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Summary: Great book, even if you're not a nerd!
Review: If you're interested in the birth and growth of the PC industry this is your guide!After I saw the TV series I wanted to have the book, I even mailed Bob Cringely for the ISBN. A book like this could be a rather dull book, but this isn't one of those. This is a great book full of facts served with plenty of humour. Cringely was there when it happened, he knows what he's writing about. This book tells you about never released software, missed opportunities, killer applications, where the GUI came from, and much more in a language that isn't just for nerds. I've read this book twice, I'm pretty sure I'll read it again...
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Summary: No one comes off well, well barely anyone.
Review: Cringley, as they say, must be either suicidal, or have balls the size of an elephant. There's only one person who comes off looking good in this book, and that's Steve Woznaik (maybe Bob Taylor as well, but his is a peripheral story as far as the book's concerned). Just about everybody else faces Cringley's wrath, and sparks do fly. It's a very well written book, an enjoyable read that flows past efffortlessly, in a very conversational mood. What else would you expect from a gossip columnist. But Cringley does know his stuff, he goes through every myth about the "whiz-kids" and shatters just about every one of them. And there is a perverse pleasure in reading the low down and dirty on people larger than life. Even Cringley's version of pop-psychology (which can be very penetrating and illuminating at times) is amusing.You'll probably laugh yourself through this book, partly because you're relieved these guys aren't infallible, and partly because you're amazed they made it at all. And along the way you'll pick up little tid-bits of techno-lore to throw around.
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Summary: Stories of techies and profiteering
Review: "Accidental" refers to the fact that a lot of these guys really just loved to play with electronics and computers but for the few for whom everything fell into place perfectly, the reward was wealth beyond their wildest imagination. Read about how incompatible some true tech personalities can be with the mundane reality of the business world; I thoroughly enjoyed the story of the guy who held up the completion of a pivotal product so that he could measure the reflectivity of the ceiling tiles in his office. Contrast with the ego-driven salemen and capitalists who were there simply because there was money to be made and you may find yourself more appreciative of the genuine nature of the "average" brainiac. This book was really written before the dot-com era, but likely the same dramas were played out then and will be played out again some day, with only the names and subject matter changed.
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Summary: hilarious, biting, an easy read
Review: If you aren't in the IS profession, Robert X. Cringely is/was a pseudonym for the best gossip columnist in the industry. He's been in it so long he's familiar with most of the burial places. Cringely paints a picture of an industry dominated by people who were driven more by ego than by materialism: they had something to prove. In most cases it is hard to fault his analysis. His statements and conclusions about industry personae and events square with everything I've been able to verify. Cringely is excellent at explaining technical concepts to a non-technical audience using analogies, which are often riotously funny as well as helpful. This and the generally bouncy pace of the book will enable it to appeal to you even if you don't consider yourself a techie.
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Summary: Excellent book.
Review: A short read that tells the seemingly blunderous history of the PC industry. The story is told in a witty and accurate manner - quite the joy to read. All of the major companies are chronicled, including Apple, Microsoft, IBM, Xerox, etc. The book was first written in 1991 - with a couple chapters added during the 1996 reprint. As such; the book doesn't cover items of the last eight years with much detail. But it more than makes up for it with it's portrayal of the first 20 years.
Rating:
Summary: Stories of techies and profiteering
Review: "Accidental" refers to the fact that a lot of these guys really just loved to play with electronics and computers but for the few for whom everything fell into place perfectly, the reward was wealth beyond their wildest imagination. Read about how incompatible some true tech personalities can be with the mundane reality of the business world; I thoroughly enjoyed the story of the guy who held up the completion of a pivotal product so that he could measure the reflectivity of the ceiling tiles in his office. Contrast with the ego-driven salemen and capitalists who were there simply because there was money to be made and you may find yourself more appreciative of the genuine nature of the "average" brainiac. This book was really written before the dot-com era, but likely the same dramas were played out then and will be played out again some day, with only the names and subject matter changed.
