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Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software Paperback – October 21, 2000

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Charles Petzold (Author)
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Charles Petzold (Author)
4.7 out of 5 stars 351 customer reviews
#1 Best Sellerin Machine Theory
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Product Details

  • Paperback: 400 pages
  • Publisher: Microsoft Press; 1 edition (October 21, 2000)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0735611319
  • ISBN-13: 978-0735611313
  • Product Dimensions: 6 x 1 x 8.9 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (351 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,012 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsBest Book I've Read This Year
By James B. Delong on November 27, 1999
Format: Hardcover Verified Purchase
I think that this is the best book that I have read all year. In some sense this is the book that I have been looking for for twenty-five years--the book that will enable me to understand how a computer does what it does. And--given the centrality of computers in our age--it has been a long wait. But now it is over. Charles Petzold (1999), Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software does a much better job than anything else I have ever seen in explaining computers--what they really are, and how they really work.
Have you ever wondered just how your computers really work? I mean, really, really work. Not as in "an electrical signal from memory tells the processor the number to be added," but what the electrical signal is, and how it accomplishes the magic of switching on the circuits that add while switching off the other circuits that would do other things with the number. I have. I have wondered this a lot over the past decades.
Yet somehow over the past several decades my hunger for an explanation has never been properly met. I have listened to people explain how two switches wired in series are an "AND"--only if both switches are closed will the lightbulb light. I have listened to people explain how IP is a packet-based communications protocol and TCP is a connection-based protocol yet the connection-based protocal can ride on top of the packet-based protocol. Somehow these explanations did not satisfy. One seemed like answering "how does a car work?" by telling how in the presence of oxygen carbon-hydrogen bonds are broken and carbon dioxide and water are created. The other seemed like anwering "how does a car work" by telling how if you step on the accelerator the car moves forward.Read more ›
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5.0 out of 5 starsExplains computer architecture to the intelligent layperson
By Robert Leder on November 20, 1999
Format: Hardcover
The average person who uses a computer to surf the web or type letters has so little knowledge of the underlying technology he or she is using that it may as well be magic. Even programmers, who typically spend their days solving problems with the high-end abstractedness of object-orientation, may be more than a little unclear about what's actually going on inside the box when their compiled code is running.
Petzold attempts, and largely succeeds at, writing a book that leaves the reasonably intelligent layperson with a thorough comprehension of each layer that comprises a modern electronic computer (binary coding -> electronic representation -> transistors -> logic gates -> integrated circuits -> microprocessors -> opcodes -> assembly language -> high-level language -> applications). At times, the reader must follow along carefully, but Petzold tries to avoid needless complication.
Code is a well written and very entertaining explanation of the digital electronic technology that has become an integral part of our daily lives. Short of getting a degree in electrical engineering, this book is your best bet to understand how it works.
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5.0 out of 5 starsAn easy to follow historical and technical perspective
By Doug Pappas on May 28, 2000
Format: Hardcover
Charles Petzold a does an outstanding job of explaining the basic workings of a computer. His story begins with a description of various ways of coding information including Braille, Morse code, and binary code. He then describes the development of hardware beginning with a description of the development of telegraph and relays. This leads into the development of transistors and logic gates and switches. Boolean logic is described and numerous electrical circuits are diagramed showing the electrical implementation of Boolean logic. The book describes circuits to add and subtract binary numbers. The development of hexadecimal code is described. Memory circuits are assembled by stringing logic gates together. Two basic microprocessors are described - the Intel 8080 and the Motorola 6800. Machine language, assembly language, and some higher level software languages are covered. There is a chapter on operating systems. This book provides a very nice historical perspective on the development of computers. It is entertaining and only rarely bogs down in technical detail.
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5.0 out of 5 starsGreat, but it's not ALL for a "Novice"
By Boris S on July 25, 2002
Format: Hardcover Verified Purchase
The book starts out very solid, describing all the building blocks of a computer. The beginning is the best book I've seen so far describings everything from the binary system to electrical circuits, to gates to simple calculators, to memory, to a complete machine with a "control panel". But after that, the book started getting a LOT more broad (not necessarily a bad thing). It seems almost as if Petzold wanted to tell you everything about the world of computers, but couldn't fit it in a book such as this; so he dabbed a little here and there of a few terms, history, etc... (allowing you the option to look up anything you wanted if you had the interest).
My oppinion is that the book is _great_ up to about the middle of the book, after which he just condenced all the rest of the information which would otherwise takes thousands of pages to describe in as much details as he described how to build a physical logic machine... I think that if someone isn't a "techie" or isn't in the computer field, they may have some hard time understanding a few minor points... but overall, this is a GREAT book.. one of a kind.
Greatly recommended for everyone's library... I can honestly say, I always told people "a computer is nothing more than zero's and one's"... but until I read this book, I couldn't BUILD one... now I can (given time! :).
P.S. This book is perfect for those who didn't necessarily go to college and learned everything on their own... it covers some CS, CE, and EE. Those who went to college with either of those majors probably learned the greatest part of this book... but it's a great review.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 starsFour Stars

@-）-@

Published 19 days ago by Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 starsExcellent Book

Highly recommended for any one who is trying to understand how computers work under the hood. I had bought four similar books on the subject and this one is by far the best.

Published 20 days ago by M ABOU-BEIH
4.0 out of 5 starsBook is in good condition. It was dirty and had to clean ...

Book is in good condition. It was dirty and had to clean it off. No writing or bends in the pages. Thumbs up!

Published 27 days ago by Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 starsThis book is really amazing. As notes

This book is really amazing. As notes, don't be deceived by the title. This book will not teach you how to code. It will teach everything that happens behind all the coding. Read more

Published 27 days ago by Daniel E.
5.0 out of 5 starsCode is a fantastic read for anybody interested in different aspects...

Code is a fantastic read for anybody interested in different aspects of computer science. Petzold explains the history of the computer and how simple switches eventually evolved to... Read more

Published 1 month ago by cliff
2.0 out of 5 starsTwo Stars

When you say it's a book about how computers work, you should probably elaborate on that a bit.

Published 1 month ago by Cory Irwin
5.0 out of 5 starsBuy it, love it, share it.

Seriously, if you are the kind of person who needs to understand where things came from to really understand them, this is a great book. Read more

Published 1 month ago by Mike H.
4.0 out of 5 starsFour Stars

A very explicit introduction on computers.

Published 1 month ago by CHristian
5.0 out of 5 starsMy favorite book

This is one of my favorite books. I wish I should have discovered it earlier so my childhood would found building machines a lot accessible. Read more

Published 1 month ago by WMAARTUHT
5.0 out of 5 starsGreat for compu-newbs everywhere.

This book is very approachable, easy to digest and rich with details and information. Charles Petzold starts off slow with explanations of various types of codes and uses ancient... Read more

Published 1 month ago by Amazon Customer

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