ShadowRAM: August 6, 2007

A TRIBUTE TO JOURNALISM ICON JIM LYDON

• The godfather of high-tech journalism passed away late last month. Jim Lydon, editor of Electronic News from the early 1960's until his retirement in 1992, succumbed to cancer July 27 at the age of 76. Lydon was mentor to dozens of CMP editors and countless other writers and reporters who had the great fortune to work with him. He taught young journalists how to stand up against corporate titans and their phalanx of PR people. It was Lydon who preached, "If they won't comment, we're free to speculate." It was Lydon who proclaimed, "If they want you to print it, it's publicity. If they don't want you to print it, it's news." In 1978, when Intel threatened to seek an injunction to stop publication of Electronic News because the paper had uncovered IBM's plans to buy Intel chips, Lydon told two very nervous young reporters, "Call Intel back and tell them our legal address is 7 E. 12th Street, New York." Jim Lydon's legacy is that he showed the best of us how we could be better.

SEALED WITH A KISS

• Cisco spared no expense in entertaining customers and partners attending its Networkers at Cisco Live 2007 conference last month, treating the 10,000 attendees to an open-air concert from '70s rock icon Kiss. The show had all of the elements that made Kiss a superstar group: platform boots, pyrotechnics and Gene Simmons' tongue. There was also tons of makeup, sported by not only the band but by fans as well, as Cisco offered face-painting booths for anyone brave enough. Lead singer Paul Stanley seemed genuinely surprised that the corporate event went so well, joking from the stage that the band might now start playing bar mitzvahs. Mazel tov.

SEEN AND HEARD

• A pair of security researchers from SPI Dynamics gave a presentation at last week's Black Hat conference in Las Vegas that raised a few eyebrows. Titled "Premature Ajax-ulation," the talk focused on developers that rush to use Ajax without considering the myriad security risks. Word has it that Pfizer is already busily preparing a pharmaceutical antidote.

• The not-so-politically-correct humor of Gilbert Gottfried seems to have offended some Synnex executives. Gottfried, the voice of Jerry The Belly Button Elf on "Ren and Stimpy," the parrot Iago in Disney's "Aladdin," and—bet you didn't know this—the voice of the duck in the AFLAC commercials, apparently didn't "quack" up Synnex executives at the company's recent partner event (sorry, we couldn't resist!) The Brooklyn-born comedian, who was the featured entertainment at the closing of the big event, was yanked off the stage only a few minutes into his act. A Synnex executive gave Gottfried the proverbial hook and then apologized to the audience. At least one person at the event was not pleased, screaming out that there was surely a better way to handle the situation. File this one under hire a mime next time.