Rodent Regatta

THE DISK DRIVE INDUSTRY

Frank Paynter has asked us to be patient as he readies an interview with Tom Shugart. Though I have no idea of Tom’s relationship (if any) to Alan Shugart of Shugart & Seagate disk drive fame, the Shugart name and several recent business scandals have reminded me of the early days of the ”small” disk drive industry in the U.S.
Does anyone remember the great Miniscribe disk drive scandal? Not only were bricks put in the boxes they were shipping, but they were shipping boxes of bricks to their own finished goods warehouse and accounting for the shipments as sales – not inventory. Before we assume that Enron, Worldcom and Andersen are somehow new phenomena, a bit of history might be in order. From government to business, you’ll discover there’s not much new under the sun!