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Summary: Commentary
Review: I've gotten quite a bit of e-mails about my commentary on this board, most of them being excellent. However, since they refer to NEXT and 2 were horrid, let me correspond:I am not a brainless egoists like the attorneys that I so "envy" in a sarcastic sense. I further wish to dictate that I do not believe that what I did was wrong. I did what any kid who had a passion would do: find joy in pursuing it. Further, IF I WERE prosecuted, they would NOT be prosecuting me as an individual, but prosecuting my passion for the law and satisfying their own sick desire(s) of "eliminating the competition." Scary, right? We'll see... NEXT does a great job at saying what I want the world to comprehend. Now, I wish for those who despise me to STAND ASIDE. I replied on this board because those e-mail were from members on here. If you hate the book, I'm sorry. I don't... See what's NEXT for me... Sincerely Yours,
Marcus Gregory Arnold
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Summary: 3 out of 5 (chapters) are not bad
Review: To hear Michael Lewis tell it, the Internet is being controlled in large part by teenage boys, whose parents have absolutely no idea what their children are doing in front of the computer until word comes from the outside that something unusual is happening under their roofs. Take for example, Jonathan, a fifteen-year-old teenager from New Jersey, who was so successful in picking stocks that he day-traded his way into buying a $41,000 Mercedes SUV before he could even drive. In the process, he invited a call from the SEC who wanted to know how he made over $800,000 in profits in the stock market, $285,000 of which the SEC demanded he return. Marcus, another fifteen-year old became the most sought-after purveyor of legal advice on AskMe.com even though he had never taken a law course, or even read a "boring" legal book in his life. Criminal law was Marcus's specialty and aside from the hundreds of questions he answered each day over the Internet, hundreds more letters from adults were sent to him through the regular mail, much to the puzzlement of his parents. Daniel, another teenager in the middle of nowhere in England, became the leading expert on Gnutella, the Napster substitute that sprang up when Napster was taken off the Internet for legal reasons. Michael Lewis's visit had Daniel's mum wondering why some best-selling author would be interested in talking with her son who didn't seem to have any life outside of what was on his computer screen. Lewis has written two books in Next. The first three chapters give the hilarious accounts of how these teenagers create their own personas on the Internet and show their parents' emotional reactions when they are hit with their sons' fame. The last two chapters deal with the loss of privacy, and how audiences are parsed for market research by watching TiVo, Replay or similar computer/television products. Finally, there's an academic argument about how computers play in the social structure of the future through the democratization of knowledge. Stick with the first chapters and skim over the last two and you'll find yourself laughing outloud at Lewis's observations.
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Summary: Next should be next on your reading list
Review: I listened to this book on my MP3 player after downloading it from audible.com. Michael Lewis read it personally and did a remarkable job both in writing and reading the book. His insights are quite profound and based on solid observations, personal investigation (including dinner with the Internet Wunderkids and their families.) His wit sparkles but his insights go beyond journalism and approached a cultural historian's understanding of the profound trends the Internet has already started. Next: explores the anthropology of technology, and new behaviors in the face of cultural change.
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Summary: Does Michael Lewis have a point?
Review: I admittedly don't know much about Lewis' pre-Next work, but my intro to his writing wasn't spectacular. His promising subject (social implications of the Internet) died in three fairly boring narratives that you could've read about in the news, and the conclusion failed to bring those narratives together into any kind of meaningful message. But that conclusion by itself is worth a read, if for no other reason than to get you thinking about what Lewis was actually trying to say with the rest of the book.
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Summary: WOW! I liked and I understood and I know more because of it!
Review: This book was an incredibly quick read with entertaining stories and analysis about internet masterminds that are behind the internet boom. Not only did I understand the stockmarket better as a result but I also learned a great deal about the economy and society. I would strongly recommend this book for anyone with the daunting task of reading a book for Economics is school, and I would strongly recommend this book for those just a little eager to learn more.
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Summary: The Review Just Happened
Review: The manner in which the book was split up made it almost impossilbe to get lost or bored. The colorful and witty language makes it an easy and interesting. The theories present a new perspective on the internet, and how it can change our society and mold today's economy. It shows that anyone can penetrate the market because of the invention of the internet. The idea of the pancake thoery is an interesting persective about access to information and equality of opportunity to relay messages. This and other insights make this book a must if you're looking to understand today's changing economy.
