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Ellison the visionary recognized early on that the Internet had explosive potential, so five years ago he refocused his company's products to take advantage of those technologies. By exploiting the Web when he did, he was able to tailor Oracle's database products to meet the needs of the early dot-com outfits, and those products are now firmly rooted in some of the most prominent e-business sites on the Web. Ellison has also taken his software goliath to the Fortune 100, providing those companies with extensive resources to develop e-business strategies and solutions.

A less successful venture Ellison piloted was the network PC, a low-cost, easy-to-use, solid-state appliance designed to replace the traditional PC. Although the device never really took off, mainly because of the plummeting prices of conventional PCs at the time, it demonstrated that thin clients were a viable alternative--and, no doubt, helped accelerate the sea change in PC prices.

Not one to accept defeat, Ellison has since revised his network PC strategy. Instead of trying to build a system from the ground up, he's turned to a standards-based approach, using a Linux kernel and a Netscape Communications Corp. browser to leverage products that have a proven track record. However, devices such as Netpliance's i-opener have been there, done that, and have met with little success.

Ellison's efforts in this area may smack of beating a dead horse, but it doesn't seem to matter; apparently, anything that involves doing battle with Microsoft Corp. is fair game. Ellison once offered to "buy Apple at the drop of a hat" with his friend Steve Jobs, presumably to ensure that Apple Computer would continue to be a thorn in Microsoft's side.

Ellison has certainly made the right choices so far in positioning Oracle's products in the e-commerce space, and in the process he has enabled many companies to realize just how effective an e-commerce site can be. He's also chosen a logical next step, as he continues to drive Oracle into the ASP (application service provider) market. The question remains, though, whether he can allow Oracle to be flexible enough to adapt to the dynamic needs of the e-business market.

Not helping is the fact that Ellison has been pricing Oracle's products out of the midrange sector, leaving many midsize and emerging companies looking for alternatives. Ellison may have been first out of the starting gate, but a slew of aggressive start-ups could give Oracle a run for its money.

Meanwhile, given Ellison's attitude toward Bill Gates, it should come as no surprise that he fully supports the Justice Department's recent ruling to break up Microsoft. With Gates' company weakened even slightly, Oracle could actually surpass its historical triumphs--and that's no doubt just the scenario Ellison has in mind.