Share <Embed>

Flip to back Flip to front

Listen Playing... Paused You're listening to a sample of the Audible audio edition.
Learn more

See all 3 images

Follow the Author

Brian Bagnall

Commodore: A Company on the Edge Hardcover – December 15, 2010

by Brian Bagnall (Author)

151 ratings

Book 2 of 3: Commodore

See all formats and editions

Price

New from

Used from

Kindle

"Please retry"

$13.49

—

Hardcover

"Please retry"

—

$499.00

—

Filled with first-hand accounts of ambition, greed, and inspired engineering, this history of the personal computer revolution takes readers inside the cutthroat world of Commodore. Before Apple, IBM, or Dell, Commodore was the first computer manufacturer to market its machines to the public, selling an estimated 22 million Commodore 64s. Those halcyon days were tumultuous, however, owing to the expectations and unsparing tactics of founder Jack Tramiel. Engineers and managers with the company between 1976 and 1994 share their memories of the groundbreaking moments, soaring business highs, and stunning employee turnover that came with being on top in the early days of the microcomputer industry. This updated second edition includes additional interviews and first-hand material from major Commodore figures like marketing guru Kit Spencer, chip designer Bill Mensch, and Commodore co-founder Manfred Kapp.

Print length

548 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Variant Press
Publication date

December 15, 2010
Dimensions

6 x 1.4 x 9 inches
ISBN-10

0973864966
ISBN-13

978-0973864960
See all details

Customers who viewed this item also viewed

Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1

Brian Bagnall
70
Hardcover
21 offers from $17.84
Brian Bagnall
73
Hardcover
27 offers from $21.19
Bil Herd
49
Paperback
7 offers from $23.03
Tracy Kidder
522
Paperback
138 offers from $1.95
Brian Bagnall
85
Paperback
10 offers from $45.99
Howard Scott Warshaw
223
Paperback
16 offers from $8.45

What other items do customers buy after viewing this item?

Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1

Brian Bagnall
70
Hardcover
21 offers from $17.84
Brian Bagnall
73
Hardcover
27 offers from $21.19
Bil Herd
49
Paperback
7 offers from $23.03
Tracy Kidder
522
Paperback
138 offers from $1.95

Special offers and product promotions

Create your FREE Amazon Business account to save up to 10% with Business-only prices and free shipping.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Brian Bagnall is the author of numerous computer titles, including Core LEGO Mindstorms, On the Edge, and Maximum LEGO NXT. He is also a frequent contributor to Old-Computers.com, an online museum dedicated to recording and preserving computer history. He lives in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Variant Press; 2nd edition (December 15, 2010)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 548 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0973864966
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0973864960
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.07 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1.4 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #2,797,919 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #752 in Computing Industry History
- #4,593 in Company Business Profiles (Books)

Customer Reviews:
151 ratings

Start reading Commodore: A Company on the Edge on your Kindle in under a minute.

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.

Brian Bagnall

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

Customer reviews

5 star		65%
4 star		21%
3 star		11%
2 star		2%
1 star 0% (0%)		0%

How are ratings calculated?

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Herbert Schaltegger

Definitive History of C= By A Clear Fanboy

Reviewed in the United States on July 22, 2019

Verified Purchase

First let me say, this is a good book. Not a great one - it’s no SOUL OF A NEW MACHINE - but it’s readable, well-paced and well-researched. I learned quite a bit more than I knew beforehand, and gained an appreciation for the roles of many people involved in the company besides the legendary figure of Jack Tramiel. That said, the book has a recurring problem throughout of fanboy-ism, almost to the point of seeming to pander. It gives scant mention of its main competition in the industry except to make unflattering remarks (most especially regarding Apple’s computers but also notably Atari, TI and Tandy machines all get short shift). Worse, some of the unflattering remarks and comparisons are either simply incorrect or at best partial-truths. These little remarks - usually entirely ancillary to the Commodore story the book purports to be telling - come across as fan-service to the admittedly huge body of former Commodore users and are unnecessary. The company is a remarkable story and the book would earn that one additional star from me if had left out such editorializing.

Helpful

FBB Custom

The writing style is not great, IMO

Reviewed in the United States on October 27, 2014

Verified Purchase

I thought I was not going to be that into this book as I was looking for more info on the Amiga years. Spoiler alert: there is almost nothing in this book on the Amiga years. It chronicles roughly from the time the 6502 and PET were developed until Tramiel was forced out of the company. The majority of the book is spent on the PET, some on the VIC-20, and some on the C64.

