Rating: 
Summary: The Way We Were....A Stunning Prophecy for Modern Times
Review: I know, the title sounds so serious. But despite the fact that Being Digital was published and written five years ago does not lower its relevancy to the year 2000-and forward. Negroponte does a wonderful job on describing in recognizable and easy to understand language, the influence that computers, the internet, and digital media has been having over our lives...and how it will continue to grow.There is almost a cynical touch to this book that certainly adds to its validity. Many people, (including me, when I can't get something to work) are fearful of technology and the rate at which it is growing. It is somewhat disquieting to see people spending thousands of dollars on a computer that will be obsolete in two years. The quick synopsis on the back of this book begins with: "The book you are holding is probably obsolete: it consists of atoms, which are bulky and cumbersome to transport. And, increasingly, the dominant unit of human interaction are bits." Being Digital introduces the reader into the digital world-where bits (1's and 0's strung together) are hitting mainstream. Bits are computer DNA, basically. Having a digital source (such as an mp3 or DVD) means that you can make perfect, exact copies of the strings of 1's and 0's on it. Thus, it is also an extremely high quality bit of media. (no pun intended, hehe) As more and more things are being transferred to bits-something I am just as guilty of as anyone else-it is becoming less and less important to actually have a physical (analog?) copy. For instance, since mp3s made their debut, many people have found no need for buying the CD-I mean, why? When you can download a perfectly equal copy, for free, no less, and either burn it to a CD, or put it on an mp3 player, or hell, even keep it in your hard drive. The only (slight) problem with this book is the fact that it has been around for so long-well, a long time in technology standards. Published in 1995, it still remains relevant for us to explore where technology is taking us.
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Summary: A cheerful, but uncritical, look at being wired...
Review: MIT Media Lab's darling, Nicholas Negroponte is _the_ pundit of the digital era. One of his most often quoted analogies, "atoms to bits", is explained in this well written look at the future. With verve and clear vision, Negroponte examines the effect of being wired, and (correctly) emphasizes content above all. He makes concise statements without techno-babble, and does some small debunking of current myths. The work is flawed by the one-sided, totally optimistic look at technology. It is almost as bad as Stoll's raving in _Silicon Snake Oil_, and the need for an unbiaised, critical opinion is clear. Regardless, _being digital_ is a great book to tell venture capitalists to read before they invest in your Internet capable weenie roaster
Rating:
Summary: Fascinating and both too optimistic at the same time.
Review: As an Information Science minor this book has been mentioned many times and I finally had a chance to read it. Even though it is noe 8 years old it still is very useful, his theory of the change from atoms to bits is revolutionary and with it he has named what has been going on: the move to a more and more digital world, whether we like it or not. I would definitely recommend it to anyone interested in the new digital world. There is however one major flaw in this book, although he briefly mentions it in the epilogue. What are the broader societal complications? Nergroponte makes it look like our lives will be perfect and easier. I agree in part, but there are some things to be critical of. Many people in the media seem to be happy with what I would call customized news; you only get the news you want. But what do we want? Doesn't news we hadn't thought of before increase our knowlegde of the world as well? If we only want to read left or rightwing editorials, will we ever understand what the other side thinks? Won't we be molded into a certain way of thinking? There is a funny part about the digitial sister in law, a computer that knows what you like and can therefore tell you which movie you should see. What about moods? surprises? Won't digital machines tell us what to like this way? Read it however, even though you might not like it, it's a classic, if only because of its influence.
Rating: 
Summary: Being Digital
Review: Reading the book Being Digital by Nicholas Negroponte was interesting in the aspect that the book is five years old in such a fast moving industry and the book is still relevant today. Five years in the computer world may be compared to forty years in other industries. Negroponte mentions the past (atoms) and how he feels computers will take society into the future (bits). The past is being the industrial revolution and the future being the information age. As the industrial revolution changed the direction of society, the information age will change society on the same kind of scale. Possibly someday everything will be automated, all you will have to do is talk to the computer, microwave, and toaster. Past, present, and future computer technologies were discussed throughout the book. Related markets of television with the advancements with High Definition Television (HDTV), and the video industry were discussed with possible idea of where that is going. The book was full with information but seemed to be very boring. I would find myself reading a page and thinking about something else, then having to re-read the page. The book basically analyzes where we have been with computer technology and where it could possibly go. I recommend this book to people who know nothing about the past, present, and future of the computer world and to people having trouble falling to sleep at night.
