Written by: Aarambha Aryal - 24003, Grade XI
Posted on: 18 July, 2022
Two of the biggest names in the field of computers today are Microsoft and Apple, both in making computers and programming different types of software. These companies are still at the height of their success even after decades of their original foundation.
In the movie or documentary "Pirates of the silicon valley" we see the stories of Bill Gates and Steve Jobs and how they started their companies Microsoft and Apple respectively. The drama or docudrama was directed by Martyn Burlie and was originally released on June 20, 1990 in the US. In this docudrama the role of Steve Jobs is being played by Noah Wyle and the role of Bill Gates is played by Anthony Michael Hall along with these two other important names from the cast are Joey Slotnick, John DiMaggio and J.G Hertzler. And the docudrama was produced by the Production Company Haft entertainment and St. Nick productions.
In the first few frames of the docudrama we can see Steve Jobs speaking with a director about the creation of an advertisement for the Apple computer which would introduce the first ever Macintosh. Then in the next scene we see Steve Jobs announcing a new deal with Microsoft or Bill Gates at the 1997 MacWorld Expo with a picture of Bill Gates in the background. The announcement is met with boo's and criticism from the crowd. After which the movie turn into flashbacks of the youthful days of Steve Jobs and Bill Gates.
The story takes us to 1971 in Berkeley during the periods of the student anti-war movements, where Steve Jobs and his friend Wozniah are escaping away from the anti-war movement as the students were rioting and clashing against the police. Jobs proceeds to criticize the movement.Similarly' on the other hand we see a young Bill Gates at Harvard University, in the early 1970s' Bill Gates heard about the existence of Ed Roberts MITS Altair he decided to drop out of Harvard. Bill and Allen's early work with Ed Roberts MITS Altair was similar to Jobs and Wozniacks work with the Homebrew Computer Club.
After this Jobs and Wozniach founded the Apple Computer in the garage of Job's family home. After a while Mike Makkula invested in the company which allowed the company to expand out and move forward. And in 1977, they demo the Apple II at the West Coast Computer Faire. And this event is followed up by Gates and Allen developing the IBM-PC in 1981. Following this revealed a new computer named Lisa and in 1984 announced another computer, the Macintosh. Both of these computers were inspired by Xerox Alto.
The movie ends in 1997, leaving us with a strong back-story about the two of the biggest tech companies in the world started with nothing but ideas and innovation.
I strongly recommend this movie for people who are interested in doing business or are interested in learning the ways of success. Upon watching this movie, I really felt motivated to do something. So, I started doing something that a student can do, that is studying for success.
