Synopses & Reviews
One of the most important elements in the computer revolution has been agreement on technological standards. The advances in communication allowed by millions of computers connecting over various networks are based on these networks sharing a common language. This book tells the complete story of the battle between several competing technologies in the late 1970s and early 1980s to become the compatibility standard in one high-tech arena, the LAN (local area network) industry.
In the end, a single technology succeeded in dominating the entire industry: Ethernet. The author argues that Ethernet triumphed not because it was better or cheaper, but because of a clever strategy by Ethernets corporate sponsors. This strategy mandated the building of a large supplier base around the technology in order to compensate for an inability to produce all required components and devices. Within a few years, Ethernet had greatly surpassed its competitors in gaining suppliers, which included specialized start-ups, semiconductor firms, and established computer manufacturers. This supplier advantage proved an invaluable strategic asset. As suppliers developed various price and product advantages that were easily adopted by Ethernet, its competitors were driven out of the market.
Key to understanding the importance of a supplier base in the race for standards is the crucial role of a technological community. The book demonstrates how technological communities account not only for critical differences in the standardization strategies of various LAN vendors, but also for the emergence of other important instances of technological competition. For example, the recent rise of Linux and Java can be seen as the result of successful community-driven strategies.
The story of the battle for the LAN standard is also a story of the Internet more broadly, and so the book offers unique insights into its dazzling growth, as LANs became important corporate on-ramps to the Internet and several LAN suppliers (such as 3Com) evolved into leading suppliers of Internet technology.
Review
"An important and defining look at the early days of local area networking. Von
Burg has captured the interplay of science, people, money, and luck that defines
the high-stakes technology business."
-Jim Swartz, founder, Accel Partners
Review
"Superb. . . . A solid and thoroughly researched study of a major segment of the global high-technology economy. Von Burg's theory of 'technological communities' is an important contribution."
-Richard Florida, Carnegie Mellon University
Review
"A vivid picture of a turbulent time. Von Burg objectively describes the technical, financial, and personal battles involved, and he puts the issues into a larger context that will be useful for making sense of today's technological developments."
Maris Graube, founder and ex-chair, IEEE 802.
Review
"This was a fascinating read."Knowledge, Technology and Policy
Synopsis
One of the most important elements in the computer revolution is agreement on technological standards. The advances in communication by millions of computers connecting over networks are based on these networks sharing a language. This tells the story of the battle between competing technologies in the 1970s and 1980s to become the compatibility standard in one high-tech arena, LAN (local area network). One technology succeeded in dominating: Ethernet. Ethernet triumphed because of a strategy which mandated the building of a supplier base around the technology.
Synopsis
“An important and defining look at the early days of local area networking. Von
Burg has captured the interplay of science, people, money, and luck that defines
the high-stakes technology business.”
-—Jim Swartz, founder, Accel Partners
“Few people are aware of the intense battles that resulted in today's networking standards. Urs von Burg's engaging history of this tumultuous period, with its analysis of the technological ecosystems and marketing economics involved, contains valuable lessons for anyone interested in capturing a dominant market share for an innovation.”
-—Dr. Harry J. Saal, former chairman, Network General
Synopsis
A study of technologies competing in the 1970s and 1980s to become the compatibility standard.
Synopsis
One of the most important elements in the computer revolution has been agreement on technological standards. This book tells the complete story of the battle between several competing technologies in the late 1970s and early 1980s to become the compatibility standard in one high-tech arena, the LAN (local area network) industry.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. [263]-287) and index.
About the Author
Urs von Burg, formerly venture capital business analyst with Aureus Private Equity AG (now Invision), is a senior consultant at The McKenna Group.
Table of Contents
List of tables and figures; Preface; Acknowledgments; List of abbreviations; Introduction; 1. Technological communities and open standards; 2. The invention of the LAN; 3. Pioneers: the beginning of commercialization; 4. The standardization of LAN technology; 5. The formation of the ethernet community; 6. The rise and fall of ethernet's proprietary competitors; 7. The battle between ethernet and token ring; 8. Implications; Appendices; Notes; References; Index.