The soul of a new machine

Paperback, 293 pages

Undetermined language

Published June 1, 2000 by Little, Brown and Company.

ISBN:
9780316491976
OCLC Number:
44864448

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4 stars (5 reviews)

"The Soul of a New Machine" is a non-fiction book written by Tracy Kidder and published in 1981. It chronicles the experiences of a computer engineering team racing to design a next-generation computer at a blistering pace under tremendous pressure. The machine was launched in 1980 as the Data General Eclipse MV/8000. The book won the 1982 National Book Award for Non-fiction and a Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction.

16 editions

reviewed The Soul of a New Machine by Tracy Kidder

The Soul of an (Not So) New Machine

5 stars

Tracy Kidder recounts the uber-enjoyable events of an engineering team racing to build a microcomputer, making it feel like you're the geeked intern spectating at all the engineers in wonder and delight. The personalities, the hardware, the business, the goofs and the gaffes pull you in and never really lets go. Now, forty years later, the book is old and the technology is practically archaic, however, nothing seems to have really changed.

Review of 'The soul of a new machine' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

This book is beautifully written. I reads like a wistful memoir for the life of a machine. The story is of the creation of Project Eagle in the Late 70's/Early 80's at Data General. If you are interested in computers, their history, or how they were dreamed up and made, this is essential reading. I loved reading about the creation of a computer during the age when people thought that they were going to be the impetus of revolution. This is really a love letter for the wild-west age of computing.

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Subjects

  • Computer engineering -- Popular works
  • Data general corporation