Home Computers – 100 Icons that Defined a Digital Generation (Mit Press)
Product ID: 229891197
A celebration of the early years of the digital revolution, when computing power was deployed in a beige box on your desk. Today, people carry powerful computers in our pockets and call them "phones." A generation ago, people were amazed that the processing power of a mainframe computer could be contained in a beige box on a desk. This book is a celebration of those early home computers, with specially commissioned new photographs of 100 vintage computers and a generous selection of print advertising, product packaging, and instruction manuals. Readers can recapture the glory days of fondly remembered (or happily forgotten) machines including the Commodore 64, TRS-80, Apple Lisa, and Mattel Aquarius--traces of the techno-utopianism of the not-so-distant past. Home Computers showcases mass-market success stories, rarities, prototypes, one-offs, and never-before-seen specimens. The heart of the book is a series of artful photographs that capture idiosyncratic details of switches and plugs, early user-interface designs, logos, and labels. After a general scene-setting retrospective, the book proceeds computer by computer, with images of each device accompanied by a short history of the machine, its inventors, its innovations, and its influence. Readers who inhabit today's always-on, networked, inescapably connected world will be charmed by this visit to an era when the digital revolution could be powered down every evening.
| Dimensions | 21.74 x 2.72 x 25.4 cm |
| Edition | Illustrated |
| Isbn 10 | 0262044013 |
| Isbn 13 | 978-0262044011 |
| Item Weight | 998 g |
| Language | English |
| Print Length | 256 pages |
| Publication Date | 9 Jun. 2020 |
| Publisher | MIT Press |
User
Well worth a look
Nice book, lots of fantastic images and information
User
Title: A Glorious Return to Beige Boxes and Boot Beeps
I bought this book expecting a trip down memory lane. What I didn't expect was to be transported via warp-speed nostalgia back to the golden age of tech—where modems screamed, monitors weighed more than microwaves, and the scent of warm circuit boards filled the air like digital incense.Each page is like a reunion with an old friend: the Amiga that taught me pixel art (and patience), the IBM clone I tried to install Doom on (and accidentally nuked the family finances via dial-up charges), and that glorious beige tower that once doubled as both gaming rig and furniture.Reading about the birth of real computing innovation reminded me that this was the era when inventors wore pocket protectors, not black turtlenecks. We didn’t swipe to unlock—we typed our way into the matrix.In short: buy this book. Laugh. Cry. Boot up a DOS emulator and weep softly into your mechanical keyboard. The real age of invention wore static wristbands and had a BIOS beep code for everything.5/5 floppy disks. Would Ctrl+Alt+Del again.
User
Nice bit of retro
Fun coffee table retro book
User
I've had most of these computers
Well written and beautiful photos. The history of home Computers . One fab observation that the Acorn Atom sold as a kit, but their engineers became frustrated by end users gluing the components into the PCB!
User
Good historical book
Very interesting book for those of us that grew up in the 80’s
User
Great
Great book with super pictures.
User
Beautifully Illustrated Vintage Computer Book - if you get it at the right price
A beautifully illustrated and very well‑written book. If you’re into vintage computers, this is absolutely a must‑have. For anyone who grew up in the 80s, it’s a genuine walk down memory lane — page after page of systems you once used, saw in shops, or desperately wanted to get your hands on.The presentation is excellent: clear layouts, great photography, and short but engaging write‑ups for each machine. It’s one of those books you can dip into repeatedly and still enjoy.For me, it’s a five‑star book, but only because I bought it from a used‑book supplier on Amazon for £10.50, which was frankly a bargain. I’m delighted with the purchase at that price.So why four stars? The price does vary and can be frankly too steep. Even owning the book and seeing how nicely illustrated it is, I don’t think its worth the the price I've seen at (at times well over the £24.95 RRP), and I don't think I would have paid the RRP. It’s a fantastic book, but not at the premium cost it usually sells for.If you can find it used at a decent price, it’s absolutely worth picking up.
User
Hard to read. Errors. Nice smell.
Interesting to look through but there are problems. The choice of tiny black text on dark red and blue pages make some of it really hard to read. Also, there are errors in the text and some of the computers have incorrect pictures (e.g. the Amiga 1000 article has pictures of an A500 which is frankly unforgivable). It’s a nice book to hold and smell though, so it gets a star for that.
User
Der Buchtitel trifft zu!
Schöne Zusammenstellung aus der Frühzeit der PCs und Homecomputer.
User
Compratelo!
Se siete arrivati alla pagina di questo libro ciò dire che siete appassionati dell’argomento e quindi non potete non comprarlo , fantastiche le storie , fantastiche le foto, ottima la qualità dell’impaginazione e della carta.Compratelo.
User
Lovely designed book
Might not be the perfect book as many are saying, but still a lovely designed book for my computer shelf. Recommended! It covers many systems I have never heard of.
User
Fantastic quality binding, photos and paper stock
Great content for nerds, heavy book, heavy paper, great photography and use of color in the book. This will get a lot of finger traffic sitting on our living room table.
User
Beautiful
Really well designed and full of gems from around the globe. A must have for home computers lovers.
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