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Dewey Decimal Number: 330.95105 EAN: 9780060005993 ISBN: 0060005998 Label: Collins Manufacturer: Collins Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 320 Publication Date: March 01, 2002 Publisher: Collins Release Date: March 19, 2002 Studio: Collins Editorial Review: Amazon.com Review: "In China, I feel the explosive combination of forces aligning to create the kind of change that alters the course of history," writes David Sheff in the introduction to China Dawn, his book on the entrepreneurs who are trying to spark a social transformation and make a mint as they bring the latest information technology to the planet's most populous country. The idealistic heroes of this story are Bo Feng and Edward Tian, both friends of the author. Feng is a Marin County busboy who becomes one of China's top venture capitalists; Tian is the cofounder of AsiaInfo, the first private Chinese firm to go public in the West. Like so many others, Feng and Tian were deeply affected by the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989, and they believe the Internet can set their country on an irreversible course toward freedom. At bottom, though, China Dawn is an engaging business book that chronicles the "unlikely group of revolutionaries" who hope to become the Bill Gates and Andy Groves of their country. It is difficult to know whether they will succeed, but hard not to wish them luck. --John Miller Product Description: Imagine living through the breakthrough moments of Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and the other icons of today's new economy. The kind of technological revolution that they led in Silicon Valley is now sweeping through China, but with much more dramatic implications. The dynamic entrepreneurs who are using technology to radically transform business and cultural life in China are fighting not only outdated business models and a tumultuous economy but also an unpredictable government that has a love-hate relationship with the Net, at once pushing its expansion at a feverish pace and censoring it. As Duncan Clark, cofounder of BDA, an Internet consulting company in Beijing, told author David Sheff, "This environment -- the regulations, the competition, the political uncertainties -- makes these the fastest, most courageous, nimblest-thinking people globally. To deal with this level of risk and still sleep is no small accomplishment. But they're hooked on it like some Chinese are becoming hooked on Starbucks cappuccino." In this irresistible, groundbreaking book, Sheff takes us into the trenches of the Chinese technology revolution, introducing the major and minor players who are leading China into the twenty-first century. Players like Bo Feng, the charismatic former sushi chef who is now one of the leading venture capitalists in China. And Edward Tian, a national hero who has been described as China's Steve Jobs and Bill Gates combined, who left his own start-up on the eve of its IPO in order to lead the government's attempt to bring broadband to the entire nation, in the process leapfrogging the United States, Europe, and the rest of Asia with the longest and fastest network in the world. As the U.S. technological revolution wanes, business leaders will be looking to the billion-plus potential customers in China for new growth. In addition, the world's newest member of the World Trade Organization will no longer be a bystander in the global economy; it will be a fierce competitor. And when hundreds of million Chinese have access to unprecedented information and communication, China itself will be profoundly altered. Jay Chang, an analyst who covers China for Credit Suisse First Boston, sums the seismic nature of the changes: "What happens when China successfully transforms from a mainly agrarian/industrial nation into one that has significant input from the information technology industry? What happens when eighty percent of the state-owned enterprises in China are able to link economically to the global Internet on fast pipes? What happens when China's engineering talent pool is able to gain access to high-end computing resources and exchange ideas and information easily with their global peers? What happens when fifty percent of the Chinese population gets wired in ten years -- six hundred million people, the largest number of Internet users in the world?" With its compelling, character-driven story, researched over the course of three years, China Dawn will be the definitive book on the subject. Average Rating:
 Rating:  - FascinatingThis book gives us an insight into the brave, opportunistic, patriotic entrepeneurs who decided to have a run for their money investing in the IT industry in China. The author happened to be intimate friends to the entrepeneurs (venture capitalists and founders of IT companies) mentioned and suffice to say that this is like a documentary as we were brought into the environment where they sought for opportunities, negotiating and bargaining for their positions, keeping the "ship" afloat by ensuring ... Read More Rating: - Fascinating read, presents an optimistic perspective on high-tech in ChinaThis book was a fascinating read, and presents a personal take on the growth of technology and the rise of entrepreneurship in China. However, at points in the book, it seemed that the author is a bit too optimistic and overlooks some of the major challenges against China becoming a high-tech superpower. Rating:  - This book is a purely a domcom storyThe characters in this book are not what the book described since the author is the personal friend of the characters. This is purely free publicity for them. Search the web and you will find other comments about the auther. The latest story is the VCs have splited since they can't really get along, and the politics in the VC firm was unbearable with just a few people. Most of the portfolio companies are in bad shape. The VC's website has not been updated since 2001, wonder why. If you really ... Read More Rating:  - AwesomeThis book was awesome, I highly recommend it as a great introductory book into the business revolution in China, however it does not go too much in depth into the complexities of China's evolution in the past 20 years. But Sheff tells a great story and it is definitly a page turner! Rating: - AstoundingOne of the best business books I have ever read. It is an inspiring story, written with insight and passion. I'm ready to pack up and head to China. |
