The New Old Boys from the ARPAnet (1985)

I recently read this book and can certify that it’s a fantastic read — especially if you’re the kind of person that loves computing history.

I’d recommend getting the latest edition because the book was originally written in 1984 and the latest edition has fascinating interviews from Doug Engelbart, Alan Kay, Ted Nelson (and other titans) that took place in 1999 where they reflect on their prior predictions and make some predictions about the future.

What I loved about the book was that it painted a very vivid image of the technologies and ideas that were available at the time, and how these visionaries expected them to evolve. What I loved is that Rheingold walks you through the idea maze of computing (starting at the very very beginning) —- showing you different dead-ends and subsequent unlocks that happens through some combination of chance and brilliant insight.

I enjoyed the whole thing, but if you were force me to pick a single chapter to recommend I’d pick — “The Loneliness of a Long Distance Thinker”.