Computing: A Business History

By: Lars Nielsen

Narrated by: Smokey Rivers

Noted systems developer, Lars Nielsen reveals the dynamic combination of innovation, competition and, often eccentric, entrepreneurship that went to shape today's tech landscape.

From the military's ENIAC of 1946 to the ripening of the Web and e-commerce, Nielsen's Computing: A Business History details the evolution of computing as it has impacted the models and practices of markets and professional services around the globe. Nielsen explains not only the development of technologies, but the ongoing saga of strategic rivalries between such tech firms as IBM, Cisco, Apple, Microsoft, Google, and Facebook.

He surveys the rise and fall of companies and platforms from the early days of the mainframe when the likes of Sperry Rand and DEC laid unsuccessful siege to IBM's market-share, through the era of Windows vs. Mac and beyond.

And he vividly depicts the brilliant, but often rapacious, personalities behind the competition that shaped the business computing environment we know today.

©2012 New Street Communications, LLC (P)2013 New Street Communications, LLC

A fine refresher in basic history, personalities

My knowledge in this area was somewhat patchy, as my interest waxed and waned over the last decades. This connected the dots nicely, and in an economic time frame.

erroneous statement

The author made an erroneous statement about the PLATO system being developed by CDC. it was actually developed by the CERL lab at the University of Illinois at Champaign - Urbana. It was eventually built off of a CDC mainframe computer. otherwise enjoyable.