Microserfs
Registered by BC2009061601 on 3/25/2004
4 journalers for this copy...
This was such an interesting read for me. On one hand I really enjoyed it but on the other hand - this was so close to my life in some respects that I could only read it in small bits!
It is uncanny how well Coupland has managed to capture the whole I.T. culture. The book is written as a journal by a programmer for Microsoft during the mid-90's tech boom. Daniel chronicles his life and that of his close group of friends in their escape from the Church of Bill to their attempts to start their own company and 'get lives'.
Their decision to start out on their own isn't so much about money but about the satisfaction of actually creating something - version 1.0. And what they all discover along the way is that they actually have lives. Having a life isn't about doing things that make OTHER people think you have a life. It's about *doing* what you love and being with *people* you love and who love you. If you have these things then a life will come out of that. And by the end of the book Daniel realizes all these things.
The 90's tech boom has passed but the book still rings true to the IT culture of today. The conversations the coders have could have recorded by Coupland sitting in my office every day. The lego conversations are almost verbatim to one I had with friends a few days before I started this book.
One thing I'm very embarrassed about is that I didn't catch the meaning of Oop! A fellow developer pointed it out to me when I was telling him about the book. It sailed right over my head!
It is uncanny how well Coupland has managed to capture the whole I.T. culture. The book is written as a journal by a programmer for Microsoft during the mid-90's tech boom. Daniel chronicles his life and that of his close group of friends in their escape from the Church of Bill to their attempts to start their own company and 'get lives'.
Their decision to start out on their own isn't so much about money but about the satisfaction of actually creating something - version 1.0. And what they all discover along the way is that they actually have lives. Having a life isn't about doing things that make OTHER people think you have a life. It's about *doing* what you love and being with *people* you love and who love you. If you have these things then a life will come out of that. And by the end of the book Daniel realizes all these things.
The 90's tech boom has passed but the book still rings true to the IT culture of today. The conversations the coders have could have recorded by Coupland sitting in my office every day. The lego conversations are almost verbatim to one I had with friends a few days before I started this book.
One thing I'm very embarrassed about is that I didn't catch the meaning of Oop! A fellow developer pointed it out to me when I was telling him about the book. It sailed right over my head!
Journal Entry 3 by BC2009061601 at Sent to another BookCrosser in By mail / post / courier, By Mail/Post/Courier -- Controlled Releases on Saturday, February 19, 2005
Released 19 yrs ago (2/19/2005 UTC) at Sent to another BookCrosser in By mail / post / courier, By Mail/Post/Courier -- Controlled Releases
WILD RELEASE NOTES:
RELEASE NOTES:
Mailed to Megi53 this afternoon. Enjoy!
Mailed to Megi53 this afternoon. Enjoy!
Arrived today -- it looks wonderful! Thanks for the gorgeous postcard of Vancouver, too.
Finished this last night -- it was so absorbing. I loved reading about the group's work projects, creative office and home decor, and relationships; even their trip to the conference in Las Vegas made me feel like I was having the adventure myself.
The end kind of bothered me ... that's happened with most of the really excellent books I've read this year (Life of Pi; The Tax Inspector; Bel Canto...)
My son read this twice and loved it, too. Now I have somebody special in mind to receive this book. ;-)
The end kind of bothered me ... that's happened with most of the really excellent books I've read this year (Life of Pi; The Tax Inspector; Bel Canto...)
My son read this twice and loved it, too. Now I have somebody special in mind to receive this book. ;-)
Thank you so much for sending this to me as my BallySwapper book! It looks so interesting, and I can't wait to read it.
I enjoyed this book immensely, though I have to agree with Megi that the end bothered me a bit. I'm not sure why... it just didn't seem to fit with the rest of the book, I guess. *shrugs*
Still, though this book wasn't what I expected it to be at all, I enjoyed it a lot and I read it quite quickly. Megi is right - absorbing is a very good word for this book. It kept me up quite late a couple of nights.
Still, though this book wasn't what I expected it to be at all, I enjoyed it a lot and I read it quite quickly. Megi is right - absorbing is a very good word for this book. It kept me up quite late a couple of nights.
Caught at the Columbus BookObsessed meet. I've been meaning to read Coupland and just haven't gotten around to it. No excuses now!
