In the Beginning: Personal Recollections of Software Pioneers (Perspectives) [Hardcover]

Robert L. Glass (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0818679999 | ISBN-13: 978-0818679995 | Publication Date: November 30, 1997 | Edition: 1

Capturing where we are today through a tour of yesterday's achievements and helping us better understand the evolution of computing technology, this book recounts the experiences of those who formed and functioned in the "Pioneering Era." In the Beginning: Recollections of Software Pioneers records the stories of computing's past enabling today's professionals to improve on the realities of yesterday.

The stories in this book clearly show modern concepts such as data abstraction, modularity, and structured approaches date much earlier in the field than their appearance in academic literature. These stories help capture the true evolution. The book illustrates human experiences and industry turning points through personal recollections of the pioneers themselves.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Read the entire review of this book.

Glass, who is editor of the Journal of Systems and Software and a computer pioneer in his own right, is not so much the author of the book as the manager. In putting together In the Beginning, Glass asked a number of other pioneers in the computing field--David Myers, Watts Humphrey, Norman Schneidewin, Barry Boehm, Robert Britcher, Donald Reifer, Frank Land, Ben Matley, Harold Highland, Robert Babor, John Bennett, Bruce Blum, Peter Denning, and Raymond Houghton--for their personal recollections of computing way back when (well, mainly in the 1960s)...The result is an entertaining, informative, and up-front and personal view of what computing was like when punch cards were king. In the process, we learn that "modern" concepts such as data abstraction, modularity, and structured programming have been around longer than today's software marketeers would have us expect.

-- Jonathan Erickson, Dr. Dobb's Journal -- Dr. Dobb's Journal

From the Back Cover

Captures where we are today through a tour of yesterday's achievements to help us better understand the evolution of computing technology. This book recounts the experiences of those who formed and functioned in the "Pioneering Era" of Software. In the Beginning: Recollections of Software Pioneers records the stories of computing's past enabling today's professionals to improve on the realities of yesterday.

The stories in this book clearly show modern concepts, such as data abstraction, modularity, and structured approaches, date much earlier in the field than their appearance in academic literature. These stories help capture the true evolution. The book illustrates human experiences and industry turning points through personal recollections by the pioneers...people like Barry Boehm, Peter Denning, Watts Humphrey, Frank Land, and a dozen others.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 326 pages
• Publisher: Wiley-IEEE Computer Society Pr; 1 edition (November 30, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0818679999
• ISBN-13: 978-0818679995
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,926,549 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Robert L. Glass held his first job in computing in 1954. Author of over 25 books, he is one of the true pioneers of the software field. He is the editor and publisher of The Software Practitioner newsletter, and has written regular columns for Communications of the ACM, IEEE Software, and Information Systems Management. In 1995 he was awarded an honorary Ph.D. from Linkoping University of Sweden, and in 1999 he was named a Fellow of the ACM professional society. His unique viewpoint and timeless (often contrarian!)writings have for decades offered insights to practitioners, managers, professors, entrepreneurs, researchers, and students alike. Recent books include Software Conflict 2.0 and Software Creativity 2.0, from developer.* Books, Facts and Fallacies of Software Engineering, from Addison-Wesley, and The Dark Dide of Software Engineering, from Wiley/IEEE CS Press.