The writing style is not great, IMO. It is mostly prose just meant to allow a lot of quotes from mostly the same group of people to hang together. Nevertheless, it is a thorough, and very interesting read on the beginning of the personal computer era. Moreover, it is not an Apple or PC centric view. It gives Commodore its proper due and provides the counterpoint to the Woz fairy tale in which Apple invented the personal computer. It's a miracle that Apple survived the C64.

Anyway, I liked the book as someone who grew up with a C64.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Amazon Customer

Great, well researched history of a monumental company

Reviewed in the United States on September 7, 2015

Verified Purchase

Very comprehensive and well researched as far as I can tell. I've been using computers since the late 1970s and computing history has always been interesting to me, as well as the rise and fall of corporations, which can really only be properly assessed in hindsight.

The only reason I'm not giving it 5 stars is because the author doesn't seem to have a lot of technical knowledge. He still does a good job describing computing concepts to a wide audience, but with a little more understanding of the concepts, it could have been better, especially since the target audience for this book is likely made up of people that are very tech savvy and have probably owned a 64 or other Commodore product.

Mr. Bagnall does a good job of recreating the excitement, despair, joy, frustration, genius and folly of product development and existing in a chaotic corporate environment in the "wild west" days of computing. He does a good job of presenting all points of view without bias IMHO.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Michael P

Still worth reading if you love to learn more about videogame history

Reviewed in the United States on May 18, 2018

Verified Purchase

Well written book with lots of detailed information. I never grew up with a Commodore or knew much of it's existence until somewhat recently but was curious to learn of its history. At time I had to give it a break, but maybe that is due to my lack of nostalgia with the source. Still worth reading if you love to learn more about videogame history.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

azog

The early history of home computers

Reviewed in the United States on January 22, 2012

Verified Purchase

As a die-hard fan of Commodore computers, who cut my teeth on a VIC-20, I am admittedly biased towards this book before even reading it. But it is much more than a book on just the history of Commodore, it is also a history of the early days of home computers, and I would recommend this to anyone who has an interest in that era.

This book covers the history of Commodore until the departure of Jack Tramiel, at the time when the Plus/4 was introduced. The book ends with a promise of a second volume called "The Amiga Years" or something like that. So I guess this book might be considered "The Jack Years". It didn't cover the C128/128D, or the semi-mythological C65, and doesn't mention topics like Q-Link, so I hope that the second book will talk about those. My own personal interest in Commodore ends with the 8-bits, having no interest whatsoever in the Amiga (then, or now), so I'm not totally devastated.

5 people found this helpful

Helpful

J. Cassara

A thoughtful, thorough, and inspiring account

Reviewed in the United States on August 30, 2014

Verified Purchase

The Two Steves? Sure, they were great. But have you heard of the Two Bobs?

It's been said that history is written by the winners, and that humans prefer a neat and tidy narrative over the often unwieldy and complex stories of reality. If left to authors of less integrity and courage (a certain "cringeworthy" blogger comes to mind), the world would believe the personal computer revolution was for only Apple and Microsoft to forge. Not so.

This book is not only a treat for Commodore fans, but also an historically vital chronicle of events, personalities, and lessons learned from the dawn of the era of information we find ourselves in today. While the Commodore described in these pages may be long gone, its impact, triumphs, and failures are still felt in the computer and consumer electronics industry and the companies that remain players.

Be sure to check out "Priming the Pump" for the story of another influential and often conveniently forgotten early computer manufacturer, Tandy.

Helpful

KWood

Great Read For Fans of Vintage Computing

Reviewed in the United States on August 21, 2015

Verified Purchase

Whether you ever owned a Commodore computer or not, this book is must read for any fan of vintage personal computing. The personalities involved and the trials they face are colorful and fascinating and the text itself is well written and engaging to read. I haven't finished it yet, but am really enjoying this alternate perspective on the dawn of the personal computer. A Very in depth look at the birth of the 6502 with frequent walk-ins featuring Gates, Jobs and all the big names from that time. If you lived through those times, this will be a welcome trip down memory lane and will fill in more details that you never even knew you didn't know. If you didn't, sit back and enjoy. Either way, you'll never see those old machines the same way again!

