ISBN: 9781449393823
Buy on AmazonNo, it was the same way, not just the same degree. E.g., a geek was originally the sideshow circus freak who bit heads of chickens and ate live insects. That comparison was not favorable, especially in the 50s and 60s, when conformity was strongly enforced.
I'm guessing you are young enough that you have only experienced the rise of tech. For some flavor of the early days, try Levy's "Hackers": https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003PDMKIY
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!
- 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...
It's tough... You can devote your time to a logical, rational system that provides consistent rewards to your efforts - or you can pursue sex and unpredictable human factors.
I suggest you read the book "Hackers" by Stephen Levy (aside from probably giving more accurate insight into the origins of Microsoft and Apple, also includes timeshare, Unix, the free software movement, and IIRC Lisp Machines in its recounting, all in a lot less space than Isaacson's complete ballsup).
http://www.amazon.com/Hackers-Heroes-Computer-Revolution-Ann...
[0] http://www.amazon.com/Hackers-Computer-Revolution-Anniversar...
Incidentally, Hackers was what I read after I read Masters of Doom. Here's a quote from Masters of Doom:
" Overnight, it seemed, Carmack was in a strange house, with a strange family and going to a strange school, a junior high with no gifted program or computer’s. He’d never felt so alone. Then one day he realized he wasn’t. The book Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution was a revelation. "
Edit: Donald Knuth heartily recommends it too[1].
[0] http://www.amazon.com/Hackers-Computer-Revolution-Anniversar...
Hack was then used by MIT's TMRC of which many members became involved with/helped build the AI-lab. The first third of Hackers (http://www.amazon.com/Hackers-Computer-Revolution-Anniversar...) gives a good perspective on the evolution.
Personally I discovered this while reading http://www.amazon.com/Hackers-Computer-Revolution-Anniversar... which I recommend to anyone.
http://www.amazon.com/Hackers-Heroes-Computer-Revolution-Ann...
At the time I learned about Tierra I didn't have a way to get at any of Ray's papers or code. Now I do, but I'd kinda forgotten about it. I really should revisit it. There's probably a lot of fun to be had there.
Aside: Steven Levy's "Artificial Life"[1] was where I learned about Tierra. That book, along with Levy's "Hackers"[2], and Gleick's "Chaos"[3] were formative books for young me.
[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Core_War
[1] https://www.amazon.com/Artificial-Life-Frontier-Computers-Bi...
[2] https://www.amazon.com/Hackers-Computer-Revolution-Steven-Le...
[3] https://www.amazon.com/Chaos-Making-Science-James-Gleick/dp/...