The Road Ahead

For all who have marveled at the rapid advance of computers and their impact on our personal lives, Bill Gates stands out as a visionary. At an age when most students can barely see their own potential, Gates saw the revolutionary possibilities of the silicon chip. John Ottavino gives an enthusiastic presentation of Gates's historical review and predictions for the future of the information superhighway. The abridged text flows clearly and logically. Enhanced by Gates's own comments, this is an instructive and entertaining presentation. B.L.W. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine


If Bill Gates is right, fascinating surprises are in store for us as technology improves the way we live and work. How about answering the phone from your morning shower while projecting an image of yourself in your best business suit to the caller's screen? The tour of Gates's wired home is intoxicating--this is not just a book for business types and techies. Narrator Adamson is just as excited about these changes as Gates; his enthusiasm and pace aptly project Gates's boyish optimism for the future and all it holds. This clear-voiced view by Adamson is interspersed with audio clips from Gates himself. J.E.G. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine

February 1, 1997
This recording, the third based on Gates's best-selling book (the original abridgment was reviewed in Audio Reviews, LJ 1/96; the unabridged edition was reviewed in Audio Reviews, LJ 8/96), has been updated to include Gates's--and by extension, MicrosoftR's--sudden realization that the Internet is the Holy Grail of computing. Having been beaten to the punch by Netscape Communications (whose ubiquitous World Wide Web browsers own anywhere from 70 to 90 percent of the market), Gates finds himself playing catch-up. Here, he lays out MicrosoftR's internet strategies and outlines a brief history of the Internet's meteoric rise in popularity. Thankfully, after reading the new and revised passages, our nerdy-voiced host hands the ball off to reader Rick Adamson, who seems much more comfortable in front of a microphone. Recommended for libraries that passed on the previous two audio incarnations of The Road Ahead and for larger collections wherein popular technology materials circulate well.--Mark Annichiarico, "Library Journal