at the urging of the family of the two men who were killed, he was able to pay the families "x" amount of money. apparently in the millions because he's from a very, very wealthy family. and as a consequence of that, he will serve his sentence, my recollection is, i just read it -- i think it was two years home confinement, home confinement and a $600,000 condominium in ..so justice in that? and there is something to be said, i suppose, for weighing the benefits that would accrue to the family, all this money they would be getting, but it ticked me off. [laughter] >> wow! >> it's a good issue and, unfortunately, we don't have any time to discuss it because we have -- i will invite you -- invite you all to have the --

buy the tribune and read the story. it's an incredible pleasure to read a book and then meet the main characters and the authors at the same time. you will have i hope the reverse experience of having met the main characters and you can buy this book. there's going to be a signing right after this. just probably down the hallway here and you can say hello to jovan and to laura and to get to meet them. thank you all for coming to this. [applause] >> i think you'll find there's a lot of -- a lot of detail and information in this book that we could not possibly get to today. the story is

former washington post reporter and senior contributing editor at having to post. this event was hosted by the computer history museum in non you, california. it's a low over an hour. hi. how is it going to back ice should begin by saying that sometimes we can't really trust the media.

[laughter] and i am saying this as somebody who comes from the media. we tend to a kind of oversimplify, sensationalized. i think we care more about -- we care more about, kind of conflict and less about depth and context. i'm saying this because judging by 60 minutes, vanity fair, some reviews, you would think that your book is like something out of the social network, the 1980's of something. it is a bill gates purses' paul allen's love fest. so what the bidder billionaire. so i'm reading this stuff. then i finally actually meet. this idea that i think in the book you read critically about

yourself and what you done. just as quickly as you have written about the future of microsoft or the relationship with bill gates. that was really interesting. that is wrong wanted to start off. you have been a ubiquitous. the past two months now. i am just curious, what has surprised you the most about how people have reacted to the book? what has been your biggest surprise? >> well, i think there have been a number of things. i think in my life i have been fortunate enough to be involved with so many different things. obviously my involvement with microsoft will always be the signature achievements. although i have high hopes for what they're doing now. let's talk about that later. >> definitely. >> involved in so many different things. if anybody tries to pigeonhole me into one area, i think the

struggle to do that. >> and you have said this in the book and in interviews. writing this book was of the hardest things you've ever done. what he said that? >> well, have been thinking about doing a book for years. i get very, very ill. during that time i just decided that, you know, now was the time to do the book because i was sure would be around to see it published. i would get up every day feeling very fatigued. chemotherapy. i would work on the book. then after the first drafts were finished, then my, you know, old heritages' as a programmer can back to the fore and i would meticulously go through and added and changed and rephrase. technical details. you try to make them digestible for the lay public but it gives

them a sense, give everybody a sense of what it was like. and i hope i did that, but i went through every word in the book eight times, and i don't need to read it again. [laughter] >> and in terms of -- was it hard? a lot of people, i think, have made the mistake of saying that you have been reckless. there is a difference. has it been hard being so public about some of the stuff? some of the stuff that you write in the book -- and, of course, i'm talking about the in the tips concerning bill gates, just down right, i'm waiting for the hollywood version of how this is going to play out. is it tough to do that so publicly? >> well, when you write an autobiography like this you are faced with the choice of a are you are going to tell it as you experienced it with the highs and lows of important parts of your life? i just chose to do that in the

very unvarnished way. i thought that was what it deserved and people deserved to year. you know, i feel like, you know, i made some signatures successes and some things that didn't work out as well, but, hey, technology and other things that happens, not everything -- you are going to bat a thousand in anything. but the reclusive thing, i don't understand. >> throw parties. all this stuff. you're not -- >> no. to me reclusive is staying in your house. i have tons of france. you know, i am not shaken people's hands and sports events. travel the world. i don't know. i don't know. i joked last week. i was going to send data to read saying better reclusive billionaire head to las vegas to

