The Heart of the Internet: An Insider's View of the Origin and Promise of the On-Line Revolution

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Summary: A very good read... a very smart man.
Review: Dr. Vallee is well respected in other fields besides the computer world, but this book detailing his experience as part of the evolution and creation of what became the internet is sure to acquire a good audience of its own. The book is written partly like an autobiography, partly like a discerning review of the subject. It is a nice mix, with enough personal insight and interest to make it compelling, and enough factual detail to make it a worthy reference book on its own. As is common for this author, he has a keen insight into not just the technical and factual aspects of a subject, but the human perspectives as well, and it is this which makes the book not just another list of facts (as many about computers are), but an intriguing narrative of human history and how the present came to be--as well as what the future may hold. I highly recommend it.

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Summary: Unusual merit
Review: From Paul Baran, inventor of packet switching: Among the many books written about the Internet, this one has unusual merit because Jacques Vallee was there during the infancy of the network. It is fun to read his recollections as a key hands-on pioneer. His aspirations and visions, and those of his colleagues at SRI and the Institute for the Future, led to the first Network Information Center and to revolutionary ways of conducting group communications. This work made possible the large simultaneous interactions of today.

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Summary: A compelling warning! Read this & take nothing for granted
Review: From Paul Saffo, Institute for the Future: Based on a deep understanding of the Internet and its origins, this book presents a compelling warning. It is a welcome antidote to both the naive utopianism of the Internet bubble and to oppressive liberty-quenching actions by global corporations and governments alike. Read this and take nothing for granted - the Internet will only remain a force for freedom if you help protect it.

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Summary: Obligatory reading
Review: From Stephens F. Millard, advisory board member, the Wharton School and the Kellogg school: Obligatory reading for anybody interested in the history, evolution and future of this epoch-making technology, whose full promise has yet to be realized. Dr. Jacques Vallee, an eminent computer scientist who was present at the creation of the Internet, brings both knowledge and understanding to this important debate.