3 chapters across the catalog
Microsoft Early Era Coder Benefits and Brothels
An anecdotal report claims that during the early 1980s in Bellevue, Microsoft maintained an open account with a local brothel to provide services for lonely coders. The segment describes the campus culture of the era, where employees had private offices and often slept on-site to continue working on software.
Microsoft's History of Sucking Up Intellectual Property
Reflecting on Microsoft's business tactics, the hosts recall how the company acquired vast amounts of machine translation IP from defunct firms like Lernout & Hauspie in the early 2000s. Despite owning the foundational technology for speech-to-text, Microsoft often lets acquired IP languish rather than innovating. This historical pattern is used to frame Microsoft's current relationship with OpenAI.
A retrospective on the failure of IBM's OS/2 operating system recalls a moment when Steve Ballmer publicly crashed an "uncrashable" demo at a trade show. The story serves as a reminder of the cyclical nature of tech hype and the historical rivalry between IBM and Microsoft. One of the hosts mentions owning a rare Microsoft OS/2 lapel pin, which may be sold on their Etsy store.
