BSD and HP9K700 standalones . . . ?

[Mark Talluto]

On Jan 18, 2010, at 7:08 AM, Richard Gaskin wrote:

> stephen barncard wrote:
>> The REV of today is a lot more complex than previous years. Also it's
>> important to note in this comparison the fact that Metacard went out of
>> business.
> 
> While it's technically correct that MetaCard Corp. is no longer in business, to avoid newcomers misinterpreting the above this is a case where details matter:
> 
> MetaCard Corp. is no longer in business because Dr. Raney successfully executed its exit strategy.
> 
> Most businesses are launched with an exit strategy in mind, and for many small software companies that exit strategy is the sale of the company's assets to another firm after having built them up to an appreciable value.
> 
> With the sale of the MetaCard engine to RunRev Ltd. in 2003, that's exactly what Dr. Raney did.
> 
> In fact, it may be worth noting that in the whole of xTalk history I know of no one else who has retired as well from the proceeds of their engine.
> 
> Last time I corrresponded with Dr. Raney he was taking a brief break from sailing around the Caribbean Sea to return to the States to manage some assets here which his corporation had acquired for him.
> 
> It would be ungentlemanly to discuss the nature of those assets, but suffice to say his leisure time speaks for itself.
> 
> So while it's true that MetaCard Corp. "went out of business", may we all go out of business as well as he did. :)


This reminds me of my last conversation I had with Dr. Raney.  We were discussing his sale to Rev when he told me about his exit strategy.  In my more naive state of business ownership I felt he was selling out.  But he educated me in considering this very important stage and lifespan of a business.  He asked me when I planned to retire and enjoy the fruit of my labor.  I found the handful of conversations we had to be very useful in my formative years.


Best regards,

Mark Talluto
http://www.canelasoftware.com