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Ask HN: How to learn about the history of computing?

101 points by vanschelven ↗ HN
It is often remarked in the comments here that our "field" appears to have a very bad memory; that we repeat past mistakes and ignore past learnings. I would like to interpret these remarks as an advice to "get schooled".

What are some good sources (books?) to get started on this? Most things I can find appear to stop at Turing / Von Neumann, but one would like to think that history hasn't stopped at that point in time.

86 comments

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jacquesm
Some resources you might find useful:

- the soul of a new machine

- https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/History_of_Computers

Then, to answer your question a bit more directly:

IT people making past mistakes over and over again is somewhat related to the pendulum of centralization/decentralization that swings with some regularity. This means that every couple of years a new generation comes along with tech that is relatively new at that point in time who experience the same needs as were present a full cycle ago. Using the new tools they then implement solutions which may be prettier but fundamentally not as strong as solutions that are much older but extremely crude from a presentation point of view.

Examples of these are plentiful, and this is still besides the NIH syndrome that plagues the industry in a more concurrent fashion.

bsdpython
- Steve Jobs' biographer wrote a book last year called "Innovators" which I found to be one of the best works I have read: http://www.amazon.com/Innovators-Hackers-Geniuses-Created-Re...

- Robert X. Cringely's book "Accidential Empires" is definitely dated but you can read most of the chapters on his blog here: http://www.cringely.com/tag/accidental-empires/

- Cringely also did a three part special back in the 90s that I like revisiting every once in a while. Again, pretty dated but entertaining nevertheless: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuBXbvl1Sg4

- Skip the newer Steve Jobs movies and watch the history of Apple and Microsoft with Pirates of Silicon Valley. It's said to be mostly accurate: http://www.veoh.com/watch/v46093745wbEGkakh

- Kind of random but if you want a look back at what the 90s tech bubble was like then watch Startup.com: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibuiUXOTE4M

var_eps
I second the recommendation of Innovators. Even though it does not go into deep detail, it provides a good overview of the history of computing. It is easy to then follow-up with specific literature if a topic piques one's interest.

In addition, I would also recommend "Intel Trinity" by Michael Malone (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Intel-Trinity-Robert-Important-Compa...). It covers the post-Fairchild era from Intel's point of view.

santiagobasulto
I'm close to finish Walter Isaacson's Innovators. It's a great book and he's a great writer. Really enjoying it.
steverb
Some that I liked:

- Hackers : http://www.amazon.com/Hackers-Computer-Revolution-Anniversar...

- The Soul of a New Machine: http://www.amazon.com/The-Soul-A-New-Machine/dp/0316491977

- Show Stopper! : http://www.amazon.com/Show-Stopper-Breakneck-Generation-Micr...

- Dealers of Lightning: http://www.amazon.com/Dealers-Lightning-Xerox-PARC-Computer/...

- Where Wizards Stay Up Late: http://www.amazon.com/Where-Wizards-Stay-Up-Late/dp/06848326...

deutronium
I'll second Hackers Heroes of the Computer Revolution, I found that a really fascinating book.
veddox
Absolutely. It does a great job of showing the spirit of the early hackers at MIT, even though it's not really a technical book.
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ritchiea
Hackers was a fun read but I don't think it's really an answer to the original question asking about computing history and expressing a concern that our field has a short memory. The OP's complaint was that most history stops at Turing and everything in Hackers is about MIT post-Turing.
duaneb
> The OP's complaint was that most history stops at Turing and everything in Hackers is about MIT post-Turing.

