Electronic Brains: Stories from the Dawn of the Computer Age

Inspired by a popular BBC radio series of the same name, this book details the post-war computer development boom, concentrating on the personalities instead of the technology, and blending human interest with history in a lighthearted way that will appeal to technophiles and Luddites alike. With its global emphasis, the book chronicles Australian, UK, American and Soviet computer pioneers, and touches on social issues like the Cold War and IBM's business relationship with Nazi Germany. In the book's best (and final) essay, ""It's Not About Being First: The Rise and Rise of IBM,"" Hally deftly handles decades of Big Blue's complex engineering, political and business history, revealing how the computing giant's business practices changed with the technology it created. Major historical events serve as the backdrop to Hally's history; The Manhattan Project's atomic researches, presidential elections, wars and revolutions all figure into the computer's development. The book has its techie moments, but this is an informative and entertaining read for anyone who's ever wondered about the evolution of computers from vacuum-tube-filled, moth-cooking, multi-ton calculators to iPods and wafer thin laptops.