Silicon Snake Oil

Silicon Snake Oil by CliffordStoll, 1996 [ISBN 0385419945 ]

The book is about how computers are like the old SnakeOil salesmen. I think. I read it, but I was so uninspired by it that I've forgotten most of what he said in the book.

You can read part of it online: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0385419945/ref=lib_dp_TFCV/104-0991622-5226357?v=glance&s=books&vi=reader#reader-link

This book has not held up well at all. It's very rambling, very loose, and I mostly get the impression that Cliff is burned out on technology. His being burned out doesn't translate to the internet being SnakeOil, however. He completely missed all of the wonderful art-driven things that the web has brought, like people writing and sharing guitar lessons, and people creating digital photo galleries. Some parts of the book are downright laughable, such as his preference for real wood library card catalogs over using a searchable database. There is room for criticism of high-tech culture, especially the complexity it has brought, but this book doesn't approach the topic in a reasonable way.

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