Before Turing, it was a handful of people obsessed with computing things efficiently. That history is difficult to extract from the hardware pre-Turing.

cschmidt
I thought Hackers and Soul of a New Machine were both fantastic.
0xdeadbeefbabe
Dealers of Lightning because you might learn some new words, and did you know they had to fight to get the laser printer to the world?
grkvlt
"The Soul of a New Machine" is an excellent book. It is about the creation of the first 32 bit minicomputer hardware, complete with descriptions of ADVENTURE (aka Colossal Cave) and the "Maze of twisty passages all alike" and memorable lines such as "I am going to a commune in Vermont, and will deal with no time period shorter than a season" said after much work on gate delays and intstruction timing iassues...
bibinou
I started Steven Levy's Hackers and I'm really enjoying it. http://www.stevenlevy.com/index.php/books/hackers

Seeing as he wrote Crypto and Insanely Great too, it seems to be his kind of thing.

Also folklore.org is a nice collection of fables on how the sausage got made.

Charles Petzold's Code is interspersed with enjoyable historical perspective too.

http://www.charlespetzold.com/code/

coldpie
Seconding Code. It's not about the history of culture, but it's a walkthrough of how computing hardware evolved to what we have today.
lsdafjklsd
Yes, I came to recommend this book. It's a fantastic read, one of my favorites.
gooseus
Can not recommend this book enough (Code by Petzold)... Extremely well written with timeless information on understanding the history of computing and coding.
nekkoru
If you want a very detailed account of the super early history of electronic computing, George Dyson's "Turing's Cathedral: The Origins of the Digital Universe."

http://www.amazon.com/Turings-Cathedral-Origins-Digital-Univ...

Other great titles I'd recommend is Steven Levy's "Hackers" http://www.amazon.com/Hackers-Heroes-Computer-Revolution-Ann... and Phil Lapsley's "Exploding the Phone" http://www.amazon.com/Exploding-Phone-Untold-Teenagers-Outla...

Hope you enjoy!

rcruzeiro
George Dyson's Turing's Cathedral is by far the best book I have read on this subject.
matt_d
Computer History Museum: http://www.computerhistory.org/

In particular, Software Preservation Group (SPG): http://www.computerhistory.org/groups/spg/ http://www.softwarepreservation.org/

Even more in particular ;-) -- the videos at the Oral History Collection: http://www.computerhistory.org/collections/oralhistories/

They're also on YouTube -- https://www.youtube.com/user/ComputerHistory/playlists -- but the ones above have synced transcripts.

To get a flavor, take a look at the one with Bjarne Stroustrup, really enjoyed it: http://www.computerhistory.org/collections/oralhistories/vid...

// More in this category (with some big names): https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQsxaNhYv8daKdGi7s85u...

jballanc
I'll echo the Computer History Museum suggestion. If you're in the Bay Area and haven't paid it a visit, it's well worth your time. Books are nice and all, but sometimes seeing the physical artifacts give things a nice perspective.
eternalban
The oral histories are fantastic and authoritative.
ganeumann
The most authoritative work is Ceruzzi's A History of Modern Computing (http://amzn.to/1TiHgqd). Because it's written by an academic, not a journalist, it also has a great bibliography and footnotes. Some of the works it cites that are very valuable in themselves, depending on your area of interest, are:

- R. Hodeson, Crystal Fire (on the invention of the transistor), http://amzn.to/1RictfF

- T.R. Reid, The Chip (on the IC), http://amzn.to/1Hdbu8w

- E.W. Pugh, IBM's 360 and Early 370 Systems, (on the evolution of computer architecture), http://amzn.to/1NKZcWQ

Also, as others have mentioned, Soul of a New Machine is awesome.

I feel like you may be asking about computer science, though, not computer hardware. If so, pickings are slim. Two that stand out are:

- S. Rosenberg, Dreaming in Code, http://amzn.to/1HdbJk1 (Not really a history of code, just the history of a single project)

- M. Campbell-Kelly, From Airline Reservations to Sonic the Hedgehog, http://amzn.to/1RicYpS (which, while not quite as amazing as the others, is the only history of the software industry as a whole I know of.)

