Rating: 
Summary: Richard Morely..Geek Moses..Leads Us to the Promised Land
Review: A very worthwile read on how we move from a data based technology through information, knowledge and onto wisdom. I think the authors assesment of the relationship between ethics and information is must reading for anyone in the industry.
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Summary: Mr. Morley is correct.
Review: I am too, very interested in predictions about how the manufacturing will be in not 2020 but even in year 2010. With his impressive credentials Mr. Morley could be one of the best persons I would look up to. Oh boy, was I wrong? As another reader put properly, all you hear is "look how good I am. By the way, do you know who my co-author's father is?". Yes, there are few good ideas sprinkled all over the book. 127 wild card predictions authors make for future are wild speculations. To mention few, they predict that a disposable, pasted toothbrush will be available. You don't have to wait any longer, stay in Hampton Inn you can have one today. They say, PLC's will be here in twenty years from now, of course PLC is Mr. Morley's baby. And, programmers will be gone too. Who am I to disagree? but, I bet you for a cup of coffee PLC will be reduced to an embedded processor and will be in all appliances and tools, of course that is if PLC was a computer. You say, what about Programmers? Well , with all embedded processor and larger computers around, who do you think will do the interfacing? Interfacing is, even today, the biggest problam with ERP implementations. You need human programmers to do that. Computers will not run the humans, humans will run the compuiters. This book is at its best a poorly written science fiction. A huge disappointment coming from a legend like Mr. Morley.
Rating: 
Summary: Yes, there is some wisdom in this book. But it is sprinkle
Review: I am too, very interested in predictions about how the manufacturing will be in not 2020 but even in year 2010. With his impressive credentials Mr. Morley could be one of the best persons I would look up to. Oh boy, was I wrong? As another reader put properly, all you hear is "look how good I am. By the way, do you know who my co-author's father is?". Yes, there are few good ideas sprinkled all over the book. 127 wild card predictions authors make for future are wild speculations. To mention few, they predict that a disposable, pasted toothbrush will be available. You don't have to wait any longer, stay in Hampton Inn you can have one today. They say, PLC's will be here in twenty years from now, of course PLC is Mr. Morley's baby. And, programmers will be gone too. Who am I to disagree? but, I bet you for a cup of coffee PLC will be reduced to an embedded processor and will be in all appliances and tools, of course that is if PLC was a computer. You say, what about Programmers? Well , with all embedded processor and larger computers around, who do you think will do the interfacing? Interfacing is, even today, the biggest problam with ERP implementations. You need human programmers to do that. Computers will not run the humans, humans will run the compuiters. This book is at its best a poorly written science fiction. A huge disappointment coming from a legend like Mr. Morley.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointed
Review: I bought the book expecting some insights into what manufacturing would look like in 2020 and how I could focus my efforts. What I found was too much "look how brilliant I am" and not enough on where things were headed. The last third of the book was more useful with some good information. So, I read it cover to cover but was left wanting.
Rating:
Summary: Rantings about emergent behavior software agents
Review: It took me a while, but I just finished The Technology Machine by Moody and Morley, and I'm sad to say that it is a poor vehicle to spread their valuable message to the world of manufacturing. Let me say at the outset that I am not an engineer, but I'm no dummy, either. I bought the book based on an intriguing review in upside (or Red Herring - one of those tech magazines).The Good News: Some good points are made in the book about the power of approaching complex logistical production problems with the use of properly designed software "agents", each one of which having the "intelligence of a chicken" but en masse creating an environment where behavior capable of handling complex issues efficiently emerges. A powerful idea, to be sure. The Bad news: The message gets lost in the noise of a very poorly written book - the conversational style used is way too casual for a subject this serious. It's as if this were published by a vanity press - was there no editor? Typos abound (mislabeling GM Paint Shop as GE Paint Shop on page 225, or "...president of Nypro Corporate Inc. of Nypro, a company..." - page 237 are but two examples) and the grammer is atrocious - like the rantings of an angry curmudgeon. There is way too much "consultant-speak" in the beginning of the book, and towards the end it seems to lose focus. As a result, the strength of the message is quite diluted. I have no doubt that the authors are very smart people and that they have contributed immensely to the world of manufacturing, but in my opinion this book does them a disservice and much of the value of their message is lost.
