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emmaonthursday's review
Fascinating history but there are so many anecdotes within anecdotes that I found it impossible to follow, and that made it feel long-winded and boring.
luisvilla's review
4.0
This is less a book and more a string of anecdotes - a little birdie once told me that even the author admits it was basically an excuse to string together a bunch of great stories he’d heard over the years. But they are great anecdotes and give a lot to chew over, especially in light of the continued tension between personalized v. centralized computing - a recurring theme of the book. Should be read paired with [b:Regional Advantage: Culture and Competition in Silicon Valley and Route 128|69564|Regional Advantage Culture and Competition in Silicon Valley and Route 128|AnnaLee Saxenian|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1388287985s/69564.jpg|67405] to help understand the early history of the area and some of the forces that made the valley what it is.
blehismyname's review
4.0
Wanted to give 3.5 stars. The author says at the beginning of the book that the primary drive was to preserve stories told over dinner tables when reminiscing. It shows. I am not sure if the author was trying to be fancy with story telling or was jumping around timelines to follow a topic, either way the effect was confusing. Long stretches of the book can be cut out, but the parts that work, work.
thirtytwobirds's review
4.0
A great guide to the events that lead up to Apple and co. Most stories about early personal computing start at Apple and go forward -- this one looks back a bit further. It's an inspiring story about the folks that kickstarted the PC industry with a lot of knowledge and a lot of drugs.
The only tough part is that this book covers so many people and jumps around so much that it can feel a bit disjointed at times. You'll be reading and then say "wait, who is this new person?" and realize that they were just introduced out of the blue on the previous page. It would be easier to read if it had a more consistent frame of reference, but that would probably restrict what it could practically cover.
The only tough part is that this book covers so many people and jumps around so much that it can feel a bit disjointed at times. You'll be reading and then say "wait, who is this new person?" and realize that they were just introduced out of the blue on the previous page. It would be easier to read if it had a more consistent frame of reference, but that would probably restrict what it could practically cover.
shayneh's review
3.0
Interesting recounting of the origins of the personal computing revolution; an interesting read after Turing's Cathedral. Were they all on drugs? Hard to say...
maurobio's review
5.0
A most fascinating book, which describes how crooks by the names of Steve and William turned the "machines of loving grace" - created by geniuses like Douglas Engelbart and Alan Kay and promoted by dreamers like Fred Moore and Stewart Brand - into tools to spread hate and fake news, exploit the human labour, and make the rich richer.
bwhitetn's review
5.0
Excellent tale of the early days of "human augmentation" via computer and the first steps towards the personal computer. As the subtitle suggests, the story begins in the early days of the California counterculture and ends with the Homebrew Computer Club in the mid-70s. Excellent companion book for Levy's Hackers.
brianbooks's review
3.0
It took me a while to get through this one...
The multitude of players and stories is somewhat difficult to follow, but overall the narration gives a decent impression of what the Stanford/NorCal scene was like, and who was involved, as computing technology was being developed.
A good bit of the history seems anecdotal, and the connections between counterculture and computer R&D seem strained. I didn't finish this book thinking that PC development was a direct result of any psychedelic experimentation, as the cover jacket suggests. Fun for character sketches, but good luck remembering anyone's name.
Overall, An OK introduction for people who weren't around in the 60's and 70's, or weren't living around Stanford, to follow the development of the PC.
The multitude of players and stories is somewhat difficult to follow, but overall the narration gives a decent impression of what the Stanford/NorCal scene was like, and who was involved, as computing technology was being developed.
A good bit of the history seems anecdotal, and the connections between counterculture and computer R&D seem strained. I didn't finish this book thinking that PC development was a direct result of any psychedelic experimentation, as the cover jacket suggests. Fun for character sketches, but good luck remembering anyone's name.
Overall, An OK introduction for people who weren't around in the 60's and 70's, or weren't living around Stanford, to follow the development of the PC.