I came to this book with no preconceptions, and came away feeling I had a much better understanding of the early days of personal computing. While others had difficulty finding a narrative thread, I thought Markoff (perhaps despite himself) told the interesting story of two ways of thinking about the impact of personal computing.

In Markoff's tale, Doug Engelbart and the group based at Xerox PARC was trying to figure out how to augment human intelligence, while the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Lab (SAIL) was trying to develop an electronic brain--essentially to replace human intelligence.

Yes, the story is convoluted, with a lot of characters. I did find myself wanting to create a timeline and chart the various dramatis personae; and someday I may still do that. Yes, I think the influence of LSD is probably overstated, though it certainly makes sense in creating a context for all this research. I do think this is a readable and fascinating account of this period. "What the Dormouse Said" is one of my favorite books of the last several years. ( )

Disappointing. Prolix, and too much given to trivialities, thus obscuring the through-line of what would make a really good extended magazine article. The soul of a new machine this ain't. ( )

I’ve been wanting to read What the Dormouse Said since it came out, and finally got the chance to read it this week. I was disappointed, although now I have a lot of other books & videos to dig into as a result of reading this book.

Markoff’s thesis, that the 1960s psychadelic subculture shaped the ideas that lead up to the first personal computers, is pretty reasonable. The parties and grassroot organizations of the day brought people together, and the dream of a “personal” computer was just another example of “power to the people”. He gives plenty of facts & tales to support this angle.

My biggest complaint is that the book lacks a cohesive narrative thread. I like how Fabio Rojas describes it in his review: “There are so many people that just appear and disappear that it’s hard to keep track of them.” Several times, I wished I had taken the time to draw a “family tree” of the subjects, so I had some idea who they were and how they tied into everything. ( )

I think Markoff is a fine journalist, but I've never really liked any of his books all that much. This is a fairly pedestrian history of early computing compared to classics like The Dream Machine or Where Wizards Stay Up Late. It does, however, rescue Fred Moore from undeserved obscurity. ( )

An interesting book, pointing out all the ways that the beginnings of the personal computer were touched by the 1960's psychedelic counter-culture. ( )