 |
 |
|
By Edward Cone on 2009-10-14
by Edward Cone
"Don't be Evil" is Google's motto. How's that going?
In this context, "evil" does not mean wicked, like Sauron or Voldemort, or bad in the way some people might judge tobacco companies or corrupt enterprises like Enron.
Nick Carr probably got it right when he said, "When Google adopted 'don't be evil' as the cornerstone of its corporate code of conduct, what it really meant was 'don't be Microsoft.'" This does not imply that Microsoft is truly evil, just that Google was defining itself against the most powerful company in the software industry at that time — a company that was feared but not loved.
So "don't be evil" translates roughly as "be customer-centric, and act with some greater good than your profit margins in mind — don't be just another huge company." By that standard, it's grown harder over time to argue that Google lives up to its motto. It is a useful and valuable and in many ways admirable enterprise, but maybe not so special after all.
|
|
TCO Networking Costs
This calculator shows the cost of adding additional servers, including networking costs. It assumes a cost of $500 per 24 port switch, and $50 for cabling per server. |
|
|
 |
|
|
- 11. Google is hubristic
"Page, even as they talked, stared fixedly at the screen of his P.D.A.
"'...[Y]ou can't do this,' [Barry] Diller said. 'Choose.'
"'I'll do this,' Page said matter-of-factly, not lifting his eyes from his hand-held device."
— The New Yorker, 10/5/09 - 10. Google has no loyalty
Google supported Firefox when Firefox was the strongest alternative to Microsoft's browser. As the browser becomes increasingly important, though, Google is promoting its own, Chrome. - 9. Google wants to own the web
The new SideWiki moves conversations off your website and onto Google's servers. - 8. Google usurps knowledge
Digitizing the world's books sounds great, but it could squeeze out smaller players and put precious information behind a pay-wall. - 7. Google keeps what you throw away
Former Bear Stearns manager Matthew Tannin closed his Gmail account, but Google quietly held onto copies of his email, which it later turned over to prosecutors. - 6. Google squeals on users
Rosemary Port blogged anonymously on Google's Blogger service, until Google divulged her identity at the first whiff of a lawsuit from a disgruntled reader. - 5. Google approaches monopoly power
In search and advertising, Google's power has grown so great that government action is threatened. - 4. Google is not transparent
Keeping a veil over its search formula may be a competitive necessity, but results can seem arbitrary and unfair, and appeals are unlikely to get anywhere. - 3. Google works with repressive regimes
The company plays ball with the Chinese government in order to profit from that huge market. - 2. Google throws its weight around
When negotiating tax breaks for a North Carolina data center, Google strong-armed public officials to keep a tax-funded deal secret. - 1. Google answers to Wall Street
Management and directors are obligated to maximize shareholder value. If empowering users with great products comes to be less profitable than guarding a kludgy monopoly, the kludgy monopoly wins.
|
Slideshows 
