all your relatives are there with lots of champagne, flowers, and cake. And there's also a party for the entire class at a local restaurant. We did all that, and I guess I had fun, but I don't remember anything special about it. But ask me about the specs on my 68008-chip machine and I can rattle them off with total recall.”
― Just for Fun: The Story of an Accidental Revolutionary
― Just for Fun: The Story of an Accidental Revolutionary
“Every runner knows this. You run and run, mile after mile, and you never quite know why. You tell yourself that you’re running toward some goal, chasing some rush, but really you run because the alternative, stopping, scares you to death.”
― Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
― Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
“An ugly system is one in which there are special interfaces for everything you want to do. Unix is the opposite. It gives you the building blocks that are sufficient for doing everything. That's what having a clean design is all about.”
― Just for Fun: The Story of an Accidental Revolutionary
― Just for Fun: The Story of an Accidental Revolutionary
“I did learn fairly early that the best and most effective way to lead is by letting people do things because they want to do them, not because you want them to. The best leaders also know when they are wrong, and are capable of pulling themselves out. And the best leaders enable others to make decisions for them.
Let me rephrase that. Much ofLinux's success can be attributed to my own personality flaws: 1) I'm lazy; and 2) I like to get credit for the work of others.”
― Just for Fun: The Story of an Accidental Revolutionary
Let me rephrase that. Much ofLinux's success can be attributed to my own personality flaws: 1) I'm lazy; and 2) I like to get credit for the work of others.”
― Just for Fun: The Story of an Accidental Revolutionary
“It seems wrong to call it “business.” It seems wrong to throw all those hectic days and sleepless nights, all those magnificent triumphs and desperate struggles, under that bland, generic banner: business. What we were doing felt like so much more. Each new day brought fifty new problems, fifty tough decisions that needed to be made, right now, and we were always acutely aware that one rash move, one wrong decision could be the end. The margin for error was forever getting narrower, while the stakes were forever creeping higher.”
― Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
― Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
Alan’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Alan’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
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