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Rating: 
Summary: What went wrong... but also what went right
Review: First of all, the title of this book is grossly misleading. Rather than a how-to handbook for business success in the post-dotcom era, "Dot.bomb" analyzes the fall of the most notorious dotcoms, and postulates how they might have succeeded. As the book illustrates, there's no single reason why the dotcom market imploded in early 2000; the market was born out of a flukish combination of events (affordable Internet access, the arrival of Windows 95, an exuberant stock market, etc.) and likewise crumbled through a similar combination of circumstances. Bad business models, bad management, untested technology and a lack of investor confidence all played roles in the failure of one dotcom after another."Dot.bomb," however, also examines the dotcom enterprises that succeeded, such as eBay, Priceline and our dear old Amazon. What made these ventures an exception is a major thrust of the book -- and perhaps the most informative. It also provides a light at the end of the proverbial tunnel for the reader weary of failure stories. Since the latest examples in the edition I read were from early 2001, one hopes that a newer edition would bring the dotcom story up to date. How the Internet industry has responded to the recession, corporate scandals and 9/11 are tales that an updated version of "Dot.bomb" ought to cover.
Rating:
Summary: What went wrong... but also what went right
Review: First of all, the title of this book is grossly misleading. Rather than a how-to handbook for business success in the post-dotcom era, "Dot.bomb" analyzes the fall of the most notorious dotcoms, and postulates how they might have succeeded. As the book illustrates, there's no single reason why the dotcom market imploded in early 2000; the market was born out of a flukish combination of events (affordable Internet access, the arrival of Windows 95, an exuberant stock market, etc.) and likewise crumbled through a similar combination of circumstances. Bad business models, bad management, untested technology and a lack of investor confidence all played roles in the failure of one dotcom after another. "Dot.bomb," however, also examines the dotcom enterprises that succeeded, such as eBay, Priceline and our dear old Amazon. What made these ventures an exception is a major thrust of the book -- and perhaps the most informative. It also provides a light at the end of the proverbial tunnel for the reader weary of failure stories. Since the latest examples in the edition I read were from early 2001, one hopes that a newer edition would bring the dotcom story up to date. How the Internet industry has responded to the recession, corporate scandals and 9/11 are tales that an updated version of "Dot.bomb" ought to cover.
Rating: 
Summary: Now is the time to learn from our "new-economy" mistakes
Review: If you ever wondered what went wrong, how and why the "dot.com" sector self-destructed so fast, this is manadatory reading. Sean, in his methodical manner, tempered with wit and humor, describes the details of the "unthinkable" of a few years back... the collaspe of the tech "fad"... and the survival of the tech revolution. He makes these distinctions as well as offers a blueprint for the continuing evolution of the revolution. A fast compelling read, recommended for anyone interested in technology's future.
Rating:
Summary: Now is the time to learn from our "new-economy" mistakes
Review: If you ever wondered what went wrong, how and why the "dot.com" sector self-destructed so fast, this is manadatory reading. Sean, in his methodical manner, tempered with wit and humor, describes the details of the "unthinkable" of a few years back... the collaspe of the tech "fad"... and the survival of the tech revolution. He makes these distinctions as well as offers a blueprint for the continuing evolution of the revolution. A fast compelling read, recommended for anyone interested in technology's future.
Rating:
Summary: Good, critical look at the big implosion
Review: Sean Carton does a thorough job of exploring and exploding the myths that brought down the dot.com boom. As a front-line, engaged player, Carton not only had a good view, he has a good mind for knowing and seeing what went wrong. He's working on his doctorate and he should be a great professor of this genre. This is an interesting companion to David Kuo's book. With a very similar title, Kuo is funnier and more dramatic, primarily because valueamerica.com was such a huge, single implosion and Kuo, by training, is a writer and, to some degree, a spin doctor. More serious and critical, Carton pulls no punches, examines a lot more companies, and has a more technical, well-grounded understanding the business models (or lack thereof) that created and destroyed the late 1990's version of the new economy. Start with "the greater fool" theory. Carton's book is better for the serious student wanting to see the big business picture. Carton is methodical and crisp, even dry at times. The graphics of the book, including the font and page layout, could also have been more appealing or reader-friendly. If you're teaching an e-commerce course, as I have, you want to consider Dot.Bomb.
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