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Fire in the Valley: The Making of The Personal Computer (Second Edition) Paperback – November 29, 2000

by Paul Freiberger (Author),‎ Michael Swaine (Author)

58 customer reviews

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“A book not to be missed, just plain good reading about the drama of the Kids next door turning their dreams into millions.” —The New York Times “Swaine and Freiberger capture the communal spirit of the early computer clubs, the brilliance and blundering of some of the first start-up companies, the assortment of naiveté, noble purpose and greed that characterized various pioneers, and the inevitable transformation of all this into a major industry. Must reading.” —Philip Lemmons, editor-in-chief, BYTE Magazine

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In the early 1970s, while Silicon Valley was designing the latest generation of digital wristwatches and pocket calculators, a ragtag group of college dropouts, hippies, and electronics hobbyists were busy creating the future in their garages. What they built was the personal computer, but what they were aiming for was something much more ambitious: a revolution. Fire in the Valley is the story of their efforts, and in particular, the contributions of an informal think tank called the Homebrew Computer Club. Its technically gifted community, comprising sci-fi aficionados and Berkeley counterculturists, believed computers could usher in an age of human empowerment, perhaps even a utopia.

The club's most famous member is Steve Jobs of Apple, whose story is told here, as is Bill Gates's, who was strongly influenced by Homebrew. What sets Fire in the Valley apart from the many other books about early days at Apple and Microsoft, though, is its focus on the brilliant engineers and coders who built the foundation that would eventually support those two companies. They included ex-Berkley Barb editor and hardware designer Lee Felsenstein, who was adamant about using computers for populist ends; Adam Osborne, who took PCs to the next level by making them portable; hacker legend John "Captain Crunch" Draper, who used telephony for his own mischievous purposes; and activist Ted Nelson, the Thom Paine of the computer revolution.

The cast of characters is sometimes tough to keep track of, and authors Paul Freiberger and Michael Swaine have wisely included a graphic timeline in the first pages of the book that readers will find useful. It stretches from 1800 to 1999, encompassing events that have occurred since Fire in the Valley's original 1984 publication. This second edition includes new chapters and photographs to document the last 15 years, but they serve as more of an epilogue than a new act in this drama. The Homebrew Club's mark on personal computing history is cemented, and Fire in the Valley is an engaging account of it, one that should inspire readers everywhere. --Demian McLean

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A book not to be missed, just plain good reading about the drama of the Kids next door turning their dreams into millions. -- The New York Times

Swain and Freiberger capture the communal spirit, the brilliance and blundering, the assortment of naivete, noble purpose and greed, and the inevitable transformation of all this into a major industry. Must Reading -- Byte

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Product details

Paperback: 463 pages
Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 2nd edition (November 29, 2000)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0071358927
ISBN-13: 978-0071358927
Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 1.8 x 9.8 inches
Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 58 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #492,387 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #168 in Books > Computers & Technology > History & Culture > History
- #415 in Books > Business & Money > Industries > Computers & Technology
- #1161 in Books > Business & Money > Biography & History > Company Profiles

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Scott A. Franco

Good, but factually flawed

November 28, 2006

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

First, this is a good book, and brings to light many of the early parts of

home and business use of microcomputers.

However, despite the "updated classic" state of the current printing, it

contains factual errors that should be corrected. I started the book

recently, and almost threw it out after seeing the historical errors in

the front of the book.

On page 9, the authors refer to ENIAC's "clanking teletype machines and

whirring tape drives". Fascinating, since the tape drive for computer

didn't arrive until 1951 (with the first Univac), and the ENIAC read and

wrote cards.

The book also drags out the tired story of Von Neumann creating the basic

architecture of the stored program computer. This is mainly a media

creation, since Von Neumann himself never claimed to have designed

the stored program computer, and in fact, all he did do was place his

name on a report from the EDVAC group drafted on a possible successor to

the ENIAC.

After the authors left early computer history, and went into the early

origins of the home microcomputer revolution, I felt better about the

book. However, I am skeptical of books where I see such obvious errors.

I have to wonder what other errors exist that I simply don't have

personal knowledge of.

Unfortunately, this may never be seen 35 reviews deep, but this book

is often quoted as being the "authority" on microcomputers.

Mrs Freiberger and Swain, please FIX THIS BOOK. It needs to be reviewed

for accuracy.

Scott Moore

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Alistair Crowley

Highly recommended.

December 2, 2016

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Wow, what a book. Techno subject that's usually a snoozer and this author made it blast through the stratosphere. All kinds of behind-the-scenes inside talk that makes it a true thrill ride. Highly recommended.

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Geekus

Now I have the 1st and 2nd editions, but am still missing something....

October 20, 2012

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I bought my first copy of this book at the Schaumburg, IL Computerland store. (That store and chain is now defunct.)

