The Soul of A New Machine

The Soul of a New Machine is a captivating book that chronicles the creation of Data General's Eclipse MV/8000 computer from the engineers' point of view. Through the narrative, Tracy Kidder adeptly illuminates the engineering psyche: the rush derived from the freedom to create, the sensation of being "lost in the machine", the feeling of power that comes from bringing order to chaos, the personal identity associated with creation. The book elucidates the paradoxical competing motivations that inspire an employee to maintain a daunting schedule that eclipses their personal life. Tracy may understand engineers better than they understand themselves. In fact, as an engineer, I understand myself better after reading this book. Being set in the late 1970s, the book provides the reader with an authentic glimpse into a bygone era when yellow legal pads and pencils were essential engineering tools. What's surprising is the similarities to modern-day. Engineers are still wrestling with the same fundamental questions: can machines think, what are the ethical implications of computing, what's the perfect balance between done and right? Then and now, engineers are attempting to cope with the "long-term tiredness" resulting from the rampant pace of innovation that can render a recent graduate more skilled than an industry veteran. The human component remains the most perplexing. In the end, "people are just reaching out in the dark, touching hands." The book serves as a refreshing reminder that although technology evolves at a breakneck pace, the design process remains much the same. In conclusion, The Soul of a New Machine should be required reading for business and engineering students alike. The enduring lessons are to hire smart people, enable them, and get out of their way. Engineers thrive on agency and the potential to materialize their conceptions. No amount of external motivation can breathe commiserate vitality into a design process. If you are an engineer or a manager, do yourself a favor: read and understand The Soul of a New Machine.

This book is a fascinating recount of Data General's effort to bring a new computer to the market. Through the stories we re-live moments of "drama, comedy, and excitement" as an engineering team works day and night in the goal of developing a computer - project code "Eagle". The author focuses on the natural tension that exists between the engineers and their management. Particularly that of a focus on product vs. the market and the race to develop the next computer. Within this book are numerous lessons on technical leadership, management and organizational dynamics. The lead on the effort (Tom) is a strong believer in grass-root effort and had the ability to build a team, rally them toward a common cause and lead them to success. As mentioned on the cover: "What has changed little, however, is computer culture: the feverish pace of the high-tech industry, the mystique of programmers, the entrepreneurial bravado that has caused so many start-up companies to win big (or crash and burn), and the cult of pursuing mind-bending technological innovations. By tracing computer culture to its roots, by exploring the "soul" of the "machine" that has revolutionized the world, Kidder succeeds as no other writer has done in capturing the essential of the computer age." A fun classic read with numerous applicable lessons! Below are two excerpts that I found particularly relevant: 1- "Software compatibility is a marvelous thing. That was the essential lesson West took away from his long talks with his friend in Marketing. You didn't want to make a machine that wasn't compatible, not if you could avoid it. Old customers would feel that since they'd need to buy and create all new software anyways, they might as well look at what other companies had to offer; they'd be likely to undertake the dreaded "market survey"." 2- "Adopting a remote, managerial point of view, you could say that the Eagle project was a case where a local system of management worked as it should: competition for resources creating within a team inside a company an entrepreneurial spirit, which was channeled in the right direction by constraints sent down from the tip. But it seems more accurate to say that a group of engineers got excited about building a computer. Whether it arose by corporate bungling or by design, the opportunity had to be grasped. In this sense, the initiative belonged entirely to West and the members of his team. What's more, they did the work, both with uncommon spirit and for reasons that, in a most frankly commercial setting, seemed remarkably pure."

This book is wonderfully written. I have not gotten to the end yet, but so far I have found it an enjoyable piece of history and one which reminds us that no matter how the quickly technology itself changes, people remain very much the same.

I first read Tracy Kidder's book "The Soul of a New Machine" in the early 1980s, shortly after its publication in 1981. At the time I was intrigued and interested in the process and detail of engineering required to bring a new computer to market; and I was fascinated by the leadership/management skills employed by the key character to "motivate" the team. I thought it was a great read. That was nearly thirty years ago. Recently, I mentioned this book in a conversation with a colleague and subsequently decided to read it again. I hoped it would be as good as I thought it was the first time, but I was skeptical. Technology has changed a lot; and both the MV/8000 and Data General Corporation are now long gone. Would "The Soul of a New Machine" still be as gripping a story as it was originally? The answer, in a word, is YES! In rereading the book in 2011, I was struck by the diversity of the team engaged in this effort, the various work methods and styles that had to come together for success. Kidder introduces the reader to a wonderful cast of characters who worked incredible hours and faced enormous time pressures under great stress for months and months to birth a new computer. It may sound simple, but it wasn't. "The Soul of a New Machine" is a gripping, circuitous, wonderful tale of a dream and the team that brought it to life.

A great book that chronicles life working on a new computer design in the late seventies.

Llegó muy rápido, 3 días antes . Tengo, de hace años la versión en español la encontré en un tienda de libros usados (pero estaba nuevo). Habían muchos, como en calidad de desecho. Y por mucho tiempo estuve buscando la versión original. La compré a muy buen precio. La calidad de impresion y pasta es excelentes. En cuanto a contenido es apasionante (si eres electrónico) el leer como trabajaron en el diseño de una computadora de los años 70s.

The book arrived damaged. See attached photo.

If you are working in IT industry or a startup, this is a good read. It actually explains how complicated projects were managed in DEC back in 70's. Author explains some computer architecture concepts in a simple manner. End of the book I realised thay managers still use the same techniques with their employees even in these days

I'm old enough to remember the early days of computers. The smell of solder, the punched cards trying to write Fortran, burning EPROMs at midnight. I guess you had to be there to be that close to the story but the story is about men trying to do something that had never been done before. That's why I did it and that's why they also risked a great deal. His seeing into the hearts and minds of the engineers could only come from spending a lot of time with them, to both see and feel the pressure, the pain and well, for some, the rewards.