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 means of communicating with each other. And through CODE, we see how this ingenuity and our very human compulsion to communicate have driven the technological innovations of the past two centuries. Using everyday objects and familiar language systems such as Braille and Morse code, author Charles Petzold weaves an illuminating narrative for anyone who’s ever wondered about the secret inner life of computers and other smart machines. It’s a cleverly illustrated and eminently comprehensible story—and along the way, you’ll discover you’ve gained a real context for understanding today’s world of PCs, digital media, and the Internet. No matter what your level of technical savvy, CODE will charm you—and perhaps even awaken the technophile within. Cover......Page 1 Frontmatter......Page 3 Contents......Page 5 Preface......Page 6 1 Best Friends......Page 10 2 Codes and Combinations......Page 16 3 Braille and Binary Codes......Page 22 4 Anatomy of a Flashlight......Page 29 5 Seeing Around Comers......Page 39 6 Telegraphs and Relays......Page 47 7 Our Ten Digits......Page 54 8 Alternatives to Ten......Page 61 9 Bit by Bit by Bit......Page 76 10 Logic and Switches......Page 93 11 Gates (Not Bill)......Page 109 12 A Binary Adding Machine......Page 138 13 But What About Subtraction?......Page 150 14 Feedback and Flip-Flops......Page 162 15 Bytes and Hex......Page 187 16 An Assemblage of Memory......Page 197 17 Automation......Page 213 18 From Abaci to Chips......Page 245 19 Two Classic Microprocessors......Page 267 20 ASCD and a Cast of Characters......Page 293 21 Get on the Bus......Page 308 22 The Operating System......Page 327 23 Fixed Point, Floating Point......Page 342 24 Languages High and Low......Page 356 25 The Graphical Revolution......Page 371 Acknowledgments......Page 390 "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 ingenuity - and our very human compulsion to communicate - have driven the technological innovations of the past two centuries." "Using everyday objects and familiar language systems such as Braille and Morse code, author Charles Petzold weaves an illuminating narrative for anyone who's ever wondered about the secret inner life of computers and other smart machines."--Jacket 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 means of communicating with each other. And through CODE, we see how this ingenuity and our very human compulsion to communicate have driven the technological innovations of the past two centuries. Using everyday objects and familiar language systems such as Braille and Morse code, author Charles Petzold weaves an illuminating narrative for anyone who s ever wondered about the secret inner life of computers and other smart machines A discussion of the history and future of coding theory celebrates the ingenuity of language systems and their uses from Braille and Morse code through binary codes to 32-bit operating systems
