Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software
- ISBN13: 9780735611313
- Condition: New
- Notes: BUY WITH CONFIDENCE, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and service to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed
What do flashlights, the British invasion, black cats, and seesaws have to do with computers? In CODE, they show us the ingenious ways we manipulate language and invent new ways to communicate with each other. And through CODE, we see how this ingenu
Rating: 
(out of 81 reviews)
List Price: $ 17.99
Price: $ 10.97
PC Hardware in a Nutshell, 3rd Edition
A longtime favorite among PC users, the third edition of the book now contains useful information for people running either Windows or Linux operating systems. Written for novices and seasoned professionals alike, the book is packed with useful and u
Rating: 
(out of 33 reviews)
List Price: $ 39.95
Price: $ 15.97
Related Computer Hardware Products
Review by James B. Delong for Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software
Rating:
I think that this is the best book that I have read all year. In some sense this is the book that I have been looking for for twenty-five years–the book that will enable me to understand how a computer does what it does. And–given the centrality of computers in our age–it has been a long wait. But now it is over. Charles Petzold (1999), Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software does a much better job than anything else I have ever seen in explaining computers–what they really are, and how they really work.Have you ever wondered just how your computers really work? I mean, really, really work. Not as in “an electrical signal from memory tells the processor the number to be added,” but what the electrical signal is, and how it accomplishes the magic of switching on the circuits that add while switching off the other circuits that would do other things with the number. I have. I have wondered this a lot over the past decades.Yet somehow over the past several decades my hunger for an explanation has never been properly met. I have listened to people explain how two switches wired in series are an “AND”–only if both switches are closed will the lightbulb light. I have listened to people explain how IP is a packet-based communications protocol and TCP is a connection-based protocol yet the connection-based protocal can ride on top of the packet-based protocol. Somehow these explanations did not satisfy. One seemed like answering “how does a car work?” by telling how in the presence of oxygen carbon-hydrogen bonds are broken and carbon dioxide and water are created. The other seemed like anwering “how does a car work” by telling how if you step on the accelerator the car moves forward.Charles Petzold is different. He has hit the sweet spot exactly. Enough detail to satisfy anyone. Yet the detail is quickly built up as he ascends to higher and higher levels of explanation. It remains satisfying, but it also hangs together in a big picture.In fact, my only complaint is that the book isn’t long enough. It is mostly a hardware book (unless you want to count Morse Code and the interpretation of flashing light bulbs as “software.” By my count there are twenty chapters on hardware, and five on software. In my view only five chapters on software–one on ASCII, one on operating systems, one on floating-point arithmetic, one on high-level languages, and one on GUIs–is about ten too few. (Moreover, at one key place in his explanation (but only one) he waves his hands. He argues that it is possible to use the operation codes stored in memory to control which circuits in the processor are active. But he doesn’t show how it is done.)Charles Petzold’s explanatory strategy is to start with the telegraph: with how opening and closing a switch can send an electrical signal down a wire. And he wants to build up, step by step, from that point to end with our modern computers. At the end he hopes that the reader can look back–from the graphical user interface to the high-level language software constructions that generate it, from the high-level language software constructions to the machine-language code that underlies it, from the machine-language code to the electrical signals that load, store, and add bits into the computer’s processor and into the computer’s memory.But it doesn’t stop there. It goes further down into how to construct an accumulator or a memory bank from logic gates. And then it goes down to how to build logic gates–either out of transistors or telegraph relays. And then deeper down, into how the electrons actually move through a transistor or through a relay and a wire.And at the end I could look back and say, yes, I understand how this machine works in a way that I didn’t understand it before. Before I understood electricity and maybe an AND gate, and I understood high level languages. But the whole vast intermediate realm was fuzzy. Now it is much clearer. I can go from the loop back to the conditional jump back to the way that what is stored in memory is fed into the processor back to the circuits that set the program counter back to the logic gates, and finally back to the doped silicon that makes up the circuit.So I recommend this book to everyone. It is a true joy to read. And I at least could feel my mind expanding as I read it.
