Some humor.
Famous Last Words > "Computers in the future may weigh no more than 1.5 tons." - Popular > Mechanics, forecasting > the relentless march of science, 1949. > "I think there is a world market for maybe five computers." --Thomas > Watson, > chairman > of IBM, 1943. > "I have traveled the length and breadth of this country and talked with > the > best > people, and I can assure you that data processing is a fad that won't last > out the > year." - The editor in charge of business books for Prentice Hall, 1957. > "But what is it good for?" -- Engineer at the Advanced Computing Systems > Division > of IBM, 1968, commenting on the microchip. > "There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home." -- Olson, > president, > chairman and founder of Digital Equipment Corp., 1977. > "This 'telephone' has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as > means of > communication. The device is inherently of no value to us." - Western > Union > internal > memo, 1876. > "The wireless music box has no imaginable commercial value. Who would pay > for a message > sent to nobody in particular?" -- David Sarnoff's associates in response > to > his urgings > for investment in the radio in the 1920's. > "The concept is interesting and well-formed, but in order to earn better > than a 'C,' > the idea must be feasible." -- A Yale University management professor in > response > to Fred Smith's paper proposing reliable overnight delivery service. > (Smith > went > on to found Federal Express Corp.) > "Who the hell wants to hear actors talk?" -- H.M. Warner, Warner Brothers, > 1927. > "I'm just glad it'll be Clark Gable who's falling on his face and not Gary > Cooper." > --Gary Cooper on his decision not to take the leading role in "Gone With > The > Wind." > "A cookie store is a bad idea. Besides, the market research reports say > America likes > crispy cookies, not soft and chewy cookies like you make." --Response to > Debbi Fields' > idea of starting Mrs. Fields' Cookies. > "We don't like their sound, and guitar music is on the way out." - Decca > Recording > Co. rejecting the Beatles, 1962. > "Heavier-than-air flying machines are impossible." -- Lord Kelvin, > president, Royal > Society, 1895. > If I had thought about it, I wouldn't have done the experiment. Then > literature is > full of examples that said you can't do this." -- Spencer Silver, on the > work that > led to the unique adhesives for 3m Post-It" Notepads. > "So we went to Atari and said, 'Hey, we've got this amazing thing even > built > with > some of your parts, and what do you think about funding us? Or, we'll give > it to > you. We just want to do it. Pay our salary, we'll come work for you.' And > they said, > 'No.' So then we went to Hewlett-Packard, and they said, 'Hey, we don't > need > you. > You haven't got through college yet.'" -- Apple Computer Inc. founder > Steve > Jobs > on attempts to get Atari and H-P interested in his and Steve Wozniak's > personal computer. > "Professor Goddard does not know the relation between action and reaction > and the > need to have something better than a vacuum against which to react. He > seems > to lack > the basic knowledge ladled out daily in high schools." --1921 New York > Times > editorial > about Robert Goddard's revolutionary rocket work. > "You want to have consistent and uniform muscle development across all of > your muscles? > It can't be done. It's just a fact of life. You just have to accept > inconsistent > muscle development as an unalterable condition of weight training." -- > Response to > Arthur Jones, who solved the unsolvable problem by inventing Nautilus. > "Drill for oil? You mean drill into the ground to try and find oil? You're > crazy." > --Drillers who Edwin L. Drake tried to enlist to his project to drill for > oil in > 1859. > "Stocks have reached what looks like a permanently high plateau." - Irving > Fisher, > Professor of Economics, Yale University, 1929. > "Airplanes are interesting toys but of no military value." - Marechal > Ferdinand Foch, > Professor of Strategy, Ecole Superieure de Guerre. > "Everything that can be invented has been invented." - Charles H. Duell, > Commissioner, > U.S. Office of Patents, 1899. > "Louis Pasteur's theory of germs is ridiculous fiction". -- Pierre Pachet, > Professor > of Physiology at Toulouse, 1872 > "The abdomen, the chest, and the brain will forever be shut from the > intrusion of > the wise and humane surgeon". - Sir John Eric Ericksen, British surgeon, > appointed > Surgeon-Extraordinary to Queen Victoria 1873. > "640K ought to be enough for anybody." - Bill Gates, 1981
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