Ian Hickson
British software engineer; editor of the HTML specification at the WHATWG and a founder of Flutter, at Opera Software and then at Google from 2005 to 2023.
Ian Hickson did not write this page.
We collected these quotes from things they published elsewhere, and every quote links to where it was said. They have no account here and have not endorsed this site. Quotes are word for word; the short line under each one is our own restatement, not their wording. Their own site. Is this you? Claim it or ask us to remove it. Or tell us what is wrong here.
-
Their wordsThe worst thing to do, when you receive such complaints, is take them to heart and try to fix them. This is because by definition you wanted these complaints. They are a sign that the thing you built is built as you wanted to build it.
- 5 months earlier
-
Their wordsThe reality of the situation was that the power lay entirely in the hands of the users. The users chose browsers. A browser vendor that ignored what the users wanted would lose market share. Market share is everything in this space.
↗Power dynamics in web specificationsln.hixie.ch 1st of 2 in this piece
-
Our reading
When browsers disagree with a web specification, the specification is wrong and must change.
Their wordsThe WHATWG was founded on this core principle — the specifications need to actually specify reality. When the browsers disagree with the spec, the spec is by definition incorrect and needs to change, regardless of how much technically superior the design in the spec is.
↗Power dynamics in web specificationsln.hixie.ch 2nd of 2 in this piece
- 8 months earlier
-
Their wordsI often saw privacy advocates argue against Google proposals in ways that were net harmful to users. Some of these fights have had lasting effects on the world at large; one of the most annoying is the prevalence of pointless cookie warnings we have to wade through today.
↗Reflecting on 18 years at Googleln.hixie.ch 1st of 5 in this piece
-
Their wordsThen Google had layoffs. The layoffs were an unforced error driven by a short-sighted drive to ensure the stock price would keep growing quarter-to-quarter, instead of following Google's erstwhile strategy of prioritising long-term success even if that led to short-term losses (the very essence of "don't be evil").
↗Reflecting on 18 years at Googleln.hixie.ch 2nd of 5 in this piece
-
Our reading
After layoffs, employees stop taking risks and start hoarding knowledge to protect themselves.
Their wordsWhereas before people might focus on the user, or at least their company, trusting that doing the right thing will eventually be rewarded even if it's not strictly part of their assigned duties, after a layoff people can no longer trust that their company has their back, and they dramatically dial back any risk-taking.
↗Reflecting on 18 years at Googleln.hixie.ch 3rd of 5 in this piece
-
Their wordsMuch of these problems with Google today stem from a lack of visionary leadership from Sundar Pichai, and his clear lack of interest in maintaining the cultural norms of early Google. A symptom of this is the spreading contingent of inept middle management.
↗Reflecting on 18 years at Googleln.hixie.ch 4th of 5 in this piece
-
Their wordsI do think the clock is ticking, though. The deterioration of Google's culture will eventually become irreversible, because the kinds of people whom you need to act as moral compass are the same kinds of people who don't join an organisation without a moral compass.
↗Reflecting on 18 years at Googleln.hixie.ch 5th of 5 in this piece
- 8 weeks earlier
-
Their wordsDecline any recurring meeting with more than one other person. Keep track of how productive recurring meetings are being. If they're not productive, cancel them. If they're only occasionally productive, reduce the frequency.