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Summary: Past, Present, and Future
Review: Nicholas Negroponte knows that many people fear technology and refuse to understand it. He also knows that technological advances are inevitable. One day, computers, bytes, and bits will be a part of almost everything we do. Being Digital is a simplistic explanation of the history of data communications, the present use of computers and how we interact with them, and what may be in store for us in the future. Throughout this book, Negroponte emphasizes that there is a difference between bits and atoms and there will always be that distinction. It is made clear that bits of data will not feed the hungry, but can provide a means for millions of people to discuss world hunger and try to resolve it. He attempts to calm the fear that computers will rule our lives. He merely views computers as advancing communications between humans, not a replacement for us. Many issues are addressed in Being Digital. Although published in 1995, many of these issues still pertain to us today. It sounds funny, but 5 years in a digital age is like 20 years in real life. Technology has come a long way in 5 years and Negroponte predicted it all. He addressed the laws of the Internet, Netiquette, privacy issues, encryption, and even the notion that all media on the Internet will be made for the individual, not the mass population. We see this today where sites have a personal start page like My Yahoo! and My Netscape. You learn what you want to know. Negroponte made a wonderful attempt to explain the workings of the Internet without getting too technical. He made several comparisons to situations most people can relate to like describing bandwidth as lanes on a highway. With ease, he explained how HDTV, digital cable, and multimedia work while teaching the reader all the cool lingo and acronyms associated with each. I found Being Digital to be very simple to read and insightful. Anyone who is computer illiterate or afraid of technology, will find this book to be entertaining and informative about the world around us. For those of us who dive into a computer daily and get lost in the digital world and dream of innovations to come, Negroponte teases our minds and predicts the future with the use of computers in cars, appliances, and their capabilities to communicate to one another to insure a comfortable lifestyle.
Rating: 
Summary: Totally trivial and poorly written
Review: I read this book a few years ago - correction - I read it about half way through and got so disgusted by its triviality of content and terrible prose that I flung it back into my bookcase.
I largely agree with "A reader from Lakewood, CO United States" and can't comprehend why anyone could have a positive opinion about this book.
The book has some significance, be it a very negative one, viz. that its bad, cobbled together content, by, mind you, the man in charge of the MIT Media Lab, symbolizes the typical ignorance of many scientists regarding the historical, socio-cultural context in which new technology should be viewed.
I would recommend a crash course in Lewis Mumford's great ideas, as discussed in Technics and Civilization and the Myth of the Machine, to all students embarking on high-tech research and development.
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Summary: Relevant and interesting
Review: I've read this book about 3 years late! Yet its arguments are as exciting and relevant as they were 3 years ago. This book is NOT really about fancy visions of the future. Rather it is a hard hitting look at the suboptimal thinking and quick-fix utilization of todays technologies; instead of a truly revolutionary approach that is needed.
A simple example is the authors lucid example of a doctor from the 19th Century walking into todays hospitals and being whammed by the advances. But the same cannot be said for a teacher of the 19th century walking into todays classrooms... except for the syllabus. Similar examples abound in the fact that technologies of devices are changing only incrementally to accomodate the bandwidth revolution, but the change needed is a quantum leap, which we are not doing. The author does portray various visions of the future where the full effects of technology would be used, and is clear in pointing out that these are not idle impractical fantasies.
Quite a very good book, and for those looking for a far more cohesive futuristic book bordering on Sci-Fi, a book well worth reading is "Visions" by Michio Kaku.
Rating: 
Summary: the future didn't come true.
Review: I have to say that this book could be very interesting if we were in 1995 or 1996. But from the modern perspective, this book is too simplified and optimistic. I can't deny that some anticipations in this book may come true in the future, but obviously, not now, in 2002.
Rating:
Summary: Kind of good for none techies
Review: I like this book but must take it with a grain of salt. It was joining the dot.com bubble so to speak although I had known of the author shortly before the 1990's. I like that my girl friend enjoying listening to the audio book verison. She isn't much of a cyberpsace person but she and I both found the story to be positive and slightly uplifting. Not very difficult to read too in the hard copy and it has an attractive cover.
Rating:
Summary: Little value today and poorly written
Review: The book was given to my wife years ago but she couldn't get past the first chapter because of the ridiculously simplistic writing style (she has higher standards than me). I ran out of books to read and so picked it off our shelf. Being an engineer I figured "Being Digital" is a book I should read. At least I've read it now, and so I can rant with some authority. It has some interesting ideas, but unless you are completely new to the internet and information technology, you've heard them stated better elsewhere. There are many very ridiculous statements, like "... I really believe x ...". Where x is a statement like "in 10 years more people will be spend more of their time on the internet than they spend watching TV." The guy has an opinion, great, but he makes no attempt to justify half of his opinions. Particularly frustrating reading it in 2002, knowing it was published in 1995, is that these predictions will not come true. Certainly many people are spend time on the net (that's what I'm doing right now), but the net is still far from displacing TV as the major media delivery mode in the US. I'd expect such dribble from a net weenie writing on slashdot or usenet, but it is not what you should get from a published book from a supposed expert at a supposedly prestigious university like MIT. The reader might want to know that I'm a professor at a small university and have a thing against arrogance from the big major research universities... but I am right :) Some of the ideas expressed in the book will eventually come true. Negroponte's major failing is that he makes absolutely no allowance for economic or social realities. Re-tooling can happen only so fast, people can allow for the uncertainties of change for only so long, and investors can only wait a few years before they want to see profit. The .com bust of the last years was (is?) basically caused by these realities. I'm sorry, but I can't think of book to recommend. If you've come to this page and are reading this review, then you must be interested in learning something about the future of computing and information technology. Go find a book published after 2001 is the only advice I can give you. Well, one other piece of advice: you might want to avoid Negroponte in general.
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