|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Frequently Bought Together
Product Details
|
Product Description
Review
A welcome, fresh perspective for an industry that seems so far removed from its original ideals. -- Peter Burrows, BusinessWeek
One can't help getting caught up in his excitement when reading about it firsthand. -- J. D. Biersdorfer, New York Times Book Review --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
One can't help getting caught up in his excitement when reading about it firsthand. -- J. D. Biersdorfer, New York Times Book Review --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
Book Description
The mastermind behind Apple sheds his low profile and steps forward to tell his story for the first time.
Before BlackBerries, PalmPilots, and laptops that fit snugly into briefcases, computers looked like big, alien, vending machines. They had large screens, cryptic switches, huge boxes, and odd lights. But in 1975, a young engineering wizard named Steve Wozniak had an idea: What if you combined computer circuitry with a regular typewriter keyboard and a video screen? The result was the first true personal computer, the Apple I. Widely affordable and easily understood, Wozniak’s invention has been rapidly transforming our world ever since.
Wozniak’s life—before and after Apple—is a “home-brew” mix of brilliant discovery and adventure, as an engineer, a concert promoter, a fifth-grade teacher, a philanthropist, and an irrepressible prankster. From the invention of the first personal computer to the rise of Apple as an industry giant, iWoz presents a no-holds-barred, rollicking, firsthand account of the humanist inventor who ignited the computer revolution.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most helpful customer reviews
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Simple Autobiography, an Inspiration to Engineers,
By
This review is from: iWoz: Computer Geek to Cult Icon - How I Invented the Personal Computer, Co-Founded Apple, and Had Fun Doing It (Hardcover)
Steve Wozniak, the usually unheralded half of the two Steves who founded Apple, is one of the world's most respected computer engineers, having nearly singlehandedly invented the modern personal computer in a garage.iWoz is an account of 'his side' of the story of how the personal computer was created with the help of Steve Jobs, along with a few tales from his earlier school days and later post-Apple days. It's a fairly short but engaging read, and certainly not a seriously reflective autobiography by any standards. Wozniak spends a great deal of time discussing his work with electronics and computers, mostly done in his pre-college and early college years, making all the work he did seem like child's play. In it, he also intersperses many of his stories with tales of his pranks. Wozniak makes it clear that he's a real prankster, and it becomes a recurring theme in the book. His language is not too complicated, and can be reasonably followed by studious readers, but some technical terms will be out of reach for less technically-oriented readers. That's just as well, because his intended audience most definitely consists of technically adept individuals. He is, as some say, the ultimate geek, and his enthusiasm for all things electronic shine through the rather bland writing. Aspiring Electrical and Computer Engineers will find the book inspiring, noting how dedicated Wozniak was in his craft, spending all his days and nights playing around with electronic components and circuit diagrams - inventing a great many things along the way. If nothing else, it's certainly touching to read about how Wozniak passionately follows his hobbies to completion. Wozniak does mention his good friend Steve Jobs throughout the book, of course, but it is clear that Jobs' influence on Wozniak was not one of technical inspiration, but that of a visionary and ambition entrepreneur, constantly needing the help of Wozniak to advance the state of the art. Anyone who knows a good deal of Jobs' work at Apple will find Woz's account enlightening, and perhaps knock Jobs down a peg or two on the awesome scale (Wozniak, after all, did all the real grunt work of inventing stuff). The latter portions of Woz post-Apple are not as interesting, though some may find his accounts of his later pursuits such as elementary school teaching, more interesting and relevant than I did as an engineer. Overall, iWoz was an easy read, and a fairly good one for those who want to get a glimpse inside the mind of a true engineer. Those who read it will remember the book well, although it doesn't provide the reader with any real social or entertainment value.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
iWoz - a fascinating read...,
This review is from: iWoz: Computer Geek to Cult Icon - How I Invented the Personal Computer, Co-Founded Apple, and Had Fun Doing It (Hardcover)
I have just finished iWoz, the personal biography of Steve Wozniak, which I read at the same time as Steve Jobs autobiography. It's a fascinating glimpse into the mind of a brilliant inventor and engineer, and very well worth reading. The book is not as polished as Walter Isaacson's autobiography, but that doesn't detract one iota from my enjoyment of it. I did detect an air of arrogance in some of the sentence wording, where Steve Wozniak repeatedly reminds everyone how brilliant he is. But since its "Steve", and since I know how brilliant he is, it doesn't rub me the wrong way. Overall, it's a well-done book and very enjoyable. It gets very technical in parts but to anyone with a familiarity of the inside of computers, it's very readable. You won't be disappointed. Alan Hoffman, Maple Bay BC, November, 2011.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A must-read,
By
This review is from: iWoz: Computer Geek to Cult Icon - How I Invented the Personal Computer, Co-Founded Apple, and Had Fun Doing It (Hardcover)
Wozniak may not be the best author in the world, but his story is clearly one of the best. All computer geeks out there should read this book, it is the beginning of personal computing. You'll learn how it all started, directly from the guy who built the very first personal computer. Highly recommended.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Want to see more reviews on this item?
|
Most recent customer reviews |
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
- Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Memoirs
- Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Professionals & Academics > Business
- Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Professionals & Academics > Scientists
- Books > Business & Investing > Biography & History > Captains of Industry
- Books > Business & Investing > Industries & Professions > High-Tech
- Books > Computers & Internet > Business & Culture > Biographies
- Books > Engineering
- Books > Professional & Technical > Engineering
- Books > Science > History & Philosophy > History of Technology
- Books > Sports
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
