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Technology Stocks : Novell (NOVL) dirt cheap, good buy? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Paul Fiondella who wrote (26647)	4/14/1999 12:56:00 PM
From: Lou Weed	Respond to of 42771

Thanks Paul for your valuable insight.....I hope you'll be back soon, quality posts like yours are like little rays of light in this big dark cavern!!! Mick O'

To: Paul Fiondella who wrote (26647)	4/14/1999 12:57:00 PM
From: Spartex	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 42771

Paul take care and thanks for your open thoughts! Stay on that high road! Glad to see Eric continuing to take the high road as well! Best regards and hope to hear your thoughts down the digitalme road from time to time! QuadK

To: Paul Fiondella who wrote (26647)	4/14/1999 1:43:00 PM
From: Bearded One	Respond to of 42771

Paul, we will all miss you during your break.

To: Paul Fiondella who wrote (26647)	4/14/1999 2:01:00 PM
From: Frederick Smart	Respond to of 42771

The Power of Community..... >>I'm going to be taking my leave of posting here for awhile. I haven't changed my position in Novell, which is very long, only my position with regard to spending valuable time on the internet. I must admit that I'm getting more and more disenchanted with an internet driven stock market and the attacks on people like Pfeiffer that are being made and the general level of ruthlessness and greed. I'm most concerned about what it is doing to my own character. Life is short. My wife is suggesting I take a break. Whatever contribution I have been able to make to NOVL through posting here I have already made.>> Paul: I know how you feel. This meduim is filled with selfish types who use it to leverage their OWN axes. Give them an opening and they will take someone's head off. We all, including myself, need to be more compassionate and understanding. Sharing your ideas on forums like this takes an enormous amount of energy. People ask me "why do you do this....why bother??" Well this IS a revolution and its now or never Paul. The first company that allows their engineers and employees free reign to post on the net is the first company I want to invest in. Scott Lemon was truly a pioneer in this regard going back over the last year - especially when things were hot and heavily slanted against Novell. I know the Scott Lemon's of the world are very busy right now, but if you really think about this through it's logical conclusion you will understand that the vast majority of companies are STILL treating their customers AND investors like Barbarians At The Gate. I'll be the last guy to know and understand how Scott Lemon got among the barbarians months ago, but Novell needs this kind of openness to ensure it's future success. Growth going forward is ALL about being "out there.....exposed, at risk, wacko, etc." If your entire company and its employees are not encouraged to act this way, take these risks, engage new thought processes, etc. they will never have the chance to discover those "oh yea!!" gems, gifts in the form of ideas that lead to new products, services, etc. But you still need a balance to everything. Nothing gets done by wackos unless they have the trust and support of qualified developers and supporting management who catch the energy, see the vision and become part of a team work in unison to drive a product home to market. So the real value is in the balance - the energy that rests somewhere in between which you cannot touch or measure, but you just have to feel and trust that it's there. You will know when you've lost it because the trust will leave and gravitate to other more trusting domains which value openness, creativity, etc. So Novell and ALL other companies right now are going to have a heck of a time keeping this balance, this energy, this creativity alive and virally well going forward. This is THE core challenge they all face. We are in a garaged-domain slap-Apple world where its way too easy for individuals with explosively innovative ideas to get funded away from one's core company. Novell and others need to keep these people. But they won't succeed unless they open up more and more. It's really too bad that lawyers and the threat of lawsuits are becoming the biggest impediment for companies to take this next step. An idea which I think would work would be for companies like Novell to allow their employess to associate themselves with various communities or groups - with all the embedded disclaimers, etc. - as a way of flexing these creative muscles. It may not be the Novell brand that's being represented officially, but if we really know the individual behind the statements or ideas, we'd know that this person is still 100% Novell, etc. This is a form of "techno-tribalism" - not unlike when, as kids our Dads joined us as Indians in the Indian Guide program - which can help us forum-out these ideas as we all try to grow this sense of community around companies like Novell. If Novell or Compaq is open to this type of thing then I think they'd benefit immensely. All we are talking about is encouraging these individual voices such as mine to come out of the woodwork. You'd be surprised how much potential is buried inside these organizations just waiting to be tapped if there was only a "public square" and the support from senior management to respect the ideas and conversations and the individuals who wander into the square. Public Square management is where I think the future of business is heading. Building communities, trust, contacts through an ongoing process of reaching out - NOT spinning safe sound bites and written statements out from a controlled antiseptic PR lab. It's as if we are all scared to death about our own inner ideas and the conversations and contacts that could flow from the energy behind those ideas. Companies want us to go into the PR lab, wear goggles, white robes and rubber gloves and then contrive some narrow-banded channel of communication that's safe, secure, but means nothing - for all the raw energy, power and vison has been stripped away. Perhaps this process of stripping the energy, vision and power away is simply an example of the way managements retain power and control over their domain, period. Well, if that's the case, then it's time for change. People naturally want to gather around the public square and listen for ideas and cues that can perhaps add value to their lives and those around them. Not everyone will be motivated to stand on the soapbox and speak, but if more do step up, the benefits for the community, for the companies and individuals who participate in this process will dwarf any real or perceived negatives that come with the territory. Paul, I'm sorry to see you leave the square. Go visit the indians, plant some corn, vacation with your wife, family and kids, but do return someday....hopefully soon. GO!!

To: Paul Fiondella who wrote (26647)	4/14/1999 2:25:00 PM
From: Don Troppmann	Respond to of 42771

Paul: Your insight and forceful dialogue have been one of the best "spices" in the stew and have provided many opportunities to expand my limited understanding re NOVL. Hope to see you return when possible. Don Troppmann, Lurker Emeritus.

To: Paul Fiondella who wrote (26647)	4/14/1999 3:13:00 PM
From: EPS	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 42771

Hi Paul, Thanks for your good postings. After the sell-off the market is now trying to digest the news that you are leaving this board and the rumor is that you will be back before you know it. Cheers Victor Danti