krallja
The "History of Computing" class I took in college used Ceruzzi's "A History of Modern Computing" and "From Airline Reservations to Sonic the Hedgehog" as our textbooks.
kornakiewicz
The Crockford's lecture about history of web-development (starting far before first computing machines and ending on javascript) is definitely must-watch. It's not so detailed because it's not a book, but gives a good overview.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JxAXlJEmNMg

mbrock
I enjoy the writings of Richard P. Gabriel. "Patterns of Software" is a good place to start.
sitruc
To echo everyone; Hackers is a great book. Steven Levy books are both compelling reads and content rich. Crypto and In the plex both have their place as well. http://www.amazon.ca/s/ref=dp_byline_sr_book_1?ie=UTF8&field... I would also say "The Information" by James Gleick. It is a page turner with some neat concepts. Which is not so easy to do. http://www.amazon.ca/Information-History-Theory-Flood/dp/140...
anaximander
Seconding "The Information". I had it on audiobook and listened to it during long car trips. It was very compelling and informative.
wainstead
Time to show my age here!

Others have listed some great, entertaining reads already:

Hackers,

Soul Of A New Machine (which won a Pulitzer),

Cringley's PBS series Triumph Of The Nerds (available on YouTube),

Where Wizards Stay Up Late

Some not mentioned so far (as I write):

The ancient, online Jargon File is a large glossary that captures a lot of early computer subculture through its lexicon. Eric S. Raymond maintains it today, but it originated way back in the 1970s: http://www.catb.org/jargon/html/

"American Experience," on PBS, did a stellar documentary on the origins of Silicon Valley and the pervasive startup mentality there. It's all about the rise of the semiconductor industry, starting with transistors. Watch online: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/silicon/

Dropping LSD was, it turns out, crucial to the origins of personal computing! This I learned from Jaron Lanier and Kevin Kelly, who recommended John Markoff's What The Dormouse Said: http://www.amazon.com/What-Dormouse-Said-Personal-Computer-e...

The Difference Engine: Charles Babbage and the Quest to Build the First Computer is a short book but also a fun read. Doron Swade, technology historian and assistant director of London's Science Museum, races to build a copy of Charles Babbage's "difference engine" before the anniversary of said machine; he tells his travails in building it while giving Charles Babbage's story at the same time: http://www.amazon.com/Difference-Engine-Charles-Babbage-Comp...

No one has mentioned books covering the dark side of hacking. There are some great reads out there, and infosec is a crucial part of computer history.

CYBERPUNK: Outlaws and Hackers on the Computer Frontier covers Kevin Mitnick, the Chaos Computer Club, and Robert Tappin Morris (who, somewhat inadvertently, wrote the first Internet worm). Mitnick disputes his section of the book, but it's fascinating nonetheless. Worth it for the Morris part alone: http://www.amazon.com/CYBERPUNK-Outlaws-Hackers-Computer-Fro...

The Cuckoo's Egg: Tracking a Spy Through the Maze of Computer Espionage by Clifford Stoll is a fun read. Stoll is an astronomer by trade, and his analytical thinking can be an inspiration: http://www.amazon.com/The-Cuckoos-Egg-Tracking-Espionage/dp/...

The Watchman is a true crime thriller you won't be able to put down. The author set out to write a book on Mitnick but wound up detouring to do a story on Kevin Poulsen, who is now an excellent infosec writer at Wired. You will not believe what Poulsen does in this book. http://www.amazon.com/Watchman-Twisted-Crimes-Serial-Poulsen...

The Hacker Crackdown by acclaimed sci fi author Bruce Sterling is a great work on an infamous cross-country bust of many hackers. You'll get a look into the BBS subculture, Phrack Magazine, and the phreaker scene.

spion
"Coders at Work" [1] had some really great insights about the history of programming. I particularly liked the interview with Fran Allen. Her thoughts on the disastrous effect that the C programming language had on the development of computer science were very interesting.