reenact the life of howard hughes. [laughter] but i don't even like was vegas. [laughter] >> you didn't tweet that? have to pay debts to funny. >> maybe next week. >> dead. of all you. what do you make of the people, for microsoft employees. >> which was? >> i don't think they're in the audience. some of them are surprised. why is he speaking out now? and why is he acting like, you know, what is the point that? what is the point of airing out dirty laundry like that? >> well, a key moment in my life and i decided your a founder of the company and you decide to leave. the way that it happened at that time was, you know, stung. it was important to tell that

because it was a signature moment in my life. giving people an idea of the trajectory which went from a hugely productive and innovative and find partnership to the end. so i went on to, you know, do many other things since then, but that was definitely an important chapter in my life. >> it definitely. reads like anybody who has read the book, it reads like a book in which somebody had nothing to lose. you just kind of wrote it all out, and i think in many ways that is what you have done. >> again, i wrote a lot of it, you know, in those moments where i was thinking, i have to get this down and tell it like it was and hopefully people will get something out of it. >> did you hear anybody, like steve, the current ceo, did they get kind of look, hey, this is

coming, just so you know. >> oh, yeah. sure. >> what do they say? >> i have yet to talk to bill about the book. >> i read that. >> i expect the very intense discussion with bill. steve i talk to, and he basically says, hey, you know, the book portrays the paul i know and the evidence be recounted that happened. >> no one has challenged and the facts in the book. >> no. no one has gone on record. >> well, can we take it? we can just take it. >> what channel is that going to go on? wwf? and getting. i'm getting. >> loud. >> this is good. this is good. >> not to get all bill gates about this. let me ask you this question to reid can you take us back to that moment.

you were in tenth grade. eighth grade. lakeside school north seattle. what was it like? i mean, why did you think? was the thing you thought? this guy is interesting. >> well, you know, there are some pictures of bill and i together slaving over a hot day. i think there are some examples downstairs in the museum. >> yes, yes, there are. >> not hot. that could probably be fixed i assume. and i just remember bill used to where saddle shoes. anyway, sweaters. he walks and very gangly young man. after a few weeks after an hour high-school. there were just a few of us that were almost all going our way to get time on the terminal.

there were a few. at the end of the month there would post up the kind of a or a finalist of how much money you had run up. bill and i were always up there at the top. you think, how do i explain $68 on the time share? so that was always anxiety provoking. >> how about the day when you saw the article in popular mechanics, 1974. >> popular electronics. >> the site. actually, that magazine, check out the revolutionaries of it. this museum is basically the first two dozen years of computing. that museum has blown up. we will was the feeling like when you saw the magazine? >> right. it was a feeling of vindication. i had been telling bill for a long time, we should be doing a basic interpreter, basic

language interpreter for microprocessor chip. first we actually build a machine based on the 8,000 microprocessor chips, a failed company that processed data produced by traffic reporters. these rubber hoses on the streets that would punch out 16 channels to. this audience, and can be technical. >> everybody understand? >> okay. >> technical jargon is okay? all right. so anyway, to build the machine i remember one day bill and i went down and bought this 8,008. i was convinced that you could build, we could basically build our own minicomputer with microprocessor chip to be found a guy to do the engineering. so it came wrapped. it was stuck in this piece of inflated plastic and wrapped in foil.

