What do you think of "The Sims Game Design Documents"[1]? Could you recommend other similar resources?
I guess what really strikes a chord with me is the arc, not only "in" the game, but of the journey to make the game. One book I enjoyed on an emotional level was "The Making of Prince of Persia"[2] by Jordan Mechner. I also enjoyed "Masters of Doom"[3] by David Kushner, but more on the merit of good research, which I really respect. I don't want a montage, I want the story with the suffering and tribulations.
Do you know of similar content?
[0]: https://learningmusic.ableton.com/
[1]: https://donhopkins.com/home/TheSimsDesignDocuments/
[2]: https://www.amazon.com/Making-Prince-Persia-Journals-1985-19...
[3]: https://www.amazon.com/Masters-Doom-Created-Transformed-Cult...
I don't know if they've reconciled in recent years and I've never heard about Romero working at a gas station. Any source for that?
https://www.amazon.com/Masters-Doom-Created-Transformed-Cult...
https://www.amazon.com/Masters-Doom-Created-Transformed-Cult...
It's about the two John's (Carmack and Romero) and how they created Doom, Quake et al. and why id Software broke up eventually. Very fascinating, highly recommended book!
[0]: https://www.amazon.com/Masters-Doom-Created-Transformed-Cult...
Others have listed some great, entertaining reads already:
Hackers,
Soul Of A New Machine (which won a Pulitzer),
Cringley's PBS series Triumph Of The Nerds (available on YouTube),
Where Wizards Stay Up Late
Some not mentioned so far (as I write):
The ancient, online Jargon File is a large glossary that captures a lot of early computer subculture through its lexicon. Eric S. Raymond maintains it today, but it originated way back in the 1970s: http://www.catb.org/jargon/html/
"American Experience," on PBS, did a stellar documentary on the origins of Silicon Valley and the pervasive startup mentality there. It's all about the rise of the semiconductor industry, starting with transistors. Watch online: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/silicon/
Dropping LSD was, it turns out, crucial to the origins of personal computing! This I learned from Jaron Lanier and Kevin Kelly, who recommended John Markoff's What The Dormouse Said: http://www.amazon.com/What-Dormouse-Said-Personal-Computer-e...
The Difference Engine: Charles Babbage and the Quest to Build the First Computer is a short book but also a fun read. Doron Swade, technology historian and assistant director of London's Science Museum, races to build a copy of Charles Babbage's "difference engine" before the anniversary of said machine; he tells his travails in building it while giving Charles Babbage's story at the same time: http://www.amazon.com/Difference-Engine-Charles-Babbage-Comp...
No one has mentioned books covering the dark side of hacking. There are some great reads out there, and infosec is a crucial part of computer history.
CYBERPUNK: Outlaws and Hackers on the Computer Frontier covers Kevin Mitnick, the Chaos Computer Club, and Robert Tappin Morris (who, somewhat inadvertently, wrote the first Internet worm). Mitnick disputes his section of the book, but it's fascinating nonetheless. Worth it for the Morris part alone: http://www.amazon.com/CYBERPUNK-Outlaws-Hackers-Computer-Fro...
The Cuckoo's Egg: Tracking a Spy Through the Maze of Computer Espionage by Clifford Stoll is a fun read. Stoll is an astronomer by trade, and his analytical thinking can be an inspiration: http://www.amazon.com/The-Cuckoos-Egg-Tracking-Espionage/dp/...
The Watchman is a true crime thriller you won't be able to put down. The author set out to write a book on Mitnick but wound up detouring to do a story on Kevin Poulsen, who is now an excellent infosec writer at Wired. You will not believe what Poulsen does in this book. http://www.amazon.com/Watchman-Twisted-Crimes-Serial-Poulsen...
The Hacker Crackdown by acclaimed sci fi author Bruce Sterling is a great work on an infamous cross-country bust of many hackers. You'll get a look into the BBS subculture, Phrack Magazine, and the phreaker scene. http://www.amazon.com/Hacker-Crackdown-Disorder-Electronic-F...?
And let's not forget gaming:
Masters of Doom: How Two Guys Created an Empire and Transformed Pop Culture gives a great history of ID Software and the origins of the FPS: http://www.amazon.com/Masters-Doom-Created-Transformed-Cultu...
http://www.amazon.com/Masters-Doom-Created-Transformed-Cultu...
http://www.amazon.com/Masters-Doom-Created-Transformed-Cultu...
http://www.amazon.com/Masters-Doom-Created-Transformed-Cultu...
http://www.amazon.com/Masters-Doom-Created-Transformed-Cultu...
Like reading iWoz... a lot of stories of brilliant engineering at an elite level.
[0] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commander_Keen
[1] http://www.amazon.com/Masters-Doom-Created-Transformed-Cultu... - highly recommended, really good read
http://www.amazon.com/Masters-Doom-Created-Transformed-Cultu...
BUT HE SHOULD!
One of his first jobs was a soul crushing dev work when they had to write X random PC utilities every Y week for some monthly subscription thingy. You know what he did? He started slacking like crazy at work so he could work on game development with his bodies at home. Using company equipment he more or less stole from work.
(I think he was sued for this, and then repeated it many years later and was sued by Facebook)
So technically, he worked shorter hours. He just didn't tell his boss.
Source: https://www.amazon.com/Masters-Doom-Created-Transformed-Cult...