Brains, drive, and vision are foundations of Silicon Valley success stories. Make the world a better place and make a fortune in the process. Like so many young people starting out in the Silicon Valley, I knew I was smart, probably smarter than most. I was confident and knew that I could achieve financial success and make major contributions to people's lives and lifestyles. My inventions could give people more free time - I certainly relished mine. Work hard, play harder. I really thought I could have it all. With Carson's guidance, I knew it was possible. My own naivete and arrogance made me blind to the motivations of others. Or maybe it was just that others had more ambition, avarice, and lust for power and felt no qualms about resorting to betrayal or even murder to achieve their goals. Temptation can lead us astray. What tempts you may mean nothing to me, but there's something out there that can seduce us all - money, power, success, notoriety, lust, love, even honesty and ethics. Too much of anything can become a trap from which you never escape. I had a plan - success, reputation, family. Ultimately life got in the way. As the Israelis say, man makes plans and God laughs. This is a story of the evolution of the Silicon Valley and the companies that rule the world today. Fortunes are made and lost as brilliant, talented people come up against forces they never imagined. Their lives are forever changed as they are turned and shaped by The Silicon Lathe.