The Difference Between God and Larry Ellison: Inside Oracle Corporation

Amazon.com

It seems like all of the biggest names in the computer industry are getting the celebrity bio treatment these days. But no corporate CEO deserves it more than Larry Ellison, the charismatic head of Oracle Corp. This isn't your standard, dry, "learn-from-his-example" type of life. It's not that Ellison's life doesn't offer the same lessons in hard-won business success as some of his colleague's, because it certainly does. It's just vastly more entertaining.

In The Difference Between God and Larry Ellison, author Mike Wilson delivers a fascinating and genuinely interesting portrayal of Silicon Valley's most notorious bad boy, constructed from hundreds of interviews with friends, colleagues, and those unfortunate enough to stand in Ellison's way. There are plenty of behind-the-scenes stories of the growth and worldwide success of Oracle, which Ellison founded in 1977. Plus, there's plenty of the good stuff: tales of Ellison's truly fast-lane lifestyle, filled with big boats, beautiful women, and celebrity friends. While this book probably won't transform you into a fan of Ellison's, you will be grateful for a chance to observe him--from a safe distance.

The punchline is "God doesn't think he's Larry Ellison," of course.

Book Description

Larry Ellison started the high-flying tech company Oracle with $1,200 in 1977 and turned it into a billion-dollar Silicon Valley giant. If Bill Gates is the tech world's nerd king, Ellison is its Warren Beatty: racing yachts, buying jets, and romancing beautiful women. His rise to fame and fortune is a tale of entrepreneurial brilliance, ruthless tactics, and a constant stream of half-truths and outright fabrications for which the man and his company are notorious.

Investigative reporter Mike Wilson, with access to Ellison himself and more than 125 of his friends, enemies, and former Oracle employees, has created an eye-opening, utterly fascinating portrayal of a Silicon Valley success story ... filled with the stuff that dreams and cultural icons are made of.

Customer Reviews:

Great Book!.......2005-04-17

I absoultly loved this book. I am currently recieving my MBA, and it gave me a whole new perspective about how busniess can be, how it can suceed, and fail. Also, Ellisons sotry is realy fabulous, and the author does a great job of interviewing many of Ellison's ex-wives, ex-employyes etc. This gives a very realistic viw of Oracle, and how they felt about Ellison. I started ths book this morning, and I simply could not put it down until an hour ago when i finished it. Great Read!

Interesting reading.......2005-03-11

It's a very good book in terms of the history of the computing giants that shaped the world. It kept my attention long enough to dedicate 2 days to reading it cover to cover. As an Oracle programmer, it helped me understand some of the thoughts I had of the company since working with their product since the early 90's.

The author tried the address the book as a novel, skipping around in time and making it difficult to follow. You go from 1977 to 1989 to 1991 to 1984 to 1996 to ... (you get what I mean). Confusing.

This is the type of book that needed to be more linear in timeline or overlapping in timeline, but not arranged the way it was. Still, very enjoyable and worth the read for those that enjoy the behind the scenes action that shaped technology as we know it today.

A candid look at Ellison.......2005-02-14

Okay, so who is this guy Larry Ellison? He's the man behind Oracle, one of the world's largest software companies. Not only is he known for his "battles" with Bill Gates of Microsoft, but also for his personal and professional exploits.

Even though I thoroughly enjoyed this biography, I felt it was lacking something. I'm not sure what exactly, but I walked away feeling Ellison to be some sort of a lone egomaniac, using everyone and everything around him to further grow Oracle - and by extension, him - into even greater success.

Not that there is little biographic value, because there is. His childhood is chronicled, how he left behind his humble beginnings and attained greatness. Had it been any other person, they would perhaps have been forever relegated to a life of poverty, misery, etc. But Ellison overcame that and became a billionaire. So if anything, it is a story of triumph, both in his own life - though admittedly filled with tragedies of divorce, etc. - and in Oracle's.

I would suggest that you read it, but don't make it the sole biography. There are at least a couple of others, one even with commentary by Ellison. Check them out! :)

Sure, Bill Gates is richer, but I'd rather be Larry Ellison!.......2005-01-03

This book was a great read, and it was a blast reading about the great Larry Ellison. Larry Ellison's personality comes out in this book. He is a fun, flamboyant, in-your-face billionaire who knows how to enjoy the money he makes. Big houses, sharp clothes, fast cars, and hot women! Oh, yeah, he also built up a pretty good business.