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

Mr. T. Haddrell

Yes, it is different to the 1st Edition. And definitely worth getting!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 22, 2012

Verified Purchase

Having been a long time Commodore user I was most curious what drove this company. And utilimately what killed it.

When the first edition came out I was most curious and bought and read it. It was great! A true eye opener.

So, when this second edition came out I wondered if it was worth getting. Was there anything different? Well the answer to both questions is "Yes!". It is most definitely worth getting.

This second edition puts into context what Commodore were doing in relation to the rest of the industry. Playing with Digital Cameras in the early 80's. What competitors were doing at the time when the C64 came out.

Well written, great insites, and good stories from the people who were there at the time.

Worth getting even if you have the first edition.

2 people found this helpful

Chris A

Worth paying for, a good read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 14, 2019

Verified Purchase

This book covers quite a few things I didn't know about.

Describes what happened in the day to day life of those famous names while they worked for Commodore. There's a lot of detail and it's not too technical.

The pace of life for the engineers is conveyed well. As is the attitude Jack and the employees had for each other.

The author doesn't fall into the trap of "worshipping" the famous people he writes about (good).

The story ends suddenly, feeling like there will be more in the next chapter. But there's no more chapters you have to buy a follow-up book (bad). This book would be improved by having the whole story in one volume.

So all that was going on behind closed doors while I was zapping aliens on my VIC 20...

A. Ross

GREAT READ. If you are in a technical field and grew up in the 80's during the home computer era ... BUY IT. You won't regret

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 18, 2014

Verified Purchase

Extremely good book. Brought back soooo many memories for me (being a child of the 80's computer era).
Told a very interesting tale about Chuck Peddle, and provided more info on MOS than I had seen elsewhere from sources such as the IEEE Spectrum design case history series on C64, Atari VCS etc.
The descriptions of the layout engineers on the table with their socks on with razor blades in hand modifying the layout mask makes me want to dig up my old university VLSI course notes and build an 8 bitter by hand.

My only gripe is ... what about the rest of the Commodore story ... what about Amiga? So much to tell about that.

Guess will have to wait of that book ...

One person found this helpful

Kindle Customer

I adore the book. However....

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 2, 2013

Verified Purchase

I bought the original edition and must have ready it at least six times. As my copy is getting a bit tatty it seemed the ideal opportunity to upgrade to a kindle version.

As has been stated by other reviewers, this is a very different book from the first edition. Bagnall finishes with Jack Tramiel leaving commodore, excluding the creation of the C128 and the Amiga years.

Trust me, you will really enjoy this book.

This version appears to have more input from Kit Spencer, giving greater insight. I look forward to the second volume.

There are several things, however, that prevent me from giving it five stars:

In the introduction he mentions revisionist rewriting history to exclude commodore from the early days of the computer industry. However, Bagnall makes reference to Sinclair's "junk computer" and states in a later chapter "Despite the similar look and price, the ZX Spectrum dominated over the C116 in the UK. However, the C64 continued its domination of the ZX Spectrum, making the C116 redundant."

I am not aware of the C116 ever being released in the UK. It was the C16. Also, as someone who worked in retail at the time my recollection is that the C64 and spectrum both sold roughly 50/50 in the UK, with the spectrum possibly selling more. The spectrum sold over 5 million units (excluding a huge number of clone machines)in it's 10 years life.

It is understandable that this book is written with a North American point of view, but I worry that an uninformed reader would believe Sinclair were a small footnote in the computer industry. Where did the UK stats come from?

But as I said, great book!

3 people found this helpful

S. Houghton

Amazing detailed and absolutely fascinating!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 2, 2016

Verified Purchase

This is one amazing read. I've learned so much about my favourite company growing up and about all the heroes and villains that both made it and broke it!

I really hope Brian is able to release all the interviews at some point because some of these guys are living history and it's a great thing to have their stories out there.

I've just pre-ordered the Amiga Years follow-up and I'm so looking forward to it coming out!

See all reviews

Customers who bought this item also bought

Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1

Bil Herd
49
Paperback
7 offers from $23.03

Follow the Author

Similar authors to follow

Commodore: A Company on the Edge Hardcover – December 15, 2010

Customers who viewed this item also viewed

What other items do customers buy after viewing this item?

Special offers and product promotions

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Product details

About the author

Brian Bagnall

Customer reviews

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Top reviews from other countries

Customers who bought this item also bought