cost $360. wow. this is a whole processor. it is sense longer something. so that is how we got our start. relearned all about microprocessors than. we should do basics. it's too slow. it only has the seven levels back. come on. it's going to be unusable. in the a.d. 80 came out. c'mon. it's a but we don't know anybody back in boston to build another computer. let's wait until somebody produces a computer. then i went down to harvard square. i points down by $0.75 and ran back and show them. >> the first and pages of that article, the era of the computer in every home has arrived. that was the very first sentence. and curious. incomplete terms, two months

really figure this out. what did that feel like? or were you envisioning? where was it going to back. >> well, around that time we didn't know -- we had no idea. i talked later in the book about going out to albuquerque. we had no idea exactly how fast the rocket of home computers and personal computers was going to take off and how are suffer was going to become an amazing part of that change. so we thought, if you're really successful maybe one day we will have 35 employees. i think microsoft is over 90,000 now. so those early days. you have to remember, back then -- >> what was the competition? >> we were worried there was competition. i kept -- i just -- my role was

kind of read every computer design. i just read everything. trying to see computer world. it was more about downstairs, 360's and unit backs and everything else. my job was to look at the rise in and see what could be coming. adjutancy anything about basics from anybody else. we thought we had a head start, but we weren't sure. >> i'm curious, and you probably know this. microsoft was founded the same year that gordon more came up with his law basically saying that the number of transistors incorporated in a chip will approximately double every 24 months. did this matter to you then? was something you were thinking about, this idea of everything getting to be cheaper, better, and faster? >> you could see the trend. the first step was the 4,004. the eight dozen date, of course. that is actually in a museum, the natural history museum in

albuquerque. and then the 8080. you were aware that the chips were getting so much better and so much faster and cheaper. and now, of course, every component of a portable device or computer, every part of it is cheaper and faster and better every year. it has been amazing. i mean, you knew that trend was happening. he didn't know it was the law at the time, but it was obviously happening in that way. >> has where, this is my last bill gates question. >> you guys have your question cards. please feel free to write questions. we will gather some later. i thought the most interesting passage in the book is when you grow, i left microsoft a quarter-century before bill did, and we both had our signal triumphs. in certain respects neither of us has been quite as good alone

as we work together. so i'm reading this and thinking, wait. is he trying to say that what would have happened if he would have stayed in microsoft immobile would have happened, you know, in the past in years, microsoft was going by the wayside, not the wayside, but clearly is in effect the facebook or twitter or google. the people would have happened if he would have stayed? >> i thought about it. in technology we just accomplished some amazing things. bill was an amazingly, to use microsoft's language, hard core business person. in the company did super well, certainly in years. it's sad more challenges recently. distinct in retrospect how lucky i was to have a partner that was

as capable as bill gates was. were worked shoulder to shoulder riding in that initial code. of course i would like to think that if i stay there i could have affected the course of things. when i left i really wasn't planning on staying. i wanted to start a new chapter in my life. i tried to retire a steady. it lasted for a run 18 months. >> what did he do? >> i kicks back on the riviera. i wanted to see europe. i try to relax. technologist, that only lasts for so long. you want to be involved in creating something again. >> what do you think about the fact that throughout the history of the technology industry when you're in looking at countries that have been founded by two people there is always one that

tends to become the outside role within that and all of the co-founders sees the other person leave. what is that say about the nature of french ships when you do these kind of start-ups? what does that say? >> i think it can definitely depend on the personality in the dynamic between the two people. i also think that some people are more technological. that is just there van. i wasn't attracted to sales and marketing in the same way i was the following what the next microprocessor chip and the next product we should be doing less and those kinds of questions. over time bill was in those roles and the country -- company was going more in those areas, yak, our rules became different. i was on technical things in bill was focused on the whole slate of nontechnical things and some technical things.

you know, as these rolls the ball over time so is the case of microsoft. >> i have to say, by the way, ever since the social network came out everybody has been using a shorthand for the silicon valley culture. have you seen the movie? >> i have. i didn't see it until after the book. i just felt it might have some affect. it was traced to see the echoes of some of the things that happened. the shot on harvard square. >> the very beginning. i was there in 1974. some of the other things happened. so it was interesting. a very one day. >> it's funny in the book when you're talking about how you cut down. pepperoni pizza sliders. thinking about what if a

concerted company. i interviewed zucker berg for the new yorker. the profile. it was interesting. sitting in a pizza place thinking about how we can start the next this a that. it does annoy change in terms of that kind of culture. >> something in there. >> what is the equivalent to about zero? sushi? >> cooler and hipper and more diverse. that leads me to this point. retiring by 30. i am looking. that lasted 18 months. and looking at people that are leading their own companies. what advice would you give them? you know, as someone who has gone through that process, helping start something. this is there life, what they're doing.

