Thom reviewed Eccentric Orbits by Joe Bob Briggs
Review of 'Eccentric Orbits' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
Part story of cool tech (satellite phones), part business story (project kickoff to bankruptcy and beyond) and part biography of Dan Colussy. The David and Goliath aspect of the third part is what the author is most excited to tell, the first part is what I most wanted to read.
The cool tech is very cool, and describes the Iridium solution in detail while delivering plenty of comparisons to competing solutions. Many investors were in it primarily for that aspect, and I am glad that it is a major part of the story. The business story goes into a LOT of detail, and is at times numbing. I was grateful for the detailed history of Motorola, though the author really paints them as the bad guy here.
The biography and description of Colussy's struggle also spared no details, and aspects of Dan gathering millions to avoid the latest deorbit deadline …
Part story of cool tech (satellite phones), part business story (project kickoff to bankruptcy and beyond) and part biography of Dan Colussy. The David and Goliath aspect of the third part is what the author is most excited to tell, the first part is what I most wanted to read.
The cool tech is very cool, and describes the Iridium solution in detail while delivering plenty of comparisons to competing solutions. Many investors were in it primarily for that aspect, and I am glad that it is a major part of the story. The business story goes into a LOT of detail, and is at times numbing. I was grateful for the detailed history of Motorola, though the author really paints them as the bad guy here.
The biography and description of Colussy's struggle also spared no details, and aspects of Dan gathering millions to avoid the latest deorbit deadline were not as interesting to me as to the author. In the end, a solid book, if a little long. 3½ stars.