After dinner, I began to read my InformationWeek. First, I glanced at my last column (April 12, p. 172). Seeing it in print is still exciting, and I like to reread it to find out whether I still agree with what I wrote--after all, our technology changes at lightning speed, so why shouldn't my opinions? Next, I read Bob Evans' column (April 12, p. 10). Bob is a savvy individual, so I was pleased that he devoted more than half of "Competition Works" to a rebuttal of my comments in the March 29 issue (p. 130) that Microsoft's dominance is a not-so-good thing.

Bob made a few good points; for example, he called my columns "insightful and valuable." The man's discernment continues to impress me. He's also correct when he says that Microsoft's reluctance to work on a Linux version of Office isn't proof that the company is evil. I remember thinking, though, that he was on slippery ground implying that other operating systems failed from lack of market appeal, sans unfair Microsoft practices.

Bob's comments about "vigorous, unfettered, and wide-open competition" mixed in my mind with images of the days of real unbridled competition when the likes of J.P. Morgan, Jay Gould, and John D. Rockefeller ruled supreme. I thought of the tribulations of old John, the richest man of his time, fighting the U.S. government's attempt to break up his Standard Oil Trust, which controlled 90% to 95% of all the oil in the United States when it was dissolved in 1911. "What if he had been successful in defending his empire?"

I mused, as my eyes began to get heavy and I drifted into a dream-filled nap.

After old John D. won his battle in court, he was left to innovate unfettered. No one complained when Standard Oil announced that in the interest of the consumer, it would hold annual developer's conferences where, for a reasonable fee, auto manufacturers (of which there were still many) would be told the octane levels and other characteristics of Expressway 1918 and its successor, Expressway 1920, so that they could build engines to run the new fuels. There was some criticism, although muffled, when the Trust insisted that for the protection of the consumer, preferential relationships would be initiated with those carmakers who installed on their dashboards a "powered by Standard Oil" emblem that lit up when the automobile was started.

Of course, it was just a logical extension when Standard began giving away car radios to consumers. Manufacturers were quiet when Standard Oil receivers, which for some strange reason were called audio browsers, became mandatory for those of them who wished to partake of Standard Oil technology. Consumers were content and manufacturers satisfied with their small piece of the profit pie; life went on.

After World War II (both sides powered by Standard Oil products) there was no adverse reaction; in fact, some joy resulted when the Trust innovated by acquiring a new franchise, called McDonald's, which served fast food to the motoring public. As a Standard Oil spokesperson pointed out, the fact that people made the trip to the golden arches in an oil-powered car made the new ownership a logical extension of the service-station pump. The public enjoyed their $5 Johnny D. burgers and their $6-a-gallon gasoline.

And everyone lived happily ever after.