would you tell them to take a break? what would you tell them? >> well, the other thing that and lost my departure was my health. i didn't know -- basically said that the other was cured. i didn't know that. that was also a big factor, a big wake-up call. but, i mean, certain things that i don't think they are the mysterious. you have to be eternally vigilant about new platforms coming down the pipe. if you think about this book and twitter, both of those could have been created earlier. used to be a thing called my space not that long ago. >> i was on it. >> you work. >> for like three weeks. when a new platform comes along and devolves more rapidly you can be obsolete quickly. you have to be incredibly vigilant, hire the best people. we didn't move microsoft a

silicon valley because bill said everybody changes jobs in 18 months. that was a 1977. still true. so we said, yeah. seattle. rain. i want to go outside. anyway and of course our families were there. sorry. so great people. and then there is this blind spot. the forms of were potentially obsoletes dual an apple didn't release the social network stuff coming like it has. >> of course you know apple tried to launch a bang. and not sure where it is gone, but clearly a little too late. they're not quite caught on.

elise me to this question. microsoft celebrated his 36th birthday earlier this month. 306th birthday. i am curious. where do you think microsoft is now in relation to the cool, facebook, apple? what is it? high-tech hell house. why did you call them high-tech? >> says down at -- dam hellhounds. that phrase is from a blues song. hellhounds on my trail. yeah. microsoft always had a lot of competition, but the competition today is incredibly fierce from the companies we have already talked about. and so, you know, they are trying to fight a multi front war. it is hard to innovate. i mean, it did people to change their habits, the inertia is

pretty strong a difference search engine. it has to be as good and better. a social network or a mobile phone platform. so they're working on a number of those areas. i have friends of there. i certainly encourage them. as it is for companies. not having a position. as the levelland. >> microsoft was behind those companies. >> in some of these areas a great position. profitable and has great people. competing in all those gray areas, that's another thing. sometimes have to pick your spots.

>> halo is great. >> connect. >> connect. but what i think is interesting, microsoft is definitely an employee shall an incredible company that has been so woven into our lives. i grew up to microsoft word, pc. we have forgotten it is even there. so woven into our lives. you wrote in the book about what you call this breathtaking fall from grace. euro, according you to yourself, it wasn't so long ago that microsoft stood by the slogan bill and i follow that the start. we set the standards. there is no one speaking privately and candidly who would make that claim today. >> i think a was referring to new standards. >> yes. >> microsoft has an amazing position.

different kinds of mobile devices. tablets. an incredible battle between different tablets. these new platforms come down the pike, it is incumbent on you to really internalize that an amount your attack to keep your engine going in these new areas. and microsoft has been lagging in some of these areas. i am very straightforward about that in your book. >> he basically said microsoft fails to catch up, it is in for a long, slow slide. what is -- what do you think strategy wise microsoft into with windows mobile to give it up from the same market share? it's nowhere near blackberries,

software or the iphone. what do you think microsoft can do? >> anytime you're challenged, coming from behind on a platform, again, you have to meet the capabilities and then have some things that are persuasive to get people to switch because people will switch unless something is dramatically better. wicket the sample of approval. there was a time when there must have been yahoo and five others. they came up with something better. so it's a really take back huge stocks of market share you have to meet. that requires shorter development cycles, your best people, agility and focus. >> one of the toughest jobs in the world right now. if you could give him advice would be?

