Gary Wisniewski

An incurable American entrepreneur living in Melbourne Australia. Born in 1957, just missed first hand the post-war consumerist plunge that has affected my life so much. Love music, play classical piano (to see inside myself), and the guitar (for fun and to show off). Considered by some to be the most talented software engineer they ever met, but I persist at trying other things. Being a businessman, a manager, a marketer, a hardware engineer, a designer, a photographer. Done all those professionally. Always put huge obstacles between me and success, but seem to succeed in spite of myself. Like to do it the hard way maybe. Never make the same mistake twice. Failure is the best educator.

Did lots of stuff in software. Wrote a compiler for Data General (1980), developed a satellite data distribution system for Gulf Oil (1983), notable nationwide coverage for 16-bit computer invention with partner, strange and unusual (1985), but it led to links to the VC industry, but first got a job as systems architect of a AI-based learning system at a CMU-spinoff (1987), tried to start some companies, finally did (1988, Apex Software), got contracts with many, including Ashton-Tate (dBASE professional compiler, what a hoot), and saw the storm coming (really did), and dumped $1M "contract buyout" cash into Agility/VB, database add-on for VB (1991), got screwed by Microsoft who crushed the market "at a whim" and finally learned how to patch their potholes (with much help from a business partner), extracted technology TrueGrid, became best of breed (1992), did deal with Microsoft, incorporated it into Visual Studio (1994-), realized I had lost my path (1995), left Apex suddenly (fell in love), disappeared for a year, showed up in Australia, started Spider Eye Studios (1996-), great technology and sites for BMG, Warner Music, Telstra, did a lot of software engineering for fun and profit (mostly fun).

See a new opportunity on the horizon that not everybody sees (2004), reinventing myself and going to raise money and do something bigger than I've ever done. Wish me luck.