Review by Robert Leder for Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software
Rating:
The average person who uses a computer to surf the web or type letters has so little knowledge of the underlying technology he or she is using that it may as well be magic. Even programmers, who typically spend their days solving problems with the high-end abstractedness of object-orientation, may be more than a little unclear about what’s actually going on inside the box when their compiled code is running.Petzold attempts, and largely succeeds at, writing a book that leaves the reasonably intelligent layperson with a thorough comprehension of each layer that comprises a modern electronic computer (binary coding -> electronic representation -> transistors -> logic gates -> integrated circuits -> microprocessors -> opcodes -> assembly language -> high-level language -> applications). At times, the reader must follow along carefully, but Petzold tries to avoid needless complication. Code is a well written and very entertaining explanation of the digital electronic technology that has become an integral part of our daily lives. Short of getting a degree in electrical engineering, this book is your best bet to understand how it works.
Review by Doug Pappas for Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software
Rating:
Charles Petzold a does an outstanding job of explaining the basic workings of a computer. His story begins with a description of various ways of coding information including Braille, Morse code, and binary code. He then describes the development of hardware beginning with a description of the development of telegraph and relays. This leads into the development of transistors and logic gates and switches. Boolean logic is described and numerous electrical circuits are diagramed showing the electrical implementation of Boolean logic. The book describes circuits to add and subtract binary numbers. The development of hexadecimal code is described. Memory circuits are assembled by stringing logic gates together. Two basic microprocessors are described – the Intel 8080 and the Motorola 6800. Machine language, assembly language, and some higher level software languages are covered. There is a chapter on operating systems. This book provides a very nice historical perspective on the development of computers. It is entertaining and only rarely bogs down in technical detail.
Review by Boris S for Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software
Rating:
The book starts out very solid, describing all the building blocks of a computer. The beginning is the best book I’ve seen so far describings everything from the binary system to electrical circuits, to gates to simple calculators, to memory, to a complete machine with a “control panel”. But after that, the book started getting a LOT more broad (not necessarily a bad thing). It seems almost as if Petzold wanted to tell you everything about the world of computers, but couldn’t fit it in a book such as this; so he dabbed a little here and there of a few terms, history, etc… (allowing you the option to look up anything you wanted if you had the interest).My oppinion is that the book is _great_ up to about the middle of the book, after which he just condenced all the rest of the information which would otherwise takes thousands of pages to describe in as much details as he described how to build a physical logic machine… I think that if someone isn’t a “techie” or isn’t in the computer field, they may have some hard time understanding a few minor points… but overall, this is a GREAT book.. one of a kind.Greatly recommended for everyone’s library… I can honestly say, I always told people “a computer is nothing more than zero’s and one’s”… but until I read this book, I couldn’t BUILD one… now I can (given time! :).P.S. This book is perfect for those who didn’t necessarily go to college and learned everything on their own… it covers some CS, CE, and EE. Those who went to college with either of those majors probably learned the greatest part of this book… but it’s a great review.
Review by Shawn Weil for Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software
Rating:
Have you ever opened up the case of your PC, only to find that there are seemingly millions of lego-esque pieces stuck together? Have you ever wondered how computing went from the abacus to the Palm IV? Have you ever asked how the engineers are able to do the things they do?Well, ask no more. Instead, read this book. Charles Petzold is able to describe the workings of a simple computer, starting from the ground floor. He begins with descriptions of a simple circuit, and slowly works his way to more and more complex structures. You learn about flashlights, Morse code, and the early computers, and how each has impacted modern computing.Will this book teach you how to program? No. But if you were not a computer science major or electrical engineer in college, this book will lay some of the foundations for understanding this technology. The technical aspects get a little dense at times, but this did not detract from the impact of this book.If you have been curious about what goes on in that beige box, now is your time to investigate. This is the place to start.