>> i have given them advice. >> such as? >> well, those are private conversations. >> it's okay. >> ipod c-span was here? >> no, they're not here. it's something else. i'm curious. what was the advice? >> is the kinds of things we have been talking about, what areas to improve these products. start talking about tablets. >> where is microsoft? or is that going? >> you should talk to someone from microsoft. there are very focused on that. qaeda want to speak to them. >> i am curious from an investment perspective i was actually doing some reading. a business reporter once wrote that you suffered from investors' attention deficit disorder. there was one point that you

were invested in more than 100 internet media communications cos. you know, they have been costly. i am curious what has been in your mind from an investment standpoint. and don't worry, i'll ask about the biggest success. >> that's a relief. but some curious from your perspective what has been the biggest failure? >> the most costly was charter communications. i felt that cable was potentially a new platform because there would have high-speed pipes into millions and millions of homes which back then they didn't and now they do. the product cycle is very slow compared to anything else. so new set top boxes and take advantage of those capabilities. it takes longer than i expected. the actual delivery of data into people's homes has been fantastically successful. the main problem with charter was just the amount of leverage which was too high.

>> well -- >> on site. in terms of the breadth of things. >> what, you made money. >> ticketmaster. aol. so too early. priceline, many other things. started espn. so that's a disney. so many successes along the way. but, you know, you invest in the internet bubble. you know, a bubble is a bubble. everyone is going to get, you know, have some painful experiences. so i tried to do many different things. and some great successes and some signature failures. i think they're pretty much, the big ones, the big bad ones and the bigger ones. >> staff. and by the way, what would you consider your big successes?

remarks, would you consider that? >> no, hollywood, the hollywood mentality, and microsoft, just to give you an example, microsoft, if we made a mistake warmest the trend when i was there we would just flies with ourself, how did we miss that? are we going to catch up? and hollywood, it's a movie. it's not that great. box office was horrible. another movie coming out. so it's not the post analysis that you do. i think the healthy post analysis like you have in technology, good technology companies. so i was a bit of the fish out of water in the world. i tried said contribute a few things. one of the few things that dr. but in the book, this is the level of affect i had. hey, shrek, when he walks the ground does in the form.

your brain is tell you something is wrong. you know, you don't know what it is. okay. were going to fix it. so that is the kind of affect. >> i'm sorry, million dollars? >> i think it was a million. that is a lot for dust. he no. so i had done some documentary films that we talked about earlier. one on psychology, one on global health and one on evolution which i'm very proud of our documentary work. but documentary, to stone topic endeavors. >> but what has been the best investments so far? >> well, a few years ago i invested. some people convinced me to invest in oil and gas pipelines.

>> i read about it. okay. go on. >> it turns out a lot of people in the oil and gas. and so i did very well in that investment. it's not one of those things. you know, most investments that i enjoy that were super profitable, the ones where you think as a technology person you can have some value. that happens and it is really rewarding. hey, on-line services, aol is going to do great. i thought, it's doing great, but microsoft says there going to crush a well. may be time to sell. i sold. so again, just pure investing. pure, pure investing, i see some are being picked up. >> i have to ask you. >> please feel free. >> i have to ask you this question. last year you filed and refile a lawsuit basically against the

entire internet. >> was it that brought? >> it was that brought. basically young newcomer facebook, google, aol, ebay, am i missing somebody? copyright infringement. so the -- patent. >> this patent. yes. so why does he do that? >> i can't talk about the details of the lawsuit. i think it has done a lot of notice because of the individuals involved. i had a research company here in the valley years ago called interval research. there might actually be some people here. >> is not around anymore. >> yes. it's not around anymore. it was a wonderful experience. in terms of start companies it came out of it directly, very, very, very modest success. created some interesting ip.

