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In Summary
2013-May-23, Thursday 04:29 pmForgive me, I've been reading. I don't often do this, but sometimes books are just too inspiring and/or mind-expanding not to want to share.
The first is 'Hackers; heroes of the computer revolution' by Steven Levy (25th anniversary edition). It's interesting in the "where do many commonly held beliefs and arguments originate?" sense. It looks at the birth of the American computer culture from the 1950s to the 1980s, mostly through the viewpoint of computer games and their development. As a chronicle of the teething period of the field it might only be interesting to those deeply involved in computer culture, but I suspect it holds wider appeal. It also has the remarkable ability to make the reader want to just go out and do something.
The second is the classic 'The Rise of the Meritocracy' by Michael Young. (Yes, this book is what coined the word meritocracy.) It is a short, but complicated book. Written as if in the form of a retrospective by someone in the future it blends historical fact with fiction remarkably well. Imploring the use of an old-style satire (exaggeration without the comedy), it is challenging, offering insights, again, to commonly held beliefs and attitudes, but this time on the scale of Society. From inheritance, aristocracy, education, socialism, and class structure in general, this book brought to light many of the things I knew but had never been taught. I thoroughly recommend it to everyone.
The third is 'Networks Without a Cause; A Critique of Social Media' by Geert Lovink. The style of the writing took me a while to get used to, but I'm glad I did. Looking at more than just social networks with a critical eye this book explores most aspects of the new digital frontier and the role it plays in our lives. From Amsterdam based radio stations, to blogging in Germany, France, and Iraq, commenting, anonymity, the multiple self, and information overload; it is a thought provoking read on something most of us just fell into.
So now you know what's been keeping me from working on projects. We had a 'Meet the Maker' meetup for the Dublin Mini Maker Faire in the hackerspace last night. DMMF is just two months away. It emphasised to me the need to get moving on some projects. But first GaelHack, which is just two weeks away! Maybe I should put the books down for a bit.
The first is 'Hackers; heroes of the computer revolution' by Steven Levy (25th anniversary edition). It's interesting in the "where do many commonly held beliefs and arguments originate?" sense. It looks at the birth of the American computer culture from the 1950s to the 1980s, mostly through the viewpoint of computer games and their development. As a chronicle of the teething period of the field it might only be interesting to those deeply involved in computer culture, but I suspect it holds wider appeal. It also has the remarkable ability to make the reader want to just go out and do something.
The second is the classic 'The Rise of the Meritocracy' by Michael Young. (Yes, this book is what coined the word meritocracy.) It is a short, but complicated book. Written as if in the form of a retrospective by someone in the future it blends historical fact with fiction remarkably well. Imploring the use of an old-style satire (exaggeration without the comedy), it is challenging, offering insights, again, to commonly held beliefs and attitudes, but this time on the scale of Society. From inheritance, aristocracy, education, socialism, and class structure in general, this book brought to light many of the things I knew but had never been taught. I thoroughly recommend it to everyone.
The third is 'Networks Without a Cause; A Critique of Social Media' by Geert Lovink. The style of the writing took me a while to get used to, but I'm glad I did. Looking at more than just social networks with a critical eye this book explores most aspects of the new digital frontier and the role it plays in our lives. From Amsterdam based radio stations, to blogging in Germany, France, and Iraq, commenting, anonymity, the multiple self, and information overload; it is a thought provoking read on something most of us just fell into.
So now you know what's been keeping me from working on projects. We had a 'Meet the Maker' meetup for the Dublin Mini Maker Faire in the hackerspace last night. DMMF is just two months away. It emphasised to me the need to get moving on some projects. But first GaelHack, which is just two weeks away! Maybe I should put the books down for a bit.
