Computer: A History of the Information Machine
Martin Campbell-Kelly, William Aspray, Nathan Ensmenger, Jeffrey R. YostBooks.org participates in affiliate programs including Bookshop.org and the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. We may earn a commission from qualifying purchases made through links on this page, at no additional cost to you.
Overview
Computer: A History of the Information Machine traces the history of the computer and shows how business and government were the first to explore its unlimited, information-processing potential. Old-fashioned entrepreneurship combined with scientific know-how inspired now famous computer engineers to create the technology that became IBM. Wartime needs drove the giant ENIAC, the first fully electronic computer. Later, the PC enabled modes of computing that liberated people from room-sized, mainframe computers.This third edition provides updated analysis on software and computer networking, including new material on the programming profession, social networking, and mobile computing. It expands its focus on the IT industry with fresh discussion on the rise of Google and Facebook as well as how powerful applications are changing the way we work, consume, learn, and socialize. Computer is an insightful look at the pace of technological advancement and the seamless way computers are integrated into the modern world. Through comprehensive history and accessible writing, Computer is perfect for courses on computer history, technology history, and information and society, as well as a range of courses in the fields of computer science, communication, sociology, and management.
Synopsis
Computer: A History of the Information Machine traces the history of the computer and shows how business and government were the first to explore its unlimited, information-processing potential. Old-fashioned entrepreneurship combined with scientific know-how inspired now famous computer engineers to create the technology that became IBM. Wartime needs drove the giant ENIAC, the first fully electronic computer. Later, the PC enabled modes of computing that liberated people from room-sized, mainframe computers.This third edition provides updated analysis on software and computer networking, including new material on the programming profession, social networking, and mobile computing. It expands its focus on the IT industry with fresh discussion on the rise of Google and Facebook as well as how powerful applications are changing the way we work, consume, learn, and socialize. Computer is an insightful look at the pace of technological advancement and the seamless way computers are integrated into the modern world. Through comprehensive history and accessible writing, Computer is perfect for courses on computer history, technology history, and information and society, as well as a range of courses in the fields of computer science, communications, sociology, and management.
Editorials
From the Publisher
Praise for Prior Editions:Terrific! This is the best general history of computing yet written, by two of the field's most prominent historians. Computer is comprehensive, engaging, and a pleasure to read. Aspray and Campbell-Kelley paint the big picture of the information revolution that is affecting all of our lives.
— David A. Mindell, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and author of Between Human and Machine: Feedback, Control, and Computing Before Cybernetics
Starting back when computers were people, computer historians Campbell-Kelly and Asprey meticulously trace the forces and personalities that gave birth to the computer age. From Babbage's failed analytical engine to mechanical calculators, IBM's room-sized mainframes, minis, Microsoft, and the Internet, their in-depth narrative gives us a peek inside the back rooms of early computer companies and into the lives of industry pioneers, both sung and unsung.
— Thomas M. Georges, Author of Digital Soul