dkrc Chapter 94 A Single Spark Can Start a Prairie Fire
Chapter 94 A Single Spark Can Start a Prairie Fire
Li Mo pushed open the door and saw Ling Yun facing two monitors. One screen displayed dense lines of code, while the other showed the backend data panel of the newly launched "Starry Sky Technology Forum." Several more cigarette butts filled the ashtray, and the coffee cup beside it was empty.
"Still working on this forum?" Li Mo pulled up a chair and sat down, his tone filled with barely concealed confusion and a hint of anxiety. "Ling Yun, we're practically suffocating under the pressure from Microsoft. Since their 'Partner Program' came out, almost all the decent development teams we contacted have backed out. And now you're putting in so much effort, leading our core browser team, just to optimize a scripting language and create... a forum and these little tools for individual developers?"
He picked up a few pages of the "Starflow" framework API documentation printed on the table and waved them around: "I don't understand. Microsoft is using real money and channel resources to win over the established players who can develop software at the level of Office and Photoshop. And we're trying to please these... scattered rogues? How can this help us fight against Microsoft?"
Ling Yun looked up from the screen, his face showing the fatigue of several sleepless nights, but his eyes remained clear. He didn't directly refute him, but instead pointed to a curve on the data panel that was steadily rising: "Look, the number of registered forum users, unique IPs. Although it's slow, it's growing, and the activity level is very high, especially in the 'Spark Academy' section."
"So what? Even if hundreds of independent developers are interested, what can they make?" Li Mo asked, puzzled.
"Li Mo," Ling Yun leaned back, trying to relax his tone, "Do you think we have a chance of winning if we go up against Microsoft now, competing for those large software companies, such as those that develop graphics processing and large-scale commercial software?"
"Almost none," Li Mo answered decisively. "They rely on Windows' massive user base and dare not take risks easily. Besides, we simply cannot afford the terms Microsoft offers."
"That's right. So we can't compete with Microsoft for 'regular troops'." Ling Yun affirmed his statement. "That's Microsoft's home turf. We are far inferior in terms of manpower and supplies. A frontal assault would be a dead end."
He stood up and drew two simple diagrams on the whiteboard. The one on the left depicted a massive fortress with the words "Microsoft/Wintel Ecosystem" written on it. Outside the fortress were several square formations representing large software companies, connected by solid roads. The one on the right was a seemingly empty field.
"Microsoft's model is to build high walls and standardized highways leading to the fortress. All 'regular troops' who want to enter the city must take their route and abide by their rules. This road is wide and stable, but the toll booths are also set very high."
His pen pointed to the field on the right: "And we, we don't build those highways. What we do is provide the 'guerrillas' on this field—what you call the scattered soldiers, independent developers, small studios, programmers with ideas but limited resources—with sharper 'machetes,' lighter 'tents,' and easier-to-find 'water sources.'"
He pointed to the code: "A faster JavaScript engine means they can do more with less code, achieve smoother results, and reduce server load. The 'Starflow' framework allows them to build complex DOM manipulation and event handling from scratch, just like building blocks. The 'StarPack' tool allows them to easily find pre-written tools, avoiding the need to reinvent the wheel."
"You mean..." Li Mo seemed to have grasped a bit of the gist.
"Differentiated competition," Ling Yun said firmly. "We don't compete with Microsoft on who pays more or who has wider distribution channels. We compete on whose platform is more developer-friendly, whose development tools are more efficient, and who can make creation simpler and cheaper."
He returned to his seat and showed Li Mo several popular posts on the forum: "Look at this post. A developer named David used the 'Starflow' framework to create an online ordering website for his wife's flower shop, complete with product displays, a shopping cart, and a contact form, all in just one weekend. And this one, a few college students are using it to develop an experimental online collaborative drawing project."
"Microsoft doesn't value these applications, and large software companies won't make them. But this is the future of the internet—diversity, meeting countless small, personalized needs," Ling Yun emphasized. "These independent developers are numerous, full of creativity, and small and agile. They don't carry the heavy burdens of large companies and are more receptive to new technologies and platforms."
"I understand what you mean." Li Mo nodded thoughtfully. "Winning over these independent developers, even if their individual strength is small, can add up to a great number. They use our tools to develop all sorts of applications, and even if each application only attracts a few hundred or a few thousand users, it adds up to a considerable number and can greatly enrich the content of our app store."
"Not only that," Ling Yun added, his eyes deep, "it's a positive cycle. The more developers there are, the more applications they create, and the healthier the ecosystem becomes. The healthier the ecosystem, the more users and developers it attracts. And the more advanced our tools are, the easier and cheaper development becomes, and the faster this cycle goes."
He pointed to the lively discussion on the forum on the screen: "What we are doing now is igniting the initial flame of this cycle. Let the first batch of developers taste the benefits and let them become the spark. While Microsoft is still using traditional interest-based methods to maintain its 'regular army,' we are launching a 'people's war' involving countless 'guerrillas' on a vast plain."
Looking at the active IDs and constantly emerging new posts on the screen, Li Mo's previous confusion and anxiety gradually gave way to a new kind of thinking. He realized that Ling Yun wasn't focused on the immediate gains and losses of a single city or region, but rather on laying the foundation for a more fundamental and future-oriented ecosystem. This path might be slower and less noticeable, but once it gained momentum, its power could far exceed expectations.
"I understand." Li Mo let out a long breath. "We really can't beat Microsoft's regular army right now, so we'll go and mobilize the masses."
"That's right." Ling Yun nodded, his gaze returning to the code. "Give our 'guerrillas' the best weapons and supplies, and send them to establish bases behind enemy lines. A single spark can start a prairie fire."
If Uncle Lingyun were here, he would definitely say, "Reading Mao's Selected Works was worthwhile."