>> every day. >> it's hellhound versus hellhound. >> this form was like paul allen is suing the entire internet. >> but from your perspective of was to spurious. basically saying to you think in many ways you been to bed? >> you can be too early. if you're really, if you look around and sit and wait a minute, nobody else is doing this five, sometimes there are some things inherent in whether the technology might be your management team or a bunch of reasons that you're early idea is not going to take root. you just too early. you have to be cognizant of

those factors. man. >> which tech companies would you invest on if you could? >> evaluations i so high. >> no, they're not. >> are you sure? >> yes. >> would you invest on? >> again, i don't want to comment on any known companies. you do your best to diligence to make sure there is something really, really knew indefensible. i have had a few ideas in the last, you know, couple years. what if you combine this with this? a lot of my best ideas are combination of basic microprocessor chips or never. what about that? and then my staff would say, well, there are 20 companies doing that. i say, jeez. okay. so it is buried crowded right now. you have to be super awaref the competitive landscape and

whether somebody else has momentum. >> i should point out that when i was writing this of this idea of owning a football team, the still seahawks, a basketball team, what is the store? i think there were down five to dallas to something. something like that. he founded the first privately financed rocket to fly to the edge of space, you're on music museum, your own petard that jimi hendrix played at woodstock. you also owned the chair that captain kirk said that in the star wars movie? >> and modified office chair. not as impressive in person as it looks on the bridge of the enterprise. >> and then there is this a level 714 feet yacht. and in addition to that -- >> i'm starting to feel bad. >> i'm just saying.

as i'm writing of this stuff down and thinking to myself, is there anything that you wanted that you haven't actually done? >> well, i think we haven't talked about the brain yet. these are talking about science and scientific problems and challenges. the fact that spaceship one succeeded, nobody knew that. one decks' prize. nobody knew that was going to happen. sometimes by being ambitious and trying to accomplish some of these things sometimes you fail and sometimes you never succeed to win a prize. you know, it is the ambition to try. a great team of people. that is just and proper -- enthralling. so there are many, many challenges out there. i am especially excited about anything related to the brain, what the brain institute is doing. artificial intelligence, i still

have always had a nagging interest in that. fun to get some traction. so i think you're talking about more common things that are more related to. >> your personal life. >> well, you're talking about sheer fun. i was just in antarctica a couple months ago. that is fascinating. slowly crews up on a sleeping willis something. wonderful. then the scientist says, here is the bay you ran and here is what it looked like 20 years ago. it was full of ice. no ice. it's almost on. i mean, the global warming stuff you can see. in terms of debentures, there is a chapter in the book about the venture. some of the thinking there was inspired by seeing shock cousteau movies as a kid. i don't know. i have had just wonderful experience is trying to explore

the fun side. i think it is incumbent on all of us in technology to think how we balance our lives between the siren of i can fix that last but prices maybe i should go home and spend more time with my family or whenever it might be. whenever that other thing. music for me is a big passion. >> i am curious. this is from the hellenistic for brain science. why was that so groundbreaking? >> doing things on an industrial scale. we basically did human brains and, slice them up, and look at the gene expression. but the data on line round the

world. and so it is no individual lab could do it to the level i think of thoroughness and quality. it takes an industrial approach like was used in the human genome project. now we are doing human debris developing human. working on artistic brains. it is interesting. the way the brain works, with the starting to see the outline. starting to get a sketchy idea. so much work to be done. each part was designed by evolution. it is optimized for what it does in particular. pretty much the regular structure. the brain, every little bit of it is optimized to do its job. it is endlessly fascinating,

compelling, and mind-boggling. >> i have a question. probably have more questions from the audience. we have a question here from ed. apparently a guru of artificial intelligence. actually here tonight. the question is, the company is supporting in managing one of the best artificial intelligence projects in the world. can you tell the audience a little bit about it and what motivated you to setup? >> well, on the one hand you're trying to finish off and understand how the brain -- i mean, ultimately we would all love to know how the brain works. does the brainwork? and then the narrow definitive tizzies like alzheimer's its mother asked him how can you make those happen earlier? so i am fascinated by that work on the brain which were totally differently. then you have artificial intelligence where programmers

