So many conferences focus on what is ahead - usually in five year time horizons. Being its fifth, this conference spent some time looking backward. There was even a photo shoot for the five year veterans. Noticeably absent was Garry Betty. EarthLink's former CEO didn't make it this year. He passed away in January from cancer. Kara Swisher and Walt Mossberg were very gracious to take a few minutes to honor his memory.
I must also commend Walt for beginning the conference with a moment of silence in memory of our armed services members who have lost their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan.
A clear high point of the conference was a rare joint appearance by Bill Gates and Steve Jobs or should it be Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. The anticipation was palpable as audience members filed into the conference hall - unsure what to expect. Earlier in the day, Jobs had jokingly referred to the Mac as a glass of cold water for those living in Hell. Here on stage would be two of the industry's greatest luminaries. Would the two Titans clash or remain cordial?
The Wednesday evening event began with video clips from previous joint appearances over the years - a reminder of how 20 years can change us all.
The showdown itself struck me as a touch ironic. So often these days we celebrate and fixate on the rise of the citizen journalist, the end of the expert, and the impact of user generated content, but apparently star power still matters.
Walking around the conference before the main event, they were both unassuming just like any other attendee. On the stage, Gates and Jobs commanded your attention. This match-up however would not be a slugfest. Common ground replaced rivalries. Cordial and respectful, they reminisced, praised and focused on shared stories.
So much of our industry is about the guts of the machine. But it is the human stories, personalities, challenges faced and obstacles overcome that are its soul.
There was no greater reminder of the importance of storytelling than George Lucas who had spoken prior to dinner. No stranger to epics, Lucas has successfully and rather remarkably bridged the worlds of art, entertainment and technology.
Toward the latter part of the interview, Jobs and Gates were asked to speculate on the future of the PC five years from now. Not surprisingly, Jobs was more reluctant to commit. They both felt the PC would persist even as an explosion of post PC devices continued. Cameras would be ubiquitous, and entertainment and communications would continue to commingle -- only more so.
Looking around the room, I wondered if we would witness a similar showdown with two new competitors in another twenty years.
Such speculation is amusing and, for those who can correctly guess their names, very lucrative. But for me, that night was not about predictions. It was about human side of our business. Putting aside the hype, the story of our industry in fact does come down to technology -- the consumers who use it, the visionaries who create it, and from my perspective the scribes who chronicle it.
Let me get back to you