Chapter 152 There Will Always Be Opportunities to Earn in the Future

After making inquiries, Sumu gained a rough understanding of the current state of email development.

Network communication technology was still in its infancy. Last year, the U.S. National Science Foundation joined the networking initiative, coordinating some significant technological breakthroughs. Several federal departments closely related to scientific research—including NASA, the Department of Health, and the Department of Energy—had connected to the network.

With the advent of the TCP/IP standard, all computer networks worldwide could be linked over existing communication lines, sharing data under this common protocol. This marked the birth of the Internet.

The Internet was still a recent innovation. Before its emergence, universities, U.S. government agencies, and the military used ARPANET. Information online was scarce, and people communicated mainly through email, predominantly using a program called “SNDMSG,” invented by a PhD from MIT.

In the office, with a computer connected to the network via phone line, Sumu asked James to show him this email program.

Seeing the Microsoft MS-DOS operating system, James scoffed at it, saying it was hardly user-friendly. He explained that if IBM and Microsoft hadn’t partnered to pre-install MS-DOS on computers, Microsoft would never have surpassed Apple so quickly.

Sumu had a general sense of the future world but was clueless about its specifics. Initially disheartened, his confidence was rekindled upon seeing this rudimentary, minimalist email program.

Professor Malzer pondered and then offered a suggestion: “Studying email is quite promising. The SNDMSG program is poorly maintained, riddled with small bugs, and only capable of sending very short texts. In the 1970s, network transmission speeds were just a twentieth of what they are now. There’s room to develop a more advanced email program to replace it.

“I’ve heard Microsoft plans to release a new operating system later this year, called Microsoft-indos. Like Apple’s products, it will attempt to incorporate a graphical user interface, which will greatly aid the popularization of personal computers. By then, many people should be using email, eliminating the need to mail files physically. It will be very convenient.”

As a Stanford professor, Malzer was no fool. Considering the recent explosive growth in personal computer users, he could already foresee a surge in email users.

However, even Malzer and others viewed email as somewhat superfluous, since messages could be conveyed via telephone or fax. Who would check their email constantly to see if someone sent a message? Logging in sporadically and waiting ten days or half a month for a reply was common. No one knew which direction the Internet would take, and even though Sumu saw potential, no one paid it much mind.

After James exited his email program, he stood and suggested to Sumu, “Let’s develop image processing software. This concept is very popular lately. Someone has already created a program that can convert color photos to black and white.”

“Here’s a practical question: how will you make money developing email? Since there are free products, why would users pay for one? A few years ago, people tried selling email programs, but no one bought them,” James added.

This was a pertinent question.

Sumu had considered it. He replied, “I think the focus now isn’t on profit but on attracting more users. Once the user base grows large enough, ways to make money will naturally emerge.

“Many people might use email, but how many would be interested in changing photo colors on their personal computers? Let’s develop that first…”

“I talked to Bill Gates. He said if we develop suitable products, he would buy them. The graphical user interface will definitely become mainstream. My company, Penguin Inc., sells computers, and we see the number of personal computer users growing rapidly. Our products should be easy to use and compatible with Microsoft’s new operating system,” James said.

Sumu had heard on old radio broadcasts that Microsoft’s brand value was worth billions of dollars. Other operating systems, aside from Apple’s, were relatively unknown. He couldn’t just say he wanted to hitch his wagon to a star, so he skirted the subject.

Sumu was the boss, and whoever paid the wages held the power. He owned all the shares of Spider Software Technology.

Professor Malzer patted James on the shoulder, telling him to stop spouting off and laughed: “Then let’s give it a try. Before the software fails, no one knows whether it will succeed, right?

“This is a crazy era. Developing personal email has great potential, especially since we know one of Microsoft’s major shareholders. If Gates is willing to help promote it and incorporate it into Microsoft’s operating system, we’ll quickly gain a user base. I think the idea of attracting users with free products is excellent.”

“Yes, just like James, you don’t want to change your email program. Such software can lock in users,” Sumu added.

Today was just a day for understanding and discussion. Professor Malzer’s hourly wage was forty dollars—money well spent. Under his leadership, they soon outlined a rough development direction. The difficult is not hard for those who know, and he kept throwing out various technical terms.

Sumu suddenly realized he didn’t need to learn programming himself. He just needed to hire experts to create the products he wanted.

With money, his mindset began to shift. He started to wonder whether he should apply to Stanford’s computer engineering program, though studying business management seemed more suitable.

A person’s abilities were ultimately limited, but wealth allowed one to hire others to create fortune.

The next day, James and the team arrived at Spider Software Technology Company to prepare for developing the personal email program.

Professor Malzer had classes but would come by when he had time and could handle matters from home, serving as the supervisor.

Sumu stopped by to greet them but found that, with his limited knowledge, he couldn’t contribute to their discussions and decided to continue preparing for exams. The SAT was scheduled for June 10th, with another session on August 10th, just in time for the next academic year’s admissions.

If he didn’t do well in June, he planned to retake the test in August. High school courses were not difficult, and American universities were notoriously “easy to enter but hard to graduate.” He wasn’t worried about getting in; the only concern was which school to attend.

Miss Black entered his office silently, not even knocking. Standing at the door, she spoke with disdain: “You’re working so hard? You should know that many top Cambridge graduates haven’t achieved half as much as you. You’re already a multimillionaire, earning more in a month than they do in ten years. Why insist on going to college?”

“Whether I go or not is one thing; whether I take the exam is another. I want to make my life more fulfilling,” Sumu said without looking up.

He continued, “Besides, my parents want me to go to college. After preparing for so many years, it would be such a waste to give up now…”

(Sorry, my back is hurting badly, probably occupational. Two chapters today; I’ll rest first and write another chapter tonight.)