A History of the Personal Computer: The People and the Technology

Rating:
Summary: Nice summary of a huge field
Review: So short a time. Seems like yesterday when Jobs and Wozniak kicked off Apple Computer in 1977. Or, just two years earlier, when Gates and Allen started Microsoft in New Mexico, before moving it to Seattle. The field has come so far. Now larger than mainframes. And Microsoft and Intel having larger market caps than IBM, who gave them the crucial original contracts for the IBM PC in the early 80s.

All these are discussed in this timely book. Though actually, it also mentions efforts in personal computing that predate Microsoft and Apple. Often ignored in other accounts. Which shows the good level of research done by the author. Of course, other companies, like Compaq and Dell, get a mention. Plus, influential magazines like the late Byte and the ongoing Wired.

You might find this book useful for its sweep and the ability to explain the gist of computing concepts clearly to a layman. It's not really a technical computing book. The emphasis is more on describing the significance of the main events, as would be seen by a historian.