Review by Steve Smith for PC Hardware in a Nutshell, 3rd Edition
Rating:
I buy a lot of PC hardware books for my job as a PC manager. Most of them are me-too knockoffs of Muellers Upgrading and Repairing PCs. This one is different. It’s smaller than U&R PCs, but incredibly information-rich. The authors don’t waste time and space with obsolete information. Everything here is up-to-date and reflects the real world of systems based on modern Intel and AMD processors. This book has no errors that I can find. I thought I’d found a couple, so I emailed the authors. They responded within half an hour (!) and explained things. As it turned out, what I thought were errors weren’t. I’d been wrong about those things all these years. I’m ordering copies for all my technicians and recommending they read it through from start to finish. If you’re looking for the best PC hardware book available, get this one.
Review by Timothy Walker for PC Hardware in a Nutshell, 3rd Edition
Rating:
Short review: it’s O’Reilly, buy it.Longer review: this is a fantastic book. It is concise, current, inexpensive (how often do these words apply to computer books?), enjoyable to read, and, above all, USEFUL. The authors mingle sound advice and dry humor with a casual writing style, keeping the reader engaged and entertained as s/he absorbs the most (by nature) boring technical details. Technicians who charge by the hour should buy this book immediately… it will pay for itself in a week or two.That said, this book is NOT “the only book you’ll ever need”. Though I agree with most of the authors’ opinions, honest debate is always a good thing (for example, they write that, as of June 2000, Socket 7 is obsolete. I think now is the time to buy, as several of my clients are budget-conscious and still essentially happy with their 486s). Additionally, this book needs a chapter on modems, and more second-tier reviews would be nice, but I suppose that’s what the website is for.Bottom line: get yourself a big thick “phone book” on PC repair (Bigelow and Mueller come to mind) and this book and you’ll be equipped for most any upgrade or buying decision that comes your way. But without a strong technical background or a huge reference work nearby, don’t open the case.
Review by Mark Miller for PC Hardware in a Nutshell, 3rd Edition
Rating:
Written by a husband and wife team, PC Hardware in a Nutshell proves that technical books don’t have to be dry. This book touches all the bases that you’d expect in a PC book but it goes much further. Beyond the purely technical stuff it focuses on what you need to know to make good purchase and upgrade decisions, and it’s obvious that these people know what they’re talking about. I bought this book intending to use it as a reference but this is a very easy book to get into as a straight-thru read. It’s sometimes funny, at times outrageous, and never boring. It’s refreshing to read something that ignores all the marketing hype. When a product is great, they say so. When a product sucks, they tell you that too.
Review by Ken Jones for PC Hardware in a Nutshell, 3rd Edition
Rating:
My wife bought me this book for Christmas. I was impressed just flipping through the book and reading random sections so I decided to sit down and read it cover to cover. This is clearly the best PC hardware book on the market. Solid coverage, factually correct, and the opinions expressed are never contrary to my own experience. It’s not as big as those huge compendium PC books with twenty different authors but there’s more real information in it. If you’re only going to buy one PC hardware book this is the one to get.
Review by Don Davis for PC Hardware in a Nutshell, 3rd Edition
Rating:
My wife’s PC died and the repair place said it’d cost $225 parts and labor to replace the power supply. That seemed awfully expensive given what new PC’s sell for, so I hauled it back home. On the way I got to thinking about fixing it myself, so I stopped by the mall and looked at PC hardware books. This one had more details about power supplies than the others so I bought it. I’d never worked on a PC before and was a little nervous about opening my wife’s system but I figured if I killed it it’d be no great loss. I bought a new power supply for about $50 and installed it. When I crossed my fingers and turned the system back on it started normally and has been working ever since. That means this book already saved me $150 over its cost. Even if you’re a PC novice like me this book tells you everything you need to know to fix or upgrade your system. I don’t know how this book compares to other PC hardware books because I’ve never read any of them. But as far as I’m concerned it definitely deserves five stars.