Product Description

From its first glimmerings in the 1950s, the software industry has evolved to become the fourth largest industrial sector of the US economy. Starting with a handful of software contractors who produced specialized programs for the few existing machines, the industry grew to include producers of corporate software packages and then makers of mass-market products and recreational software. This book tells the story of each of these types of firm, focusing on the products they developed, the business models they followed, and the markets they served.By describing the breadth of this industry, Martin Campbell-Kelly corrects the popular misconception that one firm is at the center of the software universe. He also tells the story of lucrative software products such as IBM's CICS and SAP's R/3, which, though little known to the general public, lie at the heart of today's information infrastructure.With its wealth of industry data and its thoughtful judgments, this book will become a starting point for all future investigations of this fundamental component of computer history.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #569365 in Books
• Published on: 2004-02-27
• Original language: English
• Dimensions: .81" h x 6.06" w x 8.82" l, 1.14 pounds
• Binding: Paperback
• 388 pages

From Booklist
When writers look at the birth of the computer age, they generally focus on the tangible hardware achievements of the likes of IBM and Intel and almost solely on Microsoft when it comes to software. Campbell-Kelly tells us that in the larger perspective, Microsoft is not the center of the software universe and indeed today makes up only about 10 percent of that industry. Mass-market "shrink-wrap" software is the retail version of a much larger sector that contributes to our lives constantly, running everything from airline reservations to bank transfers, credit-card transactions, and most corporate and government functions, including the space program. This is an area that is often ignored because software is hard to define; it is the nearest product we have that is virtually pure thought. Campbell-Kelly is the first historian to give us a comprehensive overview of this hidden industry, which spawned the first user groups when companies had to write their own programs for early IBM mainframes. He includes everything from the information infrastructure of IBM's CICS and SAP's R/3 to the ever-popular gaming software. David Siegfried
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Review

"...a crucial document for anyone interested in understanding the history of software from a business perspective." Case firstmonday.org

"A timely reminder of earlier booms and busts..." Barry Fox New Scientist

"A valuable long view of...the high-visibility Silicon Valley stock-market bubble." Steven Poole The Guardian

"A well-rounded look at the software industry from a business perspective. Highly recommended." Colleen Cuddy Library Journal

"Campbell-Kelly is the first historian to give us a comprehensive overview of this hidden industry..." David Siegfried Booklist

"From Airline Reservations to Sonic the Hedgehog should command a wide audience..." Slashdot.org

"I strongly recommend this book..." Paul Ceruzzi The Times Higher Education Supplement

"In his incisive, panoramic book... Martin Campbell-Kelly delivers all three: context, insight, even occasional humor." Steve Lohr The New York Times

"In his incisive, panoramic book...Martin Campbell-Kelly delivers...context, insight, even occasional humor." Steve Lohr The New York Times

"A timely reminder of earlier booms and busts." Barry Fox New Scientist

"A valuable long view of what is...the high-visibility Silicon Valley stock-market bubble." Steven Poole The Guardian

"I strongly recommend this book..." Paul Ceruzzi Paul Ceruzzi

"In his incisive, panoramic book...Martin Campbell-Kelly delivers all three: context, insight, even occasional humor." Steve Lohr The New York Times

"...Provides a smooth, very readable ride through the growth of one of the last half century's most important industries." Cal Clinchard PC Today

About the Author
Martin Campbell-Kelly is Reader in Computer Science at the University of Warwick.