Larry, you're the man!!

Long, repetetive and incomplete.......2004-08-22

This book could have perfect at 100 pages. Instead the book goes on and on about how bad, delusional, self-centered and lying Larry Ellison is. It also belabores how decadent and immoral are Oracle's marketing and sales people.

The book does not really paint a picture of how Oracle became successful. The time line is blurred, instead, we get repetetive stories ripped out of different periods in Oracle's history.

The explanations of database industry and technology sector overall are weak.

Perhaps if the book was shorter, I would not be as negative, but as it stands at 350 pages, I can not recommend it.

The Difference Between God and Larry Ellison*: Inside Oracle Corporation *God Doesn't Think He's Larry Ellison

Average customer rating:

Great Book!
Interesting reading
A candid look at Ellison
Sure, Bill Gates is richer, but I'd rather be Larry Ellison!
Long, repetetive and incomplete

The Difference Between God and Larry Ellison*: Inside Oracle Corporation *God Doesn't Think He's Larry Ellison
Mike Wilson
Manufacturer: Morrow
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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Customer Reviews:

Great Book!.......2005-04-17

Interesting reading.......2005-03-11

A candid look at Ellison.......2005-02-14

Sure, Bill Gates is richer, but I'd rather be Larry Ellison!.......2005-01-03

Long, repetetive and incomplete.......2004-08-22

Book Description

This 44 page publication covers the volleyball career of one of the most prolific women's beach volleyball tournament winners in the history of the game, the only player to win events in four decades, Linda Robertson Hanley. The book highlights the tournament championships of Linda with her various partners. The publication also includes many

EXCEPTIONAL photo's of Linda as well as many of her partners and competitors!

Product Description

Florence Lawrence's film career began just as the cinema was being born. She recognized the wonder and appeal of the fledgling industry, and her early work with the Vitagraph company gained her a legion of fans and a reputation as a willing and hard working actress. In 1908 she appeared in Romeo and Juliet--America's very first screen Juliet. By 1909, she was working steadily for the Biograph studio--she was dubbed "the Biograph girl"--and was being praised for her "personal attractions" and "very fine dramatic ability." But just as Lawrence was the first movie star in the industry, she was also one of the first to be undone by it. Hindered by setbacks, grueling work schedules, self-imposed retirements, three marriages, repeatedly unsuccessful comeback attempts, Lawrence finally committed suicide in 1938. This impressively researched piece of film history represents the first full-length biography of Florence Lawrence, also called "The Girl of a Thousand Faces." Among the photographs are some never before published. A complete filmography of Lawrence's entire career is provided. A summary chapter includes comments from various critics and historians, addressing how Lawrence is important to film history.

Customer Reviews:

Must Read for Film Buffs.......2005-06-23

This slender volume is fascinating because it finally paints a well-researched picture of the long forgotten Florence Lawrence. I've always been fascinated by her after seeing publicity stills of her from the mid-1900s. She appeared to be warm, charismatic and fascinating. Her greatest tragedy is that none of her films have been shown in eighty years. I have one of her shorts, "Flo's Discipline" which only lasts about twelve minutes but it gives you a hint of how dazzling she was before the cameras. While her cohort, Mary Pickford, went onto a spectacular career that included mind-boggling salaries and a world-famous Hollywood castle, Pickfair, poor Lawrence was living in a small, hotel room, being paid a few dollars a week as an extra at MGM. Her life would make a wonderful movie--and a cautionary tale about the pitfalls of how fleeting fame is, and how fickle is the public when it comes to remaining faithful to the flavor of the month.

Great research on the very first movie star.......2004-10-09

Florence Lawrence was "big" before there were movie stars. She was the original "Biograph Girl" before Mary Pickford was given that name by movie fans. After losing her job at Biograph, she was hired by Carl Laemmle's IMP company (later Universal). As a publicity stunt, Laemmle started a rumor that she was dead. Then she made a personal appearance in St. Louis and was mobbed by fans.

