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Andy Hertzfeld
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Revolution in The Valley [Paperback]: The Insanely Great Story of How the Mac Was Made 1st Edition

by Andy Hertzfeld (Author)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 325 ratings
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There was a time, not too long ago, when the typewriter and notebook ruled, and the computer as an everyday tool was simply a vision. Revolution in the Valley traces this vision back to its earliest roots: the hallways and backrooms of Apple, where the groundbreaking Macintosh computer was born. The book traces the development of the Macintosh, from its inception as an underground skunkworks project in 1979 to its triumphant introduction in 1984 and beyond.

The stories in Revolution in the Valley come on extremely good authority. That's because author Andy Hertzfeld was a core member of the team that built the Macintosh system software, and a key creator of the Mac's radically new user interface software. One of the chosen few who worked with the mercurial Steve Jobs, you might call him the ultimate insider.

When Revolution in the Valley begins, Hertzfeld is working on Apple's first attempt at a low-cost, consumer-oriented computer: the Apple II. He sees that Steve Jobs is luring some of the company's most brilliant innovators to work on a tiny research effort the Macintosh. Hertzfeld manages to make his way onto the Macintosh research team, and the rest is history.

Through lavish illustrations, period photos, and Hertzfeld's vivid first-hand accounts, Revolution in the Valley reveals what it was like to be there at the birth of the personal computer revolution. The story comes to life through the book's portrait of the talented and often eccentric characters who made up the Macintosh team. Now, over 20 years later, millions of people are benefiting from the technical achievements of this determined and brilliant group of people.
Previous page
  1. ISBN-10
    1449316247
  2. ISBN-13
    978-1449316242
  3. Edition
    1st
  4. Publisher
    O'Reilly Media
  5. Publication date
    November 22, 2011
  6. Language
    English
  7. Dimensions
    7.68 x 0.56 x 7.56 inches
  8. Print length
    328 pages
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Andy Hertzfeld was a graduate student in computer science at UC Berkeley in January 1978 when he purchased one of the first Apple IIs. He quickly lost interest in grad school as he began writing programs for his Apple II, eventually leading him to join Apple Computer as a systems programmer in August 1979. He joined the Macintosh team in February 1981, and became one of the main authors of the Macintosh system software, including the User Interface Toolbox and many of the original desk accessories. He left Apple in March 1984, and went on to co-found three companies: Radius (1986), General Magic (1990) and Eazel (1999). In 2003, he developed web-based software for collective storytelling that he used to write the stories in this book. In 2005, he joined Google, and was one of the main creators of Google+.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ O'Reilly Media; 1st edition (November 22, 2011)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 328 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1449316247
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1449316242
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.26 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.68 x 0.56 x 7.56 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 325 ratings

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Andy Hertzfeld

Andy Hertzfeld

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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
325 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

J. Teeter
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing book.
Reviewed in the United States on April 26, 2016
Verified Purchase
The world was changed Paul and Clara jobs adopted Steve (1955-2011). Paul taught Steve you can build or fix anything but you had to put quality into everything you build before you can sell it.
The back story: He met Woz in school and started apple in his Cupertino, CA.family garage. He called Bill Hewlett and got tips to help the young friends make e a tone generator which permitted them to make free long distance calls. Hewlett hired Steve for his first job at Hewlett Packard. They went on to found apple with these good people to make a computer you already know how to use.
Steve's bio is inspirational. To get a sense of how he used his "reality distortion field" (early pages) to motivate his co-orkers, google the "lost interview", watch it. You get a good feel for his personality.
The best Macs were the first. After we lost Steve in 2011. Apple keeps changing browser versions "for greater security" which lines their pocket and you need to re-learn. Wish they made a senior friendly version and kissed off the bells and whilstles. Oh yeh, and get David Pogue's computers for dummy and keep your old one going if you can.
Hey Woz, if you're still out there can you really write us one more intuitive program that we "already know how to use". All we'll need then is a power plug, our brains! and the willingness to experiment.
4 people found this helpful
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Vivace
4.0 out of 5 stars It's pretty great indeed
Reviewed in the United States on January 1, 2014
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I had an Apple IIC as a kid. It was one of my most fascinating items. I have seen pirates of silicon valley, read iWoz and the steve jobs biography ...I seem to be able to cram in more early Apple stories I guess because it reminds me of my childhood. anyway this one has been my favorite. its quite complete and believable. my only complaint is that it gets a bit self congratulatory at spots...c'mon how many times can we read brilliant and single handedly in one page?? but it's not nearly as bad as iwoz in this regard. on the whole it's a delightfull collection of inspiring, humorous and insane stories from a team that created many great things. works very well with coffee!
3 people found this helpful
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Marcio T.
5.0 out of 5 stars An amazing story of how few peoples shaped the way we used technology last 30 years
Reviewed in the United States on March 13, 2012
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It is amazing to know how a team of few talented people at Apple did the work which shaped the way we used the technology the last 30 years, creating the first widespread computers with graphical interface, turning the computer more friendly and accessible to the average, non technical user, changing all aspects of the our lives(economy, relationships, communications, commerce....).
This book is a collection of experiences of the people responsible for the development of Classic Macintosh.
The stories on the book contextualize the technical and human challenges found on the journey to develop the first Macintosh, bringing us lots of inside information by the perspective of people who worked on this endeavor.
The hard cover edition I bought is very nice, with a high quality paper and I'm proud of have it on my library.
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Alberto
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Stories... a must for any computer fan!
Reviewed in the United States on July 28, 2005
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I am a Mac user, and I loved Apple products since I was a child but also like PC machines and I use it for games or work stuff.

