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The Talented Mr. Marsland: book shines overdue light on electronics entrepreneur
Stanley Marsland The Forgotten Wizard of Waterloo Stanley Marsland and Mike Lazaridis have much in common. Both quit school before...
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Apr 914 min read
624 views
2 comments
“We called him Uncle Chuck” : American rock and roll legend had Kitchener girlfriend, son
AT FIRST GLANCE, there’s nothing fancy or extraordinary about Southill Drive in the south end of Kitchener. Plain-looking bungalows and...
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Dec 11, 202436 min read
3,015 views
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Collateral Damage: Battle of titans at Toronto Star took down former Record publisher
Sometimes bigger is not always better. Just ask Fred Kuntz. His five years as publisher of the Waterloo Region Record, from 2001-2006,...
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May 24, 202315 min read
593 views
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The Boardroom Battle That Shook OpenText
In the company's early years, a swashbuckling president flew high and then crashed. "Those Who Control the Present Control the Past ..."...
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Apr 15, 202215 min read
414 views
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Is storytelling Waterloo’s killer app? An unorthodox theory behind tech success
Researchers Darius Ornston and Lorena Carmago told us how RIM/Blackberry's corporate misanthropy was a blessing in disguise for the...
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Jan 25, 20227 min read
333 views
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Apathetic Anchor Fails to Weigh Down Waterloo
BlackBerry's indifference allowed tech sector to thrive Apathy is not a word uttered positively in Waterloo tech circles. With its...
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Nov 4, 202113 min read
392 views
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Rolling Stone of Telecom Loves to Take on the Big Guys
[Disclosure: Walters is a family friend] VTG: Going The Last Mile To Broaden Broadband's Reach After 45 years of working in...
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Feb 21, 202111 min read
377 views
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Tech rainmaker Aaron Bast starts by planting a seed
Safety in Numbers : An Accountant by Necessity Aaron Bast is a talent scout, but the candidates who audition for him don’t dance, sing or...
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Jan 3, 202110 min read
405 views
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Putting IT in Community : Bob Jonkman’s Expansive Vision
You could call Bob Jonkman a high-tech maverick. As a founder and former member of the Pirate Party of Canada, a frequent Green Party...
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Nov 19, 20206 min read
138 views
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Trafficking in Secrecy : On The Road with Mark Hill & Steve Ballmer
The first clue that this would be an unusually important client was the non-disclosure agreement. Normally Mark Hill didn’t have to sign...
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Sep 27, 20206 min read
344 views
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On The Barricades and Between The Lines : Steve Izma & Anarchy in the UW (and beyond)
[Author's note: Mr. Izma's efforts helped get my foot in the door at Lorimer, the publisher of Blackberry Town] Class Struggle:...
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Aug 10, 20206 min read
608 views
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From the cutting-room floor: Canada Day revelers get quantum surprise
In every book draft there are sections and passages that never make it into the final product. For BlackBerry Town, plenty of material...
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Jun 21, 20208 min read
99 views
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Words don’t always flow easily for prolific Waterloo historian
Ken McLaughlin isn’t sure how many books he has written on local and Canadian history, but figures they number “at least a dozen” in his...
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May 17, 202010 min read
416 views
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Who's the new guy talking to?
Did Tom Motz witness a telephonic courtship ritual that would lead to the birth of the BlackBerry? After BlackBerry Town was published in...
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Apr 19, 20205 min read
241 views
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The Making of BlackBerry Town
A slow and intermittent jog through the first five years, then a desperate sprint to the finish line over the final 12 months. That’s a...
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Mar 22, 202013 min read
233 views
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