Of course, arrogance and rigor can seem like two sides of the same coin. Barry Diller, the C.E.O. of I.A.C., a diverse collection of Internet sites, including Ask.com and Match.com, recalled visiting Page and Brin in the early days of visiting Google. Diller was disconcerted that Page, even as they talked, stared fixedly at the screen of his P.D.A. “It’s one thing if you’re in a room with twenty people and someone is using his P.D.A.,” Diller recalled. “I said to Larry, ‘Is this boring?’”
“No. I’m interested. I always do this,” Page said.
“Well, you can’t do this,” Diller said. “Choose.”
“I’ll do this,” Page said matter-of-factly, not lifting his eyes from his handheld device.
“So I talked to Sergey,” Diller said. “I left thinking that more than most people they were wildly self-possessed.”
Later, Diller said, he came to think that what might be construed as rudeness was also purpose.
Searching for Trouble by Ken Auletta, The New Yorker, 12 October 2009
good read.