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Summary: Excellent content, problematic form
Review: (This review refers to the e-book downloadable edition of this book.) CONTENT: Michael Lewis is a fine reporter on internet/new business and "Next" is a fine book. I give it four, maybe five stars. FORM: The e-book format comes with startling advantages and equally startling disadvantages. BEFORE YOU BUY THE E-BOOK EDITION make sure you understand these: PRO: I wanted a copy of this book really quickly. Amazon does a fine job delivering physical products quickly, but I couldn't wait even one day. With the e-book format I was able to download and begin reading this book within minutes. CON: I was very disappointed with the limitations imposed by the e-book format. At least with a paper book I can photocopy a page and show it to a friend. With this e-book I couldn't cut and paste a quotation into an email, I couldn't print a page, I couldn't loan it to a friend. (I don't think I can even read it on my other computers.) And the Adobe e-book software demanded server privileges on my network. In their zeal to protect content from piracy, "Next's" publishers have gone so far to the extreme that they disable not just normal "fair use," but they have made even the buyer's own personal use annoying, difficult, or impossible. ... SUMMARY: Excellent book, but the e-book format in which I bought it has both striking advantages and disadvantages that a potential buyer should be aware of.
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Summary: Just My Own Analysis
Review: Hello: I'm Marcus Arnold, the legal expert featured in Michael Lewis' book "Next: The Future Just Happened." Many of the individuals writing these reviews only see one side of the story; they fail to realize the insight that Michael Lewis has taken us into with this piece of literature. In reality, this book has, at its best, conveyed my entire message: that law and legal advice is completely overrated. "Advisors" and "Lawyers" are, in one frame or another, merging into one category. Am I saying that I'm better than lawyers? Well frankly, the majority of them are brainless egoists who want nothing but money to fund their sick desires of success. I'm into what I do and continue to like doing for the reason of helping others... Then again, I'm not here to influence your opinion. Think of me as you'd like, stretching as far as self-inflation. ...though that's brilliantly pointless... Michael Lewis has conveyed both the stories of me and Jonathan (who I still talk to) brilliantly. We may not be the NEW future, but the future--our future--has already shocked the world. What's...NEXT? --Marcus G. Arnold
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Summary: The true impact of the Internet
Review: Now that the Internet bubble has burst it is time to separate the hype from the reality of the Internet. No, the Internet is not going to instantly transport us into the age of Star Trek TNG but it will, and has begun to, effect changes upon our society. Next examines how the anonymity and global scope of the Internet has toppled several societal barriers. For his case studies Michael Lewis chooses subjects where the juxtaposition of old ways and new ways strike the starkest contrast. Primarily these involve teenagers and young adults who, freed from physical constraints, are allowed to roam freely in the world of adults.
From the high school student who is sought out for stock tips in-between classes to the teenager offering legal advice from his living room it is clear that things are not how they once were before the arrival of the Information Age. At first blush it is rather humorous watching these young "impostors" pull it off. But, after viewing the success of these individuals one can't help but ask the question, "why not?" Next asks the question now being posed by the Internet; what does it mean to be an "imposter" and what does it mean to be an "expert"? Is it the schooling, social connections and years of experience that constitute success or is what matters simply the combination of an Internet presence and how well you do your job?
Furthermore, Lewis dives in to dark world of the hacker culture where position is established by how well you can manipulate the system. The book sounds a sour note in examining this growing counter culture where basic tenets of society such as personal property and respect for law are foreign concepts. A important, well-written and thought provoking work, Next not only exposes the impact of the Internet and the dawning of the Age of Information, it also gets one thinking about what is truly, for lack of a better word, next.
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Summary: Thought you knew about the internet?
Review: At first glance, one would think that the internet is a porn delivery system for a $175 million a year industry. Michael Lewis shows us what the future is all about. It's about 12 and 13 year olds gaining power through computers and the internet. It's about the death of the established order and the rise of the people. It's really about Democracy in it's truest form. If you really want to know what is happening, and can stand the fact that some 13 year old will make more money than you ever dreamed of, this is the collection of stories that you must hear.
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