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Apr 1, 2023
The Joy of Computer History Books
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When I was a child, growing up in the 80s, I read pretty much
anything I could find about computers. There was not a lot translated
to French. I even read the MS-DOS Version 5 Reference Guide. The
cover was dry and the content was not very tasty either.

To be fair, history was still in the making and there was not much to
write about. But the least I can say is that time has made it up to
me. There are so many good books now. Reading them is a great source
of joy.

[livres]My favorite computer books
My favorite books
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To make it to my list of favorites, a book should have at least one
of these attributes.

  * Being well researched. The author will have gathered multiple
    sources to confirm events.
  * Not fall into the cult of personality ("looks at this genius")
    trap. Dictated autobiographies make me cringe. Nobody is perfect
    and if the work genuinely mentions mistakes, it is a good sign.
  * Allow me to live something I did not experience (e.g: Ultima
    Online which France internet prices forbade).

The current list
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Amiga

Before moving to PC. I had an Atari 520 STe. I completely missed the
beautiful Amiga. Luckily this is a field particularly well covered.

[amiga]

  * The Story Of The Commodore Amiga In Pixels
  * Commodore, A Company on the Edge
  * Commodore, The Amiga Years
  * Commodore, The Final Years
  * The Future was Here

Not an history book but noteworthy nonetheless, the "Hardware
Reference Manual" is a beauty.

Origin System Inc (OSI)

Back in the 90s, OSI was the coolest video-games company. Even their
motto "We Create Worlds" rocked.

  * I never understood how they could end up being acquired. Even
    less how they could end up being shut down. The MoonGate (1, 2)
    series explains it.
  * I was never able to experience Ultima Online for financial
    reasons. All I could do was drool over screenshot in magazines.
    The tales of Braving Britannia (1, 2) explains it like you just
    got PKed on day one.

Computer Culture

  * Kevin Mitnick. Many books were published about the adventures of
    the famous fugitive in the early 2000s. Takedown: The Pursuit and
    Capture of Kevin Mitnick felt authentic.
  * Hackers The heroes of the computer revolution. "The Right Thing"
    that used to be brought up so often by John Carmack comes from
    here.

Video-games

  * Diablo I and II. I wrote a lot about video-games but I never
    entered the field as a professional. The tales of Condor/Blizzard
    North reassured me about my choice. The first volume of Stay a
    While and Listen uses an experiment layout which I hated. The
    second tome uses a narrative structure that is Masters of Doom
    level masterpiece which I adored.
  * Prince of Persia. Jordan Mechner's diary from his Karateka and
    PoP days felt genuine and relatable.
  * Wolfenstein 3D/Doom/Quake. No need to present the ultra-classic
    book. If I could pick only one in this list, it would be that
    one. This is the work that changed my life and made me strive for
    excellence.
  * Street Fighter series. There is next to no literature about the
    making of the series. I never understood why, especially compared
    to everything written in American companies. Like a Hurricane is
    a collection of interviews from the people who made, sold, and
    designed Street Fighter from its beginning.

Companies

  * Apple. The fascinating story of Steve Jobs. Honorable mention to
    The Little Kingdom whose only fault is to have been published too
    early (1984).
  * Nintendo. How the Japanese company took over the world and stayed
    on top of it.
  * Cray. You cannot look at a Cray I and not want to learn more
    about the genesis of these super computer. The story did not
    disappoint.
  * The Pixar Touch. The inspiring story of the company that
    pioneered Animated Feature.
  * Google. Two great books, In the Plex and Work Rules.
  * Microsoft. The first part, HardDrive, covers the origins of the
    company and its founders. The same author covers the rise of
    Internet Explorer in Overdrive. The Netscape point of view is in
    Speeding the Net. The making of Windows NT kernel is in
    Showstoppers.

Suggestions?
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