Books may not get the respect they once did, but they’re still a huge part of our lives. Here are some we’ve thought highly enough of to share.
As I wandered the rows of Wordsworths bookstore in Harvard Square this summer during the week of the Boston Macworld Expo, I was astonished at the number of computer books
In 1990, I bought my first Macintosh, a PowerBook 100 that included a whopping 2 MB of RAM, a 20 MB hard disk, and System 7. As a new computer user, I was amazed at how easy it was to use, and, especially, how simple and clear it was to manage the system software.
Those days have changed
The speed of technology engenders not only growth in computer performance, but also in the number of words we use to talk about it. Computer terminology may not approach the doubling in chip performance that occurs every 18 months according to Moore's Law, but it can feel like that at times
Computer books can be big, because computers - as well as the applications and operating systems they use - are far more complex than their makers would often like to admit
Last week, Apple announced that it had sold its five millionth iMac, making the translucent machine Apple's best-selling Macintosh model of all time. Its unique design attracted many who had never before purchased computers, and its ubiquitous shape and colors have made it almost standard fare in mainstream magazine photo spreads, television shows, and movies - when you need to show a computer, you might as well present one that looks good.
Many TidBITS readers undoubtedly own iMacs, as I do, and many of you may also have family members who own one
When I started using Mac OS X, back in the days of the public beta, I was both confused and disappointed. The habits and familiarity I had developed over more than a decade working with Macs had been tossed by the wayside
A number of books covering the history of Apple Computer have been released, but none have satisfied me. They were either too dry, or were self-serving autobiographies I found difficult to believe (one particular ex-Pepsi employee stands out in this category)
It is being billed as the epic battle of the books, with the winner defining how Steve Jobs will be remembered, but Schlender and Tetzeli’s “Becoming Steve Jobs” and Walter Isaacson’s “Steve Jobs” are not really at war.
Adam Engst recommends Cory Doctorow’s latest thriller. It’s an exciting read set in the tech world of today but populated by characters whose history dates back to the 1990s. It’s all fiction, but broad swaths ring surprisingly true.