About Bill Gates.

1970, when Gates 15 years old, his computer talent was well known. A company named Information Science approached Gates, hoping to provide computer time using PDP- 10 in exchange for the software technology of Gates and his classmate Paul. Because minors can't be paid according to American law, the company decided to pay them computer time worth 1 10,000 dollars and asked them to design salary management software for the company. This gave them enough computer time for a school year, and they couldn't help but be overjoyed. 197 1, Hubin Middle School asked Gates to help the school design a set of computer course scheduling software. At that time, the timetable was completely manual. Due to the large number of students and the complexity and diversity of courses, people often arrange courses unevenly, which leads to overcrowding of some courses. Gates successfully completed this arduous task, extending his precious time in using the computer.

1973, TRW company, an American defense engineering contractor, wants to develop a computer monitoring system for reservoir management, but it can't eliminate all kinds of computer bugs, and the progress is slow, so it will be punished for breach of contract. At this critical moment, TRW Company learned about Gates and Paul, two little computer geniuses, and asked them for help. The two boys agreed happily. This is a very professional and difficult job, and according to the regulations, middle school students can only get the low salary of work-study students. But Gates doesn't care. His main purpose is to improve and exercise his software design ability through this kind of work. Hubin Middle School is also very open-minded, allowing senior students to practice and work in enterprises after completing the prescribed courses. Thanks to the joining of Gates and Paul, TRW finally completed the project on time and avoided huge fines. Gates and Paul got specific guidance from a computer expert in the company, which improved their software skills.

In the early 1970s, the young Gates/Kloc-0 wrote a famous "Open Letter to Enthusiasts", which shocked the computer world. Gates declared that computer software will be a huge commercial market, and computer enthusiasts are not allowed to copy computer programs without the consent of the original author. At that time, the computer industry was influenced by hacker culture, and thought that creativity and knowledge should be enjoyed by * * *. Gates then left the campus, founded one of the most successful enterprises in the world-Microsoft, and gradually industrialized the software.

1975, Gates, who was only 19 years old, predicted: "We realize that the software era has arrived, and we have enough insight into the long-term potential of chips. What does this mean? I will not seize the opportunity, I will finish my Harvard studies, and the software industry will never wait for me. "

However, Gates' business practices are often criticized, one of which is the source of MS-DOS. At the end of 1970, IBM planned to enter the personal computer market. In 198 1 year, IBM PC was officially listed. IBM needs to find a suitable operating system based on Intel x86 series processors for its products. IBM found Microsoft after a brief negotiation with another company. Microsoft, on the other hand, found Seattle Computer Company without telling itself that it was negotiating with IBM, and bought their operating system from the company for $50,000 (Microsoft supporters said that Microsoft had an agreement with IBM at that time, stipulating that Microsoft should not disclose the negotiation matters to the outside world). Microsoft later authorized IBM to use the operating system (renamed PC-DOS). Microsoft also negotiated with other computer manufacturers to install the modified MS-DOS system on each new computer. Afterwards, Seattle Computer Company accused Microsoft of buying the company's products at a very low price without telling the facts, but the two sides finally reached an out-of-court settlement. In the late 1960s, a series of cases accused by the American government of Microsoft monopoly once again damaged Gates' reputation.

In the mid-1980s, Gates was optimistic about the future of CD-ROM as a data storage medium, so he actively promoted CD-ROM. But just last year, he announced that he would eliminate DVDs.

1983, when Apple introduced its new product Lisa, it applied the mouse to the user interface, which was a revolution in the personal computer industry. Gates immediately realized the importance of a friendly graphical interface.

1990, Microsoft introduced WINDOWS3.0.

1995, Microsoft introduced the Windows95 operating system, which is a truly epoch-making software. Let users get rid of tedious and boring DOS commands, thus making personal computers extremely simple and easy to use.

The Way Forward was published on 1995, and it topped the The New York Times bestseller list for seven weeks in a row. Some predictions in the book have come true.

Gates was also accused of business misconduct. Gates has been accused many times that under his leadership, many of Microsoft's business activities violated American laws (anti-monopoly law). And subject to many lawsuits, facing the danger of being split. Interestingly, at the end of the 20th century, two Bills (Bill Clinton and Bill Gates) encountered lawsuits and troubles almost at the same time.

1998, Microsoft launched the popular Windows98, which consolidated its dominance in the computer software industry.

From 65438 to 0999, Gates wrote the book Future Speed, which showed people how computer technology can solve business problems in a brand-new way. This book is published in 25 languages in more than 60 countries. Future Speed won wide acclaim and was listed as a best seller by The New York Times, USA-Today and The Amazon.com Wall Street Journal.

In 2000, Gates appointed Steve Ballmer, his long-time friend, as the CEO of Microsoft, and he himself was the "chief software architect".

At the end of 200 1, Microsoft introduced Windows XP. Gates personally came to Times Square to promote Win XP.

On March 10, 2006, the 2006 Forbes Global Rich List was announced. Bill Gates of Microsoft became the richest man in the world for 12 years in a row, and his net worth increased from $46.5 billion to $50 billion.