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Summary: Funny and Informative
Review: Crigenly tells the compelling story of the uprising of a small company becoming a million dollar businesss. He is very informative on the histroy of the computers in a different tone and style of writing that is easily understandable.
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Summary: National Inquirer into Computerdom
Review: The book begins by claiming that personal computers and spreadsheets made leveraged buy-outs, and looting company pension plans, possible (p.4). But the PC was only a means to an end, not the end in itself. Look up Credit Mobiliere, and the many scams in late 19th century railroads (the high-tech dot-coms of that day). Look up the changed laws, and accounting methods, from the late 1970s for fixing these deals. RXC claims it "happened more or less by accident" - not true; they met a need. The personal computer is to mainframe computers like the personal automobile is to railroad trains. Page 9 notes that Wozniak, Jobs, and Gates were college dropouts who disdained academia. Didn't Edward Land also do this? Page 40 says Noyce expanded production and not prices to grow volume and profits; ever hear of the Ford Model T? Page 43 tells a story about teleprocessing, but RXC doesn't understand the AT&T monopoly and 1200 baud modems of 40 years ago. Page 58 explains the invention of the BIOS. Pages 77-80 explains the difference between basic research and research and development, and what it means. The concept of "metaprogrammer" (nee Chief Programmer in 1966 Poughkeepsie) is discussed on pages 108-110. It gets the job done, but has a great political problem. If control is localized, so is blame. Most projects are decreed by upper management, but blame descends on the lower orders. Need I say more? Page 110 says this is like "collective farming" which didn't work well. Doesn't it work when it is voluntary, but not when imposed from above? Collective farming does away with owner operated units and turns them into wage earners; this is how our agribusiness works today. Did RXC ever personally investigate this? Page 113 tells of the problem in making all decisions at the top. First, it restricts parallel operations by creating a bottleneck. Then it prevents making decisions at the appropriate level. It doesn't distinguish between technical and political or design problems (which must be solved at a higher level). But if only inexperienced programmers are wanted, that creates a self-limiting environment as well. Page 124 says Ross Perot left IBM because he filled his sales quote in January; wasn't there some conflict of interest caused by his second job? Page 128 tells a story about Digital Research in July 1980 that may be incomplete. Page 166 explains the reason for PC-compatible, and why other computer manufacturers foundered. Page 261 tells how Aldus was suckered into not producing a word processor for Windows in 1989. Page 268 tells how Apple's money paid for Microsoft's international expansion. Page 281 explains how Microsoft takes a stab at new technology. Page 303 says Sun "practically gives away system software". Since 1961 the Federal Govt. paid for Multics (and its clones), and ordered this for computer science's on-line needs. What would Sun charge if it had to build it all itself? RXC predicted the death of mainframes on 12/31/99, but I missed reading the obituary notices. There have been great changes since 1999, but not as predicted in this book. Page 307 has other predictions! Page 315 mentions the "software studio" model, but doesn't ask who on Wall Street will put up the venture capital to make "Rocky 1010"? RXC did NOT predict the INTERNET, a kinder, gentler version of Orwell's "1984" that allows Big Brother to spy on activity in your home (p.350)! Page 322 describes the value of being late and over budget. Chapter 17 makes predictions again.
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Summary: Accidental Empires
Review: Accidental Empires follows the rise of the tech industry. It is written by Robert X. Cringely (not his real name), one of the original founders of Apple computers, and gives a firsthand perspective of the industry. Accidental Empires is written in a humorous tone, and reveals many of the character flaws of the leaders of the tech industry, proving, in essence, that they're just a bunch of nerds. Accidental Empires is an above average book and I recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining Read
Review: I bought this book after seeing Cringely on 'Triumph of the Nerds' on PBS. Like this show, 'Accidental Empires' deals with the computer industry - specifically the PC revolution centered on Microsoft, Apple, and Silcon Valley. Being a computer nerd myself, I found the book both educational and entertaining. Cringely comes across as very knowledgeable and humorous. He writes with a very easy to read style that makes the pages fly by. I would recommend this book to anyone that is curious about the history of software and computers, or is simply interested in the people drove the industry to where it is now.
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