The Dream Machine

J.C.R. Licklider and the Revolution That Made Computing Personal

by M. Mitchell Waldrop

Hardcover, 528 pages

English language

Published Aug. 23, 2001 by Viking Adult.

View on OpenLibrary

(5 reviews)

3 editions

gabe. reviewed The Dream Machine by M. Mitchell Waldrop

Review of 'The Dream Machine' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

I love reading about the early days of computing, and this book pulled several of the stories I was familiar with (ARPA, Xerox PARC, Bell Labs) and wove them into a single thread. The book loosely follows the career of JCR Licklider (Lick) and the role he played in promoting, funding, inventing, and evangelizing modern computing.

schmudde reviewed The Dream Machine by M. Mitchell Waldrop

Review of 'The Dream Machine' on Goodreads

4 stars

In the end, a rather fantastic overview of a difficult subject to capture: computer networking and interaction. Both of these concepts are intangible so the author rightfully attempted to describe them through their human proponents. Waldrop does a commendable job of balancing a large cast of characters. Some contributors are inevitably overlooked, but it makes for a good introduction for deeper study.