On April 6th, 2006, China president Hu Jintao visited Microsoft Headquarters. Gates and steve ballmer met with Hu Jintao and led President Hu Jintao to visit Microsoft's "Home of the Future". At about 6:5438+08:30 pm, Hu Jintao attended a dinner hosted by Gates at home.

On June 5, 2006/KLOC-0, Gates announced that he would retire in July 2008, when he would resign as the chief software designer and no longer participate in the management affairs of Microsoft. When he announced the news, Gates seemed relatively calm, but it was hard to hide a little sad atmosphere, and some employees even burst into tears. After retirement, Gates will focus on the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Gates will donate tens of billions of dollars to this charity foundation, and said that he will leave only a few million dollars to his three children. An employee of Microsoft said: "There is no doubt that his generosity has brought hundreds of thousands of people back to life." Soon after, Warren Buffett announced that he would donate $30 billion to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, provided that the Gates are still alive!

What about the future? ...

From the end of 2006 to the beginning of 2007, Windows Vista will arrive as scheduled. Gates is now busy with his last big event as chief software designer. After July 2008, the most sacred position of Microsoft will be handed over to Ray Ozzie. After that, he will devote himself to his own foundation, but this does not mean that he will be indifferent to Microsoft-he said that after retiring, he will still pay attention to the development of Microsoft and put forward constructive opinions at an appropriate time.

In addition to his passion for computers and software, Gates is also interested in biotechnology. He is a member of the board of directors of ICOS, a company specializing in protein matrix and small molecule therapy. He is also an investor in many other biotechnology companies. Gates also founded Corbis, which is researching and developing one of the largest visual information resources in the world-a comprehensive digital archive of art and photography works from public and private collections around the world. In addition, Gates also invested in Teledesic with Craig McCaw, a pioneer in mobile phones. This is an ambitious plan, using hundreds of low-orbit satellites to provide two-way broadband telecommunications services covering the whole world.

For Gates, philanthropy is also very important. He and his wife Melinda have donated more than $24 billion to set up a fund to support charities in the fields of medical care, health and education around the world. It is hoped that as mankind enters the 2 1 century, the scientific and technological progress in these key fields will benefit all mankind. Up to today, the foundation established by Gates and his wife Melinda Gates has spent more than $2.5 billion on global health, and more than $65.438+0.4 billion on improving people's learning conditions, including purchasing computer equipment for Gates Library and providing Internet training and Internet access services for public libraries in low-income communities in the United States and Canada. In addition, more than $260 million will be used for community projects in the Pacific Northwest, and more than $380 million will be used for special projects and annual gift distribution activities.

Don't put your eggs in the same basket.

Warren Buffett once commented on Bill Gates: "If he sells hamburgers instead of software, he will also become the king of hamburgers in the world." The implication is that Microsoft didn't make Gates, but its business talent made him the richest man in the world.

For financial management, Gates naturally has his own set. Because of his confidence in the future of Microsoft, Gates still invests most of his wealth in the company's stock. Although he is no longer the CEO of Microsoft, as the chief architect of Microsoft, he still dominates the development direction and strategic planning of the company. But smart, he will also cash out some stocks and sell them at a good price. According to the stock market transaction records, Gates sold 6,543,800+shares of Microsoft in the open market last month, with a profit of nearly $27 million.

Of course, a smart person like Gates would never put his eggs in one basket. Long before the Internet bubble burst, the visionary Gates began to diversify his investments. Gates set up an investment company on 1995. It is understood that the portfolio value managed by the company is10 billion US dollars, a large part of which is invested in the bond market with stable income, mainly national debt.

Gates is optimistic about the digital and biotechnology industries that represent the new economy, but he does not exclude the traditional economy when investing, especially the heavy industry sector with stable performance. Gates once acquired a 7.8% stake in Newport News Shipbuilding Company through his own investment company, and later these shares almost doubled; His investment in the Canadian national railway company also brought him rich returns. In less than a year, his share price rose by about 1/3. In addition, Gates also likes to invest in public utility companies with strong market risk resistance. Gates' interest in scientific innovation also makes him take medicine and biotechnology industry as an important investment direction.

Claiming to make good use of every penny

Someone has calculated how to spend money like Bill Gates. The conclusion is: You can buy a 3 1.57 space shuttle, or a 344 Boeing 747, a 268 Titanic, and a 1.56 million Rolls-Royce Bentley continental luxury car. But in fact, the extremely rich Gates and his wife live a frugal life. The only luxury is their $53 million mansion on the outskirts of Seattle. But according to people who have been to Gates' house, the furnishings in the mansion are quite simple, not as magnificent as most people think. Gates once said: "I want to spend every sum of money I earn very valuable, and I won't waste a penny."

In the past few years, Gates has donated a lot of his personal wealth to charity. According to statistics, Gates has so far donated nearly $29 billion to global charities, making him the most generous rich man in the world. At present, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation named after the Gates is the largest private charity organization in the world. Its fund scale is three times that of the old Ford Foundation and 10 times that of the Rockefeller Foundation. When celebrating his 50th birthday in London on June 5438+065438+1October last year, he told the reporters present that the huge wealth under his name was not only a great right but also a great obligation for him personally, and he was prepared to donate all this wealth to the society instead of leaving it to his children as a legacy.