simply left blank sheets of paper. we don't know how the brain works, but we want to do something similar. i have a team in seattle trying to encode sheets of biology textbook and put that knowledge and software. is a low. super hard to do knowledge representation. a better late than i can. super hard to do that with new software. real-life reasoning involves probabilities and things that are at -- are still research areas for artificial intelligence. so we are moving down that path. you can see ten, 20, 30 years down the road maybe we will have something really significant and more breakthroughs. in the meantime we are concentrating on getting a biology text inside a computer

software in a way that it can be ask questions and get a clear answer from the software. so it is really truly some ground-breaking work. the team is managing it. we have worked at sri in many other places. >> would you say that right now projects a low and the institute, those the two projects are most excited about right now? >> yes. i have a couple of little engine that things that are incubating, but the brain and a eye, those two things alone, you could spend many lifetimes trying to figure out a way to a accelerate -- pcs me, accelerate progress. i am just excited to be involved in those areas. i am looking out for other areas and other things. you know, any philanthropy -- philanthropy is a wonderful

thing to be involved in and be able to give back. if you have signature success, it is incumbent upon you to give back. >> and you pledged last july. >> yes. i always intended to give the majority of my assets to philanthropy. bill colby up and said, would you join? he has done so many. he has taken on some very, very tough problems in global health and malaria and education. those are huge problems. if you do your own flat the you have to say, okay, what appeals to me, where can i make a difference? so i am focused on the bremen out. >> i'm going to ask for questions from the audience. >> and local philanthropy. >> pacific northwest has benefited. nearly a billion dollars in investment and philanthropy in that area. who is your mentor? is it important to have one?

>> well, i think through your life you have a series of people that have a positive influence and give you a chance to succeed. obviously my parents to a talk about a lot in the book basically, you know, my father was a librarian and my mother was schoolteacher. i spent so much time around books. the university of washington library, trying to close or everything i could. so that. and then when i got to high-school obviously we were self-taught except there were a bunch of mit and stanford people at the computer center that would giving away free time that we got hooked up with. his steve russell here tonight? did he make it? anyway, steve russell did space work, bill and i would literally died in dumpsters to get these listings to my coffee stay and

listings. i could smell the coffee today. we would port to these listings. oh, my gosh. i don't know what it is doing, but is beautiful. and so you kind of sort some of that through osmosis as you go along the way. so that teaches you have been school. do you excited about other things like shakespeare or never. it is so important. i have enjoyed having a well-rounded life. interested in so many different things. i try to convey it in the book, but you know what -- >> i think you do. >> there are so many things that are unbelievably fascinating in the world, whether it is literature or arcs or, you know, the ocean. you could keep going on to read music. on and on forever. any of those worlds you can get drawn into if you have somebody

that shows you the way and is excited about it for the project in seattle, we deliberately tried, like i think this museum is going, to show young people that, you know, hey, try playing a guitar. if you can make a couple notes, maybe you want to learn how to play guitar. you can do the same thing. hopefully do more things here to give young people interested. >> another question, what do you see as the next big thing? why? >> that's a hard one. i think eventually some of these a i type systems. i recently saw watson. eventually those things are going to be, you know, so much better. our understanding moby better. in terms of, you know, things happening in the clout or whenever, i can't say anything

in particular. >> a really great question. paul, at an early age you achieved fabulous wealth. that enabled you to recreate your life in any way you want to. was that liberating or horrifying to back to have everything you ever wanted to do when front of you? liberating or find? >> it gives you so many more possibilities and options. but then you are a steward of those assets. if you have reversals or whenever, a big reversal, you just feel awful. you have to be a very, very careful. and you know -- i mean, all of the resources that i have, by far the lion's share will go to philanthropy. so there is that realization that you have to keep in mind. >> one really take the question, please describe --

