1997_04 The Daily Collegian April 1997

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News
THE DAILY
COLLEGIAN
Thursday, April 24,1997
Apple loyalists blast proposed Oracle takeover of Apple
By Jodi Mardesich
Khight-Ridder
Tribune News Service
CUPERTINO — Oracle Chair¬
man Larry Ellison turned to the In¬
ternet last month to drum up sup¬
port for his scheme to save Apple
Computer Inc. Now it looks as
though Ellison is losing the war for
Cyberspace mindshare as a grow¬
ing number of Mac fanatics see
Ellison as more threat than savior.
Incensed that Ellison seems to
want to mine Apple for its brand
name — not for its easy-to-use
Macintosh technology—a 20-year-
old college student has set up a
"Fight Back for the Mac!" Web site
to make sure Ellison gets the
thumbs-down message.
Since Friday, the site has col¬
lected more than 1.400 signatures
on a petition to stop Ellison. So an¬
gry are some respondents that they
are threatening to boycott products
made made by Oracle Corp. should
he launch a takeover. Others arc
urging Macintosh users to buy and
accumulate Apple slock as a poten¬
tial defense. '
This latest twist in the Apple
saga comes as details emerged last
week that Ellison essentially wants
to use Apple as a tool to popularize
the "network computer," a simple
inexpensive alternative to a PC
whose sales would benefit Oracle.
When Ellison first disclosed in
late March that fie was assembling
an investor group and considering
bidding for Apple, he piqued the
interest of many"who have been
hoping that Apple could pull out of
its money-losing slump. But the
change in attitude of fervent Mac-
loyalists—a vocal, cult-like lot—
could lake some steam out of
Ellison's endeavors.
Tim McClcary. a computer sci¬
ence student at Millcrsvillc Univer¬
sity in Pennsylvania, started his
own brand of online activism with
the anti-Ellison site he opened
Wednesday. "My intentions were to
make the Macintosh community
aware of what Larry Ellison is try¬
ing to do and to gather support
against him." McClcary said.
He and others have registered
the domain name Savcapple.com.
which will become the home of the
petition, mail and other activities to
try to aid ailing Apple. The
Saveapple.cojn site will be acti¬
vated in the next few days.
McCleary said.
"I was pretty upset, because
(Ellison) just basically acted as
though he could take over Apple,
andjhc Mac community would
have no say," McClcary said in an
interview.
True to form, the e-mail on
McCleary's site is passionate. "I
was not sure...how I felt about your
plans for a takeover. As of now I
know how I feel. Threatened,"
wrote Jarrctl Kertcs/.. chief execu¬
tive officer of Tsunami Design, in
San Francisco. "In the future, if you
do kill off Apple as wc know it, I
will boycott any product you are
even remotely involved in."
On the site. Ellison is called,
variously, "a foot," "a villain" and
a man who would "destroy Apple
as a company."
Adding to the loyalists' ire was
that Ellison no longer seemed in¬
terested in hearing their concerns.
A spokesman for Ellison said his
mail box has been closed because
the initial feedback had been re¬
ceived.
Ellison, who has not disclosed
who his financial backers might be
nor whether he will ultimately
launch a bid, did take note of
McClcary's protest.
While he had been quoted in a
Japanese newspaper last week as
Reform
Continued from page 2.
to an appointive position, the direc¬
tors should be better able to follow
through on4ho.se campaign pledges.
Although ASI's by-laws and
Election Couc don't appear to vio¬
late any law, a state law, contained
in the Nonprofit Corporation Law,
backs up the amehdmenl being pro¬
posed here.        \
ASI, which is a nonprofit cor-
Hand
Continued from page 2.
lal activity."
There's a thought — the people
who passed a budget nearly nine
months late, whose only legislative
accomplishment all year has been
lo give some of their ow n members
stipends, who solve their differ¬
ences by throwing furniture, who
frequently can't make quorum to
meet, where a substantial number
flunk out in most semesters are go¬
ing to pretend to be businesspeople.
all with a nice supply of student
fees.
I realize, that the merits of
unincorporation isn't something
that the average student lies awake
at night,pondering, but what it
comes down to is that individuals
simply must be held accountable for
their actions.
Where there are no conse-
quences for irresponsible behavior,
chaos results — and that explains
the ASI.
And thanks to the vole of lasl
year's senate, it will continue to
explain the ASI for years to come.
poration, is subject to California's
Nonprofit Corporation Law. Sec¬
tion 5213 of this law recognizes that
ASI "may have a chairman of the
board or a president or both." The
ASI by-laws, providing for both the
LVP (chair) and the president, are
consistent with this law.
The section also says: "Except
as otherwise provided by the ar¬
ticles or bylaws, officers shall be
chosen by the board and serve at
the pleasure of the board..." The
ASI by-laws make it legally permis¬
sible.
Ordinarily, soon after they're
elected, the officers of an organi¬
zation hold an organizational meet¬
ing for appointing officers like the
LVP.
It is up to the ASI directors to
get their job done. It should also be
up to them to appoint an LVP who
will ensure that they do.
Classes and workshops begin throughout the summer.
No formal admission requirements. For a free summer
session bulletin write or call:
1997 Summer Session, 333M Oregon Hall
1279 University of Oregon, Eugene OR 97403-1279
(541)346-3475
http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~uosummer/
r -
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saying he would turn Apple into a
network computer maker, Ellison
sent an e-mail clarification lo the
college student Saturday "I intend
to,"Use the Mac OS to build Mac
NCs. Big Macs will continue."
Ellison wrote.
Ellison didn't say he had been
misquoted in the Japanese newspa¬
per. Instead, he expanded his vision:
"I am a Mac user. Have been since
1984. The only way to save the Mac
is to increase unit volume. Big
Macs—like the one you and I have
grown to love will continue. Net¬
works of low-cost Mac NCs will be
sold to schools and add to die over¬
all Mac volume," he wrote.
Some Mac users want Ellison
and others, including the press, to
back oil and give Apple Chairman
Gilbert Ameho a chance to execute
his strategy. "They have a plan in
place," McCleary said. "This would
just be one more distraction."
The "Fight Back" site is http://
www.millersv.edu/
(tilde)tam84877/. The petition is
http://w ww.{olby.edu/personal/
pmgulezi/pctition.html.
The Nation's
MCAT
course
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