Book excerpt: Competing in the high-tech computer market is a lot like a war -- especially if you work at Microsoft. Bill Gates's gladiators -- his engineers, evangelists, and programmers -- were famous for seizing new terrain and new technology, converting nonbelievers, and always winning . . . no matter what the cost. No one took the lessons of Microsoft more to heart than Craig Eisler, Eric Engstrom, and Alex St. John, a trio of software engineers who were willing to do almost anything to conquer a market of their own, even if that meant disregarding procedure and protocol. Michael Drummond gained exclusive access to their story, and the result -- in this updated edition -- is a revealing glimpse into the world's most successful company. Renegades of the Empire isn't just a tale of technology and power -- it's a story of fascinating science, of high-tech boys and their toys. Even more, though, it's a tantalizing, behind-the-scenes look at how three engineers conquered an empire.