[1]: http://www.codersatwork.com/

andyjohnson0
Some important developments in computing in the sixties and early seventies were driven by the NASA space programs. Some sources:

Computers in Spaceflight - The NASA Experience: http://history.nasa.gov/computers/contents.html

Digital Apollo, by David A. Mindell - https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/digital-apollo

The Apollo Guidance Computer: Architecture and Operation by Frank O'Brien - http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Apollo-Guidance-Computer-Archite... (highly detailed)

I'd also recommend Turing's Cathedral by George Dyson and The Soul of a New Machine by Tracy Kidder.

Many early IT systems used special-purpose hardware, and boundary between the software and hardware development wasn't as clear as it is now. For this reason, I think, many surveys tend to emphasise the hardware aspect.

brudgers
One of the features of Knuth's The Art of Computer Programming is a thorough documentation of the history of ideas. Given that Knuth has been writing for the majority of the period in which we have had digital computers [and nearly all of the time in which we have had high level languages] he has been able to document many things as they have happened. TAoCP has created much of contemporary computing practice and the history of the field.

There is no replacement for primary sources. If you want to understand what makes Lisp the object of love songs, Graham's On Lisp is the book to read. If you want to understand what made Smalltalkers so smug, then grab you a Smalltalk manual and take the time to learn it [and here Knuth's patient approach to "really knowing" is informative...and there's a Norvig short course for just-get-to-the-point Pythonistas].

The pre-internet history of computing lives on the web in PDF's and in boxes at the used book store. Our quilt of knowledge is mostly missing patches and there are a lot of candidate patches sitting unconnected in the box. Even Knuth knows he'll never know it all.

Good luck.

maxiepoo
Sorry to be pedantic, but in what way is 'On Lisp' a primary source? Especially compared to a Smalltalk manual.
brudgers
On Lisp is:

  1. Oft cited.
  2. Minimally citing.
  3. Primarily comprised of original material.
  4. Written by an academic.
I don't think that there is only one way of being a primary source. This is pretty common: for example, all the works of Aristotle are believed to be his student's notes, not his original words.

Don't get me wrong, it is worth reading McCarthy's original paper and the Lisp 1.5 manual as well as On Lisp. The bandpass filter should be set to a broad spectrum. Computing is so young that we don't know what will constitute it's canon in 100 years: Today, C. S. Pierce's pragmaticism is philosophical, William James' is considered scientific psychology via historic interpretation. Computing hasn't yet gone through a thorough rewriting as described by Kuhn in Structure of Scientific Revolution. But the interwebs are perhaps the paradigm shift that could cause one.

veddox
"The Art of Unix Programming" (Eric S. Raymond) has a longish section on the history of Unix, which is very illuminating, as it stretches several decades of its development.

"The Hacker Crackdown: Law and Disorder on the Electronic Frontier" (Bruce Sterling) I wouldn't call this a really good book, but it's interesting to have read it if you didn't yet have anything to do with computers in the early 1990s. It tells the story of how crackers (not hackers!) came to public prominence, and gives some insight into the early days of the Internet.

Both are available for free.

d0m
There is an amazing book on cryptography that explains the core concepts through the age of the technology. It was a really insightful read and I learned a lot about the history of computing at the same time.
DyslexicAtheist
also to get a feel what the computing business and mood was was during the early 80ies I highly recommend "halt and catch fire" - it is fiction but perfectly captures the Zeitgeist of early innovation and competition against IBM
pacofvf
Not a computing history book per se, but has some chapters about Alan Turing and the work done at Bletchley Park in WWII. Also the best introduction book to Cryptography.

Simon Singh, The Code Book http://amzn.com/0385495323

AlfaWolph
This might be a bit broader but I enjoyed "How We Got Here" by Andy Kessler, which is available for free (emailed link[1] or direct[2] if you prefer. It's more about how the systems and engineering that predated computing influenced its development to where it is now. Actually it's argument is it's been computing all along since before we had vacuum tubes. Worth a read.

[1] http://akessler.blogs.com/andy_kessler/2005/04/hwgh.html

[2] http://www.andykessler.com/andy_kessler/excerpts/How_We_Got_...