[SIGCIS-Members] Fwd: [CDCinfo] a question for computer historians regarding Netscape

Thu Jan 14 12:27:27 PST 2021

It doesn’t answer directly your question, but here’s a tidbit somewhat related to it.    At Veritas, we had retained a consultant, a kid named Brian Marick, one of the four who worked on NCSA Mosaic at Illinois (the two well-known ‘kids’ were Andreessen and Bina; the other two did not come west to do what became Netscape).    Marick later attained some fame via doing the Agile Manifesto for software development.   Through this connection, I had a possibility to invest slightly in Netscape, which (brilliantly) I declined.    They went public on a Wednesday August 9th, and the stock went nuts.  My wife, then at Apple, was incensed that I had not bought any, either before or at the opening.   I mean, like INCENSED.   

We had a small home for sale in Palo Alto that week, and the deal failed when on the same Wednesday, our proposed buyer, who was the golf course manager for Shoreline, was indicted for cause.   We were mostly packed and ready to move when this happened.   That same Wednesday night,  Jim Barksdale, who was the Netscape CEO at the IPO, bought a home down the block (1107 Hamilton Ave) with his new-found fortune, and he asked the owners to move out by the weekend, which caught them quite off-guard.    Their realtor was our realtor; she said to them—“I know another home down the street (1140) that you’d love, and they could move quickly.”    

So, not yet knowing the backstory that the realtor knew, I met this couple at lunch the next day Thursday, in our home.  The wife, without tipping their hand, said, “How soon could you move?”  Gratuitously (I must have been on drugs), I leaned casually on the SubZero fridge, and said, for the right price, we could move this weekend.”  She said, “Well, how about by tomorrow night, Friday?”    

I gulped, and said, “I need to call my wife,” who was working across town.   When she answered, I said something like, “Hey, I just got a chance to get some Netscape money if we move quickly, what do you think?”   She said “sure, glad to hear it.”   

When she later learned that “moving quickly” meant something different than just writing an investment check, she was not easily mollified.   But we did move Friday, and Barksdale moved in down the street on Sunday or Monday.

Later, I had an unusual opportunity, probably as ACM President at some untoward meeting—to introduce Mark Andreessen to Doug Englebart.   I don’t recall how we happened to get together, but I clearly recall each of them exclaiming, almost simultaneously, that “I’m thrilled to meet you”.   One was 25, the other 70.    I wish I had a photo of that encounter.

Chuck House 

www.innovascapesinstitute.com 

www.anywhereanytime.io/covid19 

http://innovascapes.blogspot.com

805-570-6706

From: Members <members-bounces at lists.sigcis.org> on behalf of Molly Wright Steenson <msteenso at andrew.cmu.edu>
Reply-To: <steenson at cmu.edu>
Date: Thursday, January 14, 2021 at 6:36 AM
To: Jan Müggenburg <jan.mueggenburg at leuphana.de>
Cc: Andreas Bernard <bernard at leuphana.de>, <members at sigcis.org>
Subject: Re: [SIGCIS-Members] Fwd: [CDCinfo] a question for computer historians regarding Netscape

I'd look at Wired around that time. Off the top of my head, I think it might've been a Wired issue around May or June 1994, and a bigger story about Netscape around October 1994. 

I worked at Netscape in 1996, 1998–99, but that's worlds away from Mosaic Communications Corporation. :) 

Best wishes,

Molly Steenson

On Thu, Jan 14, 2021 at 4:45 AM Jan Müggenburg <jan.mueggenburg at leuphana.de> wrote:

Dear everyone,

here’s an interesting question concerning the history of Netscape from my dear colleague Andreas Bernard. How did Andreessen and Clark (and probably Perkins?) celebrate the foundation of Mosaic Communications Corporation on April 4th 1994? Can someone help?

---jan

Prof. Dr. Jan Müggenburg

Assistant Professor for Media History and History of Science

Leuphana University of Lueneburg
Institute for Culture and Aesthetics of Digital Media
Universitätsallee 1, C5.324
Fon: 0049 4131 6771647
21335 Lueneburg
E-Mail: jan.mueggenburg at leuphana.de

Anfang der weitergeleiteten Nachricht:

Von: "Andreas Bernard" <CDCinfo at leuphana.de>

Betreff: [CDCinfo] a question for computer historians

Datum: 14. Januar 2021 um 10:34:56 MEZ

Antwort an: "Andreas Bernard" <bernard at leuphana.de>

Dear all,
I have a little question concerning a certain day in recent computer history. Has anybody done some research or does anybody know a source about April 4 1994, the day Andreessen and Clark founded Netscape? I would need some precise information on the circumstances of that day: when and where did they release the foundation, how did they celebrate it, what did they do in the evening of April 4 (e.g. a festive dinner, a big party)? 
It would be so great if somebody among us knew a source? I have researched the Net for hours and all I found was only some very general articles about the foundation, without any specific information.
Thank you so much for your help.
Best regards, Andreas 

Prof. Dr. Andreas Bernard
Leuphana Universität Lüneburg
Centre for Digital Cultures
Am Sande 5
21335 Lüneburg

Tel.: 04131 2192622
cdc.leuphana.com

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-- 

Molly Wright Steenson, PhD (she/her)

Senior Associate Dean for Research, College of Fine Arts

K&L Gates Associate Professor in Ethics and Computational Technologies

Associate Professor, School of Design

Carnegie Mellon University

Mobile (text preferred): 203.640.8653

steenson at cmu.edu 

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