Rating:
Summary: Packed With Knowledge!
Review: Patricia A. Moody and Richard E. Morley take a fascinating trip into the future, the not-too distant future, by exploring what manufacturing and product delivery to consumers will look like in the year 2020. By discussing past and current advances, the authors articulately present convincing arguments for their ideas with great zest. Don't worry, you won't find impenetrable technological prose here, quite the contrary. Instead, you'll find visions of point-of-consumption manufacturing, small work groups made up of people who live near their job sites and biotechnology that enables customized creation of replacement body parts. Gene Bylinsky of Fortune magazine calls this well-received volume, "a beautifully written, insightful and important new book... your best guide to success" in the 21st century. We at getAbstract recommend this book to forward-looking managers who understand that, even in the complex future, the main rule will be: Keep it simple.
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Summary: A BOLD & IMAGINATIVE VISION OF A VIRTUAL CORNUCOPIA.
Review: Presents a vision of the future in which fewer people and plants are needed to satisfy demand, bringing vast changes to work and lifestyles. Beyond their "wild card" predictions, the authors also provide guidelines for those who want to be winners in the future. This is a stimulating and very interesting book. Forecasting that the 2020 manufacturing facility will be a twenty-four-by-seven capable operation with superbly qualified, lean staffs, - that teleconferencing and portable manufacturing combined with aligned customers and suppliers and well documented process controls, will make producing things incredibly simple-present some potent, transformational implications for society and work. But, glib forecasts aside, there is no mention of societal challenges in terms of work. We looked for the terms work, careers or jobs in the index and found none...except for Jobs, Steve. The is a A BOLD & IMAGINATIVE VISION OF A VIRTUAL CORNUCOPIA. Recommended. Reviewed by Gerry Stern and Yvette Borcia, founders, Stern & Associates and HR Knowledge Network, authors of Stern's Sourcefinder: The Master Directory to HR and Business Management Information & Resources, Stern's CyberSpace SourceFinder, and Stern's Compensation and Benefits.
Rating:
Summary: A BOLD & IMAGINATIVE VISION OF A VIRTUAL CORNUCOPIA.
Review: Presents a vision of the future in which fewer people and plants are needed to satisfy demand, bringing vast changes to work and lifestyles. Beyond their "wild card" predictions, the authors also provide guidelines for those who want to be winners in the future. This is a stimulating and very interesting book. Forecasting that the 2020 manufacturing facility will be a twenty-four-by-seven capable operation with superbly qualified, lean staffs, - that teleconferencing and portable manufacturing combined with aligned customers and suppliers and well documented process controls, will make producing things incredibly simple-present some potent, transformational implications for society and work. But, glib forecasts aside, there is no mention of societal challenges in terms of work. We looked for the terms work, careers or jobs in the index and found none...except for Jobs, Steve. The is a A BOLD & IMAGINATIVE VISION OF A VIRTUAL CORNUCOPIA. Recommended. Reviewed by Gerry Stern and Yvette Borcia, founders, Stern & Associates and HR Knowledge Network, authors of Stern's Sourcefinder: The Master Directory to HR and Business Management Information & Resources, Stern's CyberSpace SourceFinder, and Stern's Compensation and Benefits.
Rating:
Summary: When Dick Morley speaks, listen
Review: The fact is, if you're in manufacturing, when Dick Morley speaks, you have to listen. He's got a sharp mind and an unusual style, but more gems come out of his mouth than anyone else in the industry. The Technology Machine's view into the future is well worth the read, by managers and technologists, alike. I'm hoping for a follow on that takes an even more in-depth look at some of the technology and how it will play out in the next decade or two.
Rating:
Summary: Richard Morely..Geek Moses..Leads Us to the Promised Land
Review: Whether you love him or you hate him Richard Morely is the kind of writer who is hard to forget. The 127 wild card predictions in chapter 2 cover the price of the book. This book covers deals not just with the technology of manufacturing but the social process which will have to accompany these changes. There will be a new world order and Engineering Breakthroughs will lead the way...
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