30 December, 1999
as originally published on CNBC.com
I served as fulltime Silicon Valley Correspondent for CNBC.com from the day it went online in July 1999 until Microsoft Corp. assumed editorial control over the site in July 2001. CNBC.com took its archives offline when the two sites merged. But many of the articles I wrote during this period are archived below. (Please note, however, that the internal links that would otherwise allow readers to view stock quote and message boards that are contained in these archives are no longer valid and will not work.)
I owe special thanks to my late friend and colleague Gary Brickman for lining up my job at CNBC.com. Gary is missed not only by his many friends, but also by the worlds of journalism and politics, both of which he so enriched and enlivened. While working for CNBC.com I collaborated with an astute, ambitious and visionary team of editors, including Pat Sheridan, Scott Bomboy, Caitlin Mollison, Geoff Lewis, Dean Patterson and Scott Gerlach, all of whom shared the common goal of finding new ways to use the Internet to democratize the flow of information about business and finance. I also appreciate the kind support provided to me during this period by CNBC president and CEO Pamela Thomas-Graham, CNBC general manager Bob Meyers and my many other spirited colleagues in Fort Lee, New Jersey who made working for the network such an enjoyable experience.
1999 to 2001 was an astonishing period in Silicon Valley history. The stories that follow offer a glimpse at — and a record of — those often heady days. Ironically, one of the very first pieces in my CNBC.com archives, dated August 6, 1999, warned investors that their optimism might not be justified.