Future Hype

May 1, 2006
Differentiating between technological reality and illusion is difficult when the overwhelming majority of information available is produced by spin doctors. With this book, computer industry veteran Seidensticker fires a much-deserved shot across the bow of these technology spin doctors -be they marketers, journalists, academics, or public technology enthusiasts -investigating the interplay between technology and society by looking back through time at specific technologies and patterns of behavior with which they are associated. He challenges nine -High-Tech Myths - (e.g., exponential rates of change, technology adoption rates, invention gestation times) by examining the facts and posing probing questions. In the end, he develops a more accurate model of technology change than the one with which he began, a model that can be used to make technology purchasing decisions. Unlike other books on this topic, Seidensticker's is not dense, dry, and boring. It is light, entertaining, and thought-provoking whether you fear, abhor, or worship technology. Strongly recommended for all libraries." -James A. Buczynski, Seneca Coll. of Applied Arts & Technology, Toronto"

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