Well, no – I wasn’t. Register’s “Interview with a tech entrepreneur” is about Richard Stubbs – a name I haven’t come across in the UK tech scene before, yet his life seems so similar to mine.
- Typing in BASIC programmes at a frighteningly young age
- The obsession with the paint can tool in early paint applications
- The two laptops to run his life
- The passion and enthusiasm about the Internet
- The speaking at a ‘mile a minute’
- The dyslexia (“In school they wanted me to type out papers because my handwriting is so atrocious.” – yes, I’ve been there too)
- The geek who got his girl
As I read the interview I couldn’t believe how similar our lives were.
The only things I don’t share with Stubbs is the university education and lack of commercial success (although that’s probably because I work for the BBC – and I guess I like to think I’ve been successful in other ways).
I have worked with so many “geeks” yet the only ones I have met who share such similar character traits to myself (and of course Richard here) have been outside of work. These include my school friend David Coldwell (sadly our friendship broke down during 6th form and we are no longer in contact) and a few people in London 2600 (who I also no longer have contact with).
Kosso has similar traits (and does work for the BBC) but I don’t know him well enough outside of work to know whether he had a similar mad-cap dyslexic, computer-fueled childhood as myself and Richard Stubbs. Perhaps he will let me know?