I tore through that edition, savoring every page, and absolutely LOVED IT. While the chapters are short, the book reads like an easy-to-digest "action novel". While other complain of a lack of depth, I say that this book is more of a compendium, a fireside chat that just gets you an overview of this huge story and its colorful characters. In that, "Fire in the Valley" succeeds.

I then lost that book in a flood in my IL basement, and regretted it deeply.

I found the 2nd edition and bought that about 15 years later. While 2nd editions usually build upon the original story and expand on it, FitV's 2nd edition left out certain key characters and their unique marks on the PC business. The one I missed the most was that of the recently deceased Jack Tramiel of Atari/Commodore, and the story of how he crashed through the VIC-20's introduction at the Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show.

Jack knew the Japanese manufacturers would be there, and that the Japanese were methodical innovators. They typically did "Kaizen", stepwise, incremental improvements to products. Jack also knew that if he was able to show a disruptive technology product, which the VIC-20's sprite based color video would be, the Japanese would analyze what happened for at least 6 months, giving Jack and Commodore a market all to themselves.

He related the Japanese psyche to running into a hungry grizzly bear while hiking in the forest. If you fight him, he kills and eats you. If you run, he's faster than you, with the same ending. If you quickly take off and throw down your backpack in front of him, he gets confused. He then begins to sniff and investigate this strange thing at his feet, giving you the chance to run away scott-free.

That story stayed with me ever since.

So, I bought the first edition of FitV, thinking I would have my Tramiel story once again. I was wrong.

It's not the seller's fault. Apparently there were incremental changes to the book's content throughout the multiple printings of the 1st edition. That Tramiel story apparently went in and later got edited out...where and when I do not know. I sure do miss having it. If anyone else out there has a later printing of the 1st edition that has it, please leave a review with the info of what printing number they have.

In any case, if you haven't read either the 1st or 2nd edtions, you're in for a treat. You'll like the content and pace.

It's a great book for bathroom reading, too, just like an issue of Reader's Digest. Each chapter is long enough for a single "sitting", and is complete within itself...no fooling...about 10 minutes. (Ever wonder why RD was the size it was, and why the articles were the length they were? Your grandmother's bathroom was onto something smart. Only problem...FitV doesn't fit on top of the flush tank cover as easily as an issue of RD.)

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Robert Carlberg

The Revolution Apparently WILL Be Televised?

August 12, 2008

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Have not seen the TV movie based on this book -- and maybe won't, since another reviewer described it as "lame" -- but I enjoyed the book greatly. Like Levy's "Insanely Great" and "Hackers," Laing's "Digital Retro," Littman's "The Fugitive Game," Markoff's "Takedown," and many others, this book details the exploits and shenanigans of the early computer pioneers. Originally written in 1984, this edition has been extensively rewritten to bring it up to 2000, which is still ancient history in computer-years. The technical accuracy is not always spot-on (having read elsewhere about Babbage and Lady Lovelace and von Neumann) but the overall narrative is very readable and breezily-entertaining.

The authors jump back and forth in time somewhat disconcertingly, describing 1975 then 1984 then 1990 then 1975 again without warning. I can understand why the authors did this -- with a cast of hundreds it's easier to follow one storyline at a time -- but it takes some reflection as you're reading to place events in their proper sequence again.

The fluid storytelling, fascinating cast and the short, self-contained chapters make for a compulsively-readable text, even at 465 pages.

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Most recent customer reviews

Katherine Bennett

Excellent history; must read for any computer junky

This is one of my favorite non fiction books. Ever. And I read a lot. The authors are journalists so the book reads more like a novel.Read more

Published 1 year ago

Amazon Customer

This is a must-read book for any computer enthusiast, but it's not without it's problems

Fire in the Valley is definitely a must-read book. It has extraordinary depth and provides historical details about computers in general and microcomputers, or personal computers,...Read more

Published 1 year ago

Amazon Customer

Excellent book!

Such a great book about the origins of the PC!

Published on November 26, 2015

Matthew

I loved this book

I read this book about 10 years ago when I was in middle school. Looking back, it was the reason that I first got interested in programming.Read more

Published on July 7, 2015

Andrey Antonov

Five Stars

Great!!

Published on April 11, 2015

Amazon Customer

Lots of interesting information, lazy organization

It has loads of interesting history, but the authors put little effort into integrating it better. It has the flavor of being written as a lot of independent pieces just stuck...Read more

Published on April 2, 2015

Rick

A great current history book

Great story of the start of the PC/Apple revolution. All aspects of the industry are told in this book and in great detail.Read more

Published on March 18, 2015

Ronald Whittemore

Five Stars

great

Published on January 13, 2015

peter m. farwell

The Rest of the Story!

This is great stuff but it misses out much of the history of the personal computer that occurred after the Internet became a public highway in 1995.Read more

Published on October 2, 2014

Patrick John Coogan

Four Stars

Great overview of the early days of the PC industry. Can't believe I couldn't find it in print.

Published on September 29, 2014

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