Unfortunately she was pretty much out of work in five years. Poor managemet by her husband Harry, as well as a painful injury forced her into bit parts. She was still acting in very small parts into 1938, when she gave up on life and committed suicide.

Kelly Brown has done an incredible research job. Using Florence's surviving correspondence, as well as trade magazine artices and advertisements, she has reconstructed Florence's life. The book has many footnotes noting sources, and there is a very detailed filmography. Instead of a book full of dry facts, Ms. Brown keeps Florence's story interesting. If you are interested in early cinema, or even important women actresses, you should definitely read this book.

Magnificent, painstakingly researched work.......2001-11-11

Florence Lawrence was an enigma I had always wanted to know about, having been interested in silent films for many years. Information on her was scarce, save for some still photographs in silent movie history books. Kelly Brown really did her homework, in what must have been a difficult task, digging up information about a star whose heyday was almost 90 years ago! Congratulations, Kelly, on a job well done! I can't recommend this book highly enough!

Good, well illustrated biography........2001-10-21

I always enjoy a good biography, especially those of the nearly forgotten silent screen stars. This biography of Florence Lawrence was well researched and had many wonderful photos. The author did a good job with the resources available. Most of the films and people involved in silents are gone now, so the job is doubly difficult. Although pricey, this biography is well worth reading.

A Fine Tribute to Filmdom's Most Unsung Actress.......2000-06-30

A nicely researched and insightful biography of Florence Lawrence, one of the most shadowy yet important figures of early cinema. Many things about Florence's life and career will perhaps always remain vague, but Kelly Brown gives a worthy account of America's "first movie star." It is refreshing to know that Flo is finally getting the recognition she deserves. This book is a must for the true film buff.

Amazon.com

If you thought kitsch was as simple as sweatshirts embossed with sparkling kittens or flamingo snow domes, think again. Celeste Olalquiaga has gone well beyond Webster's definition of "pretentious bad taste," and devotes more than 300 pages to the subject. Her thesis?

Kitsch is the ability to surpass essential belongings and rest in more superficial ones, to create an imaginary landscape through accumulation and camouflage, and to crystallize the continuous movement of life in the permeable disguise of fantasy.

The Ph.D.-wielding Rockefeller and Guggenheim award winner postulates that the Victorian era and the industrial revolution of the late 19th century were the grandparents of kitsch. People stuffed their homes with fantasy-themed tchotchkes to fill the "existential emptiness brought about by rapid industrialization." From "petrified nature" and "melancholia artificialis" to "vegetable jewelry" and "parlor oceans," The Artificial Kingdom covers every historical nuance of tackydom and leaves no postmodern paperweight unturned.

Book Description

The Artificial Kingdom is the first book to provide a cultural history of kitsch, an immensely popular aesthetic phenomenon that has always been disdained as "bad taste," or a cheap imitation of art. Proposing instead that kitsch is the product of a larger sensibility of loss, Celeste Olalquiaga shows how it enables the momentary re-creation of experiences that exist only as memories or fantasies. Simultaneously exposing and celebrating this process, Olalquiaga gives us a bold, trenchant analysis of what and how we see when we look at kitsch.

Tracing its beginnings to the nineteenth century--when industrialization transformed nature into an artificial kingdom of miniature scale--Olalquiaga describes the at once exhilarated and melancholic atmosphere where kitsch came to life. In an arresting mix of theory and anecdote, she examines objects from both the past and the present, probing the fluid boundaries between reality and fantasy, and finding in kitsch a phenomenon as relevant to our own time as it was to the era that made it a massive experience.

Customer Reviews:

Mesmerizing.......2003-11-23

I don't find this book derivative of Benjamin so much as openly drawing on him. Olalquiaga doesn't ape his work on kitsch - she applies it intelligently to her own research. Artificial Kingdom struck a deep chord with me. I concede that it is not the most rigorous examination of the kitsch experience possible, and some chapters are separated by intermissions of glazed ruminations that haunt the analysis and reverberate beneath it with personal conviction. But this is what I appreciate most about the book. You could do worse than recall in your reader Bachelard's reveries on the poetics of space. Olalquiaga's passage describing Rodney's marine home crystallizing around him into a glassy temporal suspension is as beautiful as anything by the sources from which she appears to draw her models.

