The Static Page

Fire In The Valley

Michael Swaine and Paul Freiberger have recently updated their classic, Fire In The Valley, a history of how the computer revolution started and why it was centred (for the most part) around Silicon Valley.

This week's edition of The Static Page is not a book review. The links up above will provide you with that. I have started reading, however, and am enjoying it very much. There's a lot similarities in content to, say, Accidental Empires by Robert X Cringely. But you can't avoid that, since they are both about basically the same thing.

No, what occurred to me was the technology that I missed. Who here hasn't wished they could have been part of The HomeBrew Computer Club? Who remembers the IMSAI computer in War Games? (Who wanted one?!) Who got down to the metal with their home computer, even though you weren't really supposed to? Who managed to get the über-peripheral for it, the disk drive?

I know some of you will go retro at the drop of the hat. It usually gets fended off in the other fora. Here, however, going retro - no, going retro over computers is the idea. What did you like? What did you hate? What did you always long for but could never get? (I always wanted a BBC Micro to play with, for instance.)

And remember that reading Fire In The Valley is an illuminating exercise and highly recommended.

Wade Bowmer, aka Static.

Comments? Email me at static dash page at yceran dot org.