I was very interested in this book because I though I will find the little stories that show you the steps that original computers engineers had to make to transform those big monsters computers to the now common user friendly computer that all of us are used to work with...

And the book didn't dissapoint me, almost all the stories are funny or has something that make it worth the reading.

Pros:

+ A lot of mac stories

+ Some stories are just great for mac lovers.

+ A lot of description about Steve Jobs and key apple engineers.

Cons:

- Very mac centric

- Very short, I read all the book in 2 days!

- Some stories deserve to be extended!
5 people found this helpful
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Joseph Pellerin
5.0 out of 5 stars Intimate Apple
Reviewed in the United States on June 20, 2006
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An interesting format - a book made up of mini-memoir/essays written by various members of the original Macintosh team (mainly Andy Hertzfeld).

Although much of the material Hertzfeld and crew presents is covered in other books, (such as Levy's "Insanely Great"), this book gives us an intimate flavor to some of those old stories. There's nothing like hearing it from the horse's mouth.

Also, as one whose mind was blown by the original Mac, and currently makes a living as a computer programmer, I find the technical details, shots of original developer notes, and personal photographs to be fascinating.

Great book - highly recommended.
3 people found this helpful
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Matias Torchinsky
4.0 out of 5 stars very interesting and funny
Reviewed in the United States on March 31, 2006
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Well, i admit this book is really cool and is well written. It's a collection of memories and histories by Mr Andy Hertzfeld. While reading this book , i felt i would like to be at that time, on that place.

It's a excelent picture if what was really happening at Apple , at those times. Also it helps me to make a better idea about who is who on Apple team.

If you like Mac history, you should read this book.
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Amazon Customer
3.0 out of 5 stars An interesting but somewhat boring read
Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2020
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This is a good book but unless you really interested in all the various details, it can be quite boring. There are lots of interesting stories but it can be laborious to get though.
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Greg Foster
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book, excellent delivery
Reviewed in the United States on July 20, 2020
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This book is a great read so far, which makes the quick delivery and good condition of the book all the more important. I would buy from this seller again in the future.
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Top reviews from other countries

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Fabrizio Badini
5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect
Reviewed in Germany on February 9, 2024
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The book in better condition than how the seller describe it! Definitely a good seller
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Fabrizio Badini
5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect
Reviewed in Germany on February 9, 2024
The book in better condition than how the seller describe it! Definitely a good seller
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v
4.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully detailed essays of their historic time building the Mac
Reviewed in India on November 21, 2018
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Andy Hertzfeld and Co have yo be given a massive amount of credit - not only for being the true 10x engineers that they were, but also for the excellent and detailed semi technical account in the book here.
I hope the world remembers them along with Steve Jobs for this epic moment in history. If ever Woz needed great engineers to follow his genius, then these guys have a reasonably strong claim to it: With Bill Atkinson, Hertzfeld and Burrell Smith being at the forefront.

I could feel the thrill of being along with them in their when they were at the peak of their creative abilities. The first person nature of the account helps maintain this tight connection between the reader and the author.
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Channel
5.0 out of 5 stars Bellissimo
Reviewed in Italy on November 5, 2018
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Un ottimo libro pieno di storia, di foto e di appunti dell'epoca, che racconta i giorni in cui un gruppo di pazzoidi diede origine al mito Macintosh.
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gowf2bad
5.0 out of 5 stars Insider Account
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 8, 2012
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Excellent narrative about the process to get the Macintosh to market. Having a member of the team who produced the Macintosh doing the writing beats any third-party attempt to capture the intrigues, setbacks, successes which accompanied the whole process. Despite reading other Apple-focussed books, found this one gave a totally new slant to this product introduction. Also discovered what happened to the geniuses involved after the launch and subsequent expansion of Apple Inc.
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cOzzy
5.0 out of 5 stars 読みましょう。
Reviewed in Japan on February 25, 2015
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iPhoneはいりません。Inside Macとこれを読んでください。人生豊かになりますよ。
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