Excessive Rodney.......2002-08-03

At times silly in the worst academico-critical way (the Nautilius in Vernes' Leagues is 'uterine'), and rather derivative of Walter Benjamin. However, charming, good fun, but check out Svetlana Boym's (lopsided) 'The Future of Nostalgia' along with it, if you get a chance.

The Artificial Kingdom: A Treasury of the Kitsch Experience.......2000-10-04

This is the most original work of non-fiction I have ever read. The author is able to write at great length about very unpromising subjects--such as snow-globes or the emotional significance of dust--with a sort of piercing intelligence that allows her to uncover beauty and meaning where others might see only bad art. Although frequently humorous, the book never ridicules kitsch; rather it discusses deep-seated human needs, and then shows how kitsch is an attempt to satisfy them. I read this book over a year ago, and I still find it to be a source of inspiration.

cultural history and philosophy collide.......1999-09-06

This brief, souvenir-inspired history of kitsch is also an ornate, brooding meditation on memory. In "trading the life of the memory for its cultural fossil," Olalquiaga reveals the origins of Atlantis in popular culture, of snow globes (the earliest said to feature Marie Antoinette with parasol), of aquaria and their folly-like porcelain castles, and notes that both Colette and Eva Peron amassed large collections of glass paperweights. Relating her feelings about a failed love affair and the redemptive qualities of Rodney, a hermit crab trapped inside her favorite paperweight, the writer transcends her anonymous epigram, "Styles die, only kitsch survives."

The Artificial Kingdom: On the Kitsch Experience

Average customer rating:

kitch, art, and celeste olalquiaga
I never got the book

The Artificial Kingdom: On the Kitsch Experience
Celeste Olalquiaga
Manufacturer: University of Minnesota Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 081664117X

Book Description

From her pet glass-globed hermit crab Rodney to the Victorian era's Crystal Palace, Celeste Olalquiaga offers a meditative look at the origins of kitsch and what kitsch tells us about the conflicts between the real and the artificial, tradition and modernity, nostalgia and melancholy. Olalquiaga artfully traces this form to the mid-1800s and establishes kitsch as a sensibility of loss-a yearning for objects to help recapture the past-and explains how these artifacts respond to a deep-seated human need for meaning and connection with nature. The Artificial Kingdom beautifully elucidates this aspect of culture as an attempt to recover what industrialization has destroyed.

"Ingenious, fascinating, and melancholic." Peter Woolen, London Review of Books

"Olalquiaga finds an explanation of the modern-age question: why the subject of an artwork can seem more alive in representation than in life." New York Times Book Review

"Stunning. A potent, incantatory exploration into the emotional resonance of kitsch." Art Papers

Celeste Olalquiaga is an independent scholar who has received Rockefeller and Guggenheim awards. She is the author of Megalopolis: Contemporary Cultural Sensibilities (Minnesota, 1992). She lives in Paris.

Customer Reviews:

kitch, art, and celeste olalquiaga.......2006-05-04

I think this book is a must read for anyone making objects or conceptual art. It has insight into the ideas of kitsch and the experience of the object. I find it hard to make sculpture without refering to some of the ideas celeste inplies.

I never got the book.......2005-10-19

HELP!

I went to the post office for an investogation, because your records show delivered, but I never got this book!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Artificial Kingdom - A Treasury of the Kitsch Experience

Average customer rating:

The Artificial Kingdom - A Treasury of the Kitsch Experience
Celeste Olalquiaga
Manufacturer: Bloomsbury, London
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000VZTVD6

Customer Reviews:

Applied compendium of best practices.......2007-01-23

When you search the web and most of the books around, you can find solution to your problems most of the time, but you are rarely sure it was the best way to do it and how it would fit to the rest of your code. The authors of this book are not afraid to tell what they suppose to be the best for you, along with full featured versions of code illustrating each chapter.

I found it easy to take the code from a sufficiently leveled chapter and adapt it to get just the application that I needed, knowing it would be fast, clean and complete at the same time, although I didn't understand all the details at first. Now, the book serves as a widely findable documentation for the packages that I make. Highly recommendable.

