A review by veronicafrance
The Soul of a New Machine by Tracy Kidder

3.0

I've been meaning to read this book for literally decades, ever since I first got involved in IT in the mid-1980s. I finally mooched a copy. Maybe it's too late to read it, since it's really history now rather than current affairs. It's still an interesting read though; you don't have to know anythong about computers to read it, because it's about the people in the team that built Data General's first 32-bit computer, using the latest techniques available at that time. They were passionate about what they were doing and the book details all the manouevring and office politics that went into getting a budget for the project, and getting the team to put their all into it, neglecting families, friends and hobbies. Kidder does an excellent job of explaining technical details in terms that a non-specialist can understand.

I did enjoy it because to tell the truth I hadn't really thought before about exactly how you design a new computer with only very limited tools to help you. The thought of having to fiddle about making all the connections on circuit boards with tiny bits of wire is mind-boggling. It must be quite different now, but I suspect the people haven't changed much.

If you want to read similar books about more recent inventions, I can recommend Robert X. Cringely's [b:Accidental Empires|27652|Accidental Empires How the Boys of Silicon Valley Make Their Millions, Battle Foreign Competition, and Still Can't Get a Date|Robert X. Cringely|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167882189s/27652.jpg|28257], an entertaining and sometimes bitchy account about the development of the personal computer (in its widest sense), and John Naughton's [b:A Brief History of the Future|804069|A Brief History of the Future|John Naughton|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178518869s/804069.jpg|790028], an account of the invention of the Internet and the World Wide Web. Both will give you a different insight into the computer in front of you.