Simply put, this erudite, eclectic, and lavishly illustrated compendium is a technical book buyer's Whole Earth Review. For every person who has ever dreamed of building an intelligent robot, discovering a new form of math, writing a fractal-paint program, radioing a Russian submarine, decompiling an integrated circuit, or draining a toxic landfill, this book is great bedside reading.
Plus, these guys maintain a Net site complete with a searchable database of tech book titles (no reviews) and an ordering system. Dial in via telnet to utcbooks.com and log in as "utc" with "utc" as a password.
The great recursive irony here is that the world has grown so complicated we need books and bookstores to collate and distribute techno-data to keep it all running. Now, the information has become so voluminous we need book guides to direct us to appropriate books. What's next, guides to guides?
Technical Book Buyer's Guide, 2nd ed., by Gilbert T. Lopez and Tom Cloney: US$19.95. United Techbook Company: (800) 247 4808, +1 (303) 651 3184.
STREET CRED
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