A great how-to book for serious Excel users.......2007-01-17

When picking up this book, I was an advanced Excel user. Having discovered most of its features by trial-and-error, and coming from a fairly solid programming background, I understood well the interaction between the underlying object model and the sheets appearing on the screen to end users. I have also crafted many sophisticated worksheet formulas, and explored just about every suggestion of literature such as "Excel Hacks" and "Advanced Excel Report Development".

Professional Excel Development offers ideas and tools necessary for designing full-fledged, robust Excel-based applications. It does not spend time explaining how various features work, but rather goes into detail on how to put these features to best use.

Here is what I picked up from this book, together with the authors' Excel 2003 VBA reference:
* ways to leverage Excel's built-in features to avoid excessive coding
* advanced design techniques for using Excel as a WYSIWYG interface designer
* techniques for creating custom menu bars and programming their behavior
* various means of interacting with the user and simplifying their sessions by providing guidance as to which steps need to be taken
* restricting the Excel environment to take on the appearance of a product condusive of the goal stated in previous bullet
* using VBA in conjunction with the Excel object model to create powerful object-oriented structures for spreadsheet-based applications
* programming Excel-based solutions in an executable to provide a more standalone application
* using Windows API calls to increase robustness of the application

One key feature of this book is its consistent approach. The authors maintain a consistent structure, using the same application throughout the book for their "practical example" to demonstrate new features made available through the material in each chapter. Also, the "best practices" approach provides a level of consistency that is generally desired of anywhat sophisticated applications. Useable modules are provided on the accompanying CD, ready to be used in readers' own applications.

In the beginning, the authors explain the audiences for which this book may or may not be intended. They separate these into users, power users, VBA developers, Excel developers, and professional developers. The latter three categories of users will benefit the most from this book, each in his/her own way. VBA developers will learn how to use built-in features (I think this is where I started); Excel developers will learn how to incorporate Excel-based solutions into larger applications; Professional developers will be exposed to a great variety of "best practices", optimization techniques, and various other means for developing consistency in Excel applications.

If you do not fall into the latter three categories, you might not pick up much from this book. It is not useless to you, however; you can still find many worksheet/userform design techniques, and get an introduction to the kind of power VBA-based programming can offer. Nonetheless, you may be well-advised to start off with something simpler, such as John Walkenbach's Excel Power Programming (as alluded to by the authors of this book), simply because the present book assumes a good degree of knowledge and leaves much for the reader to figure out from the fully-functional examples provided - thereby covering the ground that it does.

Overall, this book makes for a wonderful reference to the various under-the-hood features of Excel. Even if you've already encountered many of the techniques described, and could technically discover them further on your own, it is useful to have them readily available in a single collection. Very few items are left out; application design, object-oriented programming techniques, database applications, debugging techniques, Office automation, and external interop are all covered here. Professional Excel Development is a solid reference to be consulted for years to come.

Not a book for lBeginners.......2007-01-08

This is a great book for power programmers. But be aware, this book is not for those who want to learn Excel. It's just for those who know Excel and want to imrove their programming capabilities.

Very Good not for novice VBA programmers.......2006-11-04

Buy this book because you want to be able to use VBA to help you at work. I wrote a program to automatically generate and send reports via email - about 500 of them - and my boss was in awe.

You CAN develop VBA custome applications where the user can't see the underlying MS Office application, i.e., Excel for example. They use your program like any stand-alone application. COOL!!!

Excellent Tool for Programmers !.......2006-11-03

In spite of being an advanced book, difficult concepts are explained clearly and in a very simple way.

You can find a lot of advices on best practices throughout the book as well as very powerful techniques that are really useful while you develop your applications.

For an advanced VBA programmer, this book is a must.

Professional Excel Development The Definitive Guide to Developing Applications Using Microsoft Excel and VBA

Average customer rating:

Professional Excel Development The Definitive Guide to Developing Applications Using Microsoft Excel and VBA
Stephen Bovey, Rob Green, John Bullen
Manufacturer: Addison-Wesley Professional
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OUFWQI

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