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little bit more。 It was about me and my computer interacting with anyone anywhere
on any machine； which is what e…mail is all about； and me and my computer interacting
with anybody's Web site on the Internet； which is what browsing is all about。 In short；
the PC…Windows phase begat the Netscape browsing…e…mail phase and the two together
enabled more people to communicate and interact with more other people anywhere on
the planet than ever before。
But the fun was just beginning。 This phase was just the foundation for the next step
in flattening the flat world。
Flatten
Work Flow Software
Let's Do Lunch： Have Your Application
Talk to My Application
I met Scott Hyten； the CEO of Wild Brain； a cutting…edge animation studio in San
Francisco that produces films and cartoons for Disney and other major studios； at
a meeting in Silicon Valley in the winter of 2004。1 had been invited by John Doerr；
the venture capitalist； to test out the ideas in this book to a few of the companies
that he was backing。 Hyten and I really hit it off； maybe because after hearing my
arguments he wrote me an e…mail that said； 〃I am sure in Magellan's time there were
plenty of theologians； geographers； and pundits who wanted to make the world flat
again。 I know the world is flat； and thank you for your support。〃 A man after my own
heart。
When I asked him to elaborate； Hyten sketched out for me how animated films are
produced today through a global supply chain。 I understood immediately why he too
had concluded that the world is flat。 〃At Wild Brain；〃 he said； 〃we make something
out of nothing。 We learn how to take advantage of the flat world。 We are not fighting
it。 We are taking advantage of it。〃
Hyten invited me to come and watch them produce a cartoon segment to really appreciate
how flat the world is； which I did。 The series they were working on when I showed
up was for the Disney Channel and called Higglytown Heroes。 It was inspired by all
the ordinary people who rose to the challenge of 9/11。 Higglytown 〃is the typical
1950s small town；〃 said Hyten。 〃It is Pleasantville。 And we are exporting the
production of this American small town around the world…literally and figuratively。
The foundation of the story is that every person； all the ordinary people living their
lives； are the heroes in this small town…from the schoolteacher to the pizza delivery
man。〃
This all…American show is being produced by an all…world supply chain。 〃The recording
session；〃 explained Hyten； 〃is located near the artist； usually in New York or L。A。；
the design and direction is done in San Francisco； the writers network in from their
homes （Florida； London； New York； Chicago； LA； and San Francisco）； and the animation
of the characters is done in Bangalore with edits from San Francisco。 For this show
we have eight teams in Bangalore working in parallel with eight different writers。
This efficiency has allowed us to contract with fifty 'stars' for the twenty…six
episodes。 These interactive recording/writing/ animation sessions allow us to record
an artist for an entire show in less than half a day； including unlimited takes and
rewrites。 We record two actors per week。 For example； last week we recorded Anne Heche
and Smokey Robinson。 Technically； we do this over the Internet。 We have a VPN ＇virtual
private network＇ configured on computers in our offices and on what we call writers'
'footballs；' or special laptop computers that can connect over any cat…5 Ethernet
connection or wireless broadband connection in the 'field。' This VPN allows us to
share the feed from the microphone； images from the session； the real…time script；
and all the animation designs amongst all the locations with a simple log…in。 There…
73
fore； one way for you to observe is for us to ship you a football。 You connect at
home； the office； most hotel rooms； or go down to your local Starbucks ＇which has
wireless broadband Internet access＇； log on； put on a pair of Bose noise…reduction
headphones； and listen； watch； read； and comment。 'Sharon； can you sell that line
a little more？' Then； over the eleven…week production schedule for the show； you can
log in twenty…four hours a day and check the progress of the production as it follows
the sun around the world。 Technically； you need the 'football' only for the session。
You can use your regular laptop tofollow the 'dailies' and 'edits' over the production
cycle。〃
I needed to see Wild Brain firsthand； because it is a graphic example of the next
layer of innovation； and the next flattener； that broadly followed on the Berlin
Wall…Windows and Netscape phases。 I call this the 〃work flow phase。〃 When the walls
went down； and the PC； Windows； and Netscape browser enabled people to connect with
other people as never before； it did not take long before all these people who were
connecting wanted to do more than just browse and send e…mail； instant messages；
pictures； and music over this Internet platform。 They wanted to shape things； design
things； create things； sell things； buy things； keep track of inventories； do somebody
else's taxes； and read somebody else's X…rays from half a world away。 And they wanted
to be able to do any of these things from anywhere to anywhere and from any computer
to any computer…seamlessly。 The wall…Windows…Netscape phases paved the way for that
by standardizing the ways words； music； pictures； and data would be digitized and
transported on the Internet…so e…mail and browsing became a very rich experience。
But for all of us to go to the next stage； to get more out of the Internet； the
flattening process had to go another notch。 We needed two things。 We needed
programmers to come along and write new applications… new software…that would enable
us really to get the maximum from our computers as we worked with these digitized
data； words； music； and pictures and shaped them into products。 We also needed more
magic pipes； more transmissions protocols； that would ensure that everyone's software
applications could connect with everyone else's software applications。 In short； we
had to go from an Internet that just connected peo74
pie to people； and people to their own applications； to an Internet that could connect
any of my software programs to any of your software programs。 Only then could we really
work together。
Think of it this way： In the beginning； work flow consisted of your sales department
taking an order on paper； walking it over to your shipping department； which shipped
the product； and then someone from shipping walking over to billing with a piece of
paper and instructing them to churn out an invoice to the customer。 As a result of
the Berlin Wall…Windows…Netscape phases； work flow took a huge leap forward。 Now your
sales department could electronically take that order； e…mail it to the shipping
department within your own company； and then have the shipping department send out
the product to the customer and automatically spit out a bill at the same time。 The
fact that all the departments within your company were seamlessly interoperable and
that work could flow between them was a great boost to productivity…but this could
happen only if all your company's departments were using the same software and
hardware systems。 More often than not； back in the 1980s and early 1990s； a company's
sales department was running Microsoft and the inventory department was running
Novell； and they could not communicate with each other。 So work did not flow as easily
as it should。
We often forget that the software industry started out like a bad fire department。
Imagine a city where every neighborhood had a different interface for connecting the
fire hose to the hydrant。 Everything was fine as long as your neighborhood fire
department could handle your fire。 But when a fire became too big； and the fire engines
from the next neighborhood had to be called in； they were useless because they could
not connect their hoses to your hydrants。
For the world to get flat； all your internal departments…sales； marketing；
manufacturing； billing； and inventory…had to become interoperable； no matter what
machines or software each of them was running。 And for the world to get really flat；
all your systems had to be interoperable with all the systems of any other company。
That is； your sales department had to be connected to your supplier's inventory
department and your supplier's inventory department had to be seamlessly connected
to its supplier's supplier； which was a factory in China。 That way； when you
made a sale； an item was automatically shipped from your supplier's warehouse； and
another item was automatically manufactured by your supplier's supplier； and a bill
was generated from your billing department。 The disparate computer systems and
software applications of three distinctly different companies had to be seamlessly
interoperable so that work could flow between them。
In the late 1990s； the software industry began to respond to what its consumers wanted。
Technology companies； through much backroom wrangling and trial a