Lyon, Matthew & Hafner, Katie (1999): Where Wizards Stay Up Late: The Origins Of The Internet

What is it about?

The book basically covers the history of the Internet from its late 1950s-early 1960s ARPANET origins until the early 1990s when the commercial Internet - as we know it today - was about to take off.

The book proceeds mostly chronologically and is nicely built around the central people involved in the key developments, with a nice balance between technical and "social" issues.

Was it good?

The book is good - it reads very nicely and is very accessible to a non-specialist reader as well. Especially the style adopted by the author is appealing: tracking a handful of key individuals and their undertakings, concentrating on key technical choices with ample explanation concerning their relevance and implications, and offering helpful analogies in cases with more advanced technical description.

Personally, I also appreciate the fact that the book is written before the dotcom hype, giving the book a neutral and calm perspective on its subject matter without wondering into the annoying superlative department. A well-rounded general historical account indeed.

The main take-away for me?

The book really underscores the fact (without explicitly pointing that out) that behind the services, technologies or products we use every day and take for granted, there is a lot - and I mean a lot - of hard work and careful thinking that has gone into those. For this reason, a book that makes it visible and makes one appreciate the accomplishment (such as the modern-day Internet) makes very worthwhile reading.

Moreover, the book also illustrates what can be accomplished when creativity and enthusiasm are allowed to work their magic. Namely, a substantial part of the early Internet was driven with academic curiosity and 'ideological purity'.

Who should read the book?

I think that every user of the Internet should read the book - it will at least make one understand the basic logic of the Internet better, and thereby appreciate it beyond "just water on the tap" (an equally valuable and complex system itself).

The book on Amazon.com: Where Wizards Stay Up Late