>> finally. >> please describe -- [inaudible] >> please describe interactions with ibm in the late 70's? basically microsoft, you guys said we aren't going to where ties, like ibm people where ties. >> the famous story how bill goes to is first meeting in polka. he forgot to bring a time, so they had to buy a tie at the last second. by the time we were working on the idea of a pc in seattle you know, it was just really, you know, i was just on pins and needles because the basics that we were doing was read only memory. i was just so afraid that there were going to be bugs in it, which their work. >> just a couple. >> there were a couple of bucks. i put these zero books and so that i could replace in ram any bad areas of the code. those turned out to be

invaluable. basic thing about ibm is they didn't -- boss, there is a story in the book where bill and i are arguing about the fact that the da's two. zero was the way. and i thought this thing should be. ibm wanted to partition. they get restructured directories. i can't claim credit. there were a part of unix back in the day. you know, the ibm guys were like and we are happy with petitions. nope. restructured directories. and then, of course, it that the late. so much back-and-forth. but there were basically -- they basically came to us and said, you know, we want to do a pc, buy your software. an operating system.

your language is great. anyway, the rest is history. so we were really -- you know, as kids in our early twenties, kids, young men in the early twenties, you know, we knew it was going to be big, but we had no idea how big the opportunity was going to turn out to be because everybody wanted to. >> we have a space question. what to you expect from spaceship one? kutcher commercial space flight company, may be an early boeing and lockheed? >> well, richard branson has already taken the patents, licenses. i think a year two years there will start flying people, flying paying passengers into space.

basically you go straight up and come straight back down and about half an hour. it's an amazing ride. you're floating witless and space for about five minutes. that's going to be exciting. when i was watching these flights i was -- if something goes wrong i will get an error message. [laughter] in rocketry is something goes wrong with a human being inside it is really bad. another 90 question. i have up habit of asking questions in retrospect. not this you know, there has to be a free seat. be able, be capable of flying three people. i said, well, why are all our test flights only one person? they said, in case something goes wrong. and i went, oh, yeah.

so when those fights were happening i was so nervous and just so happy when they got back on the ground. >> please speak a little bit about judgment day? intelligent design. >> that was a documentary that we did following up on the evolution documentary we talked about. you know, a court case that happened about textbooks. it is interesting to read and recommend people see it. basically there is this intelligent design. you know, and people that just try to justify intelligent design say there are these intermediate forms. something like that. there is no way that it could have been created other than by an intelligent designer. and yet biologists -- we put balances on the witness stand.

wait a minute. five intermediate forms. the argument devolves into what about between those forums. well, we saw this one. so basically there are the intermediate forms for all these things exist in some way. so that is what it's about. >> we have a question asking for advice for programmers. what is the future programming? >> i feel a bit bad because i used to adjust -- when there was a new program i would just get a manual. of course you just go online. i would read the manual. that is really cool. that other stuff over there, that is worse than any of the language of ever seen. so there are so many languages that come down the pike. since i was programming and

last, a program to, 1980 -- i don't know. >> eighty what? >> i want to say 87. >> i was six. i'm just saying. >> you are already programming? >> no. i'm just saying. >> and just kidding. and i was the only person in the company that knew how to write code. so i have to write some code. c++ is something. so i don't know. if i was a program today i would study. pick the right language if your employer lets you. you know, you think companies like to go are still trying to innovate in languages. but in the end all these tools, you can do anything you want.

is just a matter of how fast you can get there. sometimes you get so caught up in the tool itself in picking the right tool that you lose three months under schedule. i'm just kidding. but programming is great. i have to say, i will be talking to one of my project teams. they say, you know, we have this legacy code. refractor it. we used to say rerouted. now it is everything gets refracted. it sounds a lot better. i'm not sure. [laughter] >> what was that? >> that was the real factoring. [laughter] >> i'm not sure it is that much better. >> i have questions here all about what it was like to face a mortality. you actually think to doctors. you basically