Microserfs

Dan Underwood is one of many overworked, under-personal-lived “Microserfs”: coders and testers and programmers and others at Microsoft who crank out the code that bring Microsoft products to life. He’s 26, living in a “geek house” with five roommates, and not sure where to go to get himself a life. Then one of the roommates, Michael, moves to California, the land of technological opportunity. Will the others cling to security at Microsoft or make a leap into the unknown?

This is one of my all-time favourite books. I picked it up at the age of 12 simply because my dad’s hardcover edition had a Lego man on the cover (it is relevant to the plot), and I fell in love. It’s told through diary entries and shot through with sarcasm show more but also deep contemplation and philosophy.

It was a little strange to be reading it now, because I am now older than all of the protagonists (not Dan’s parents, but all of the core characters), yet at the same time they are still “older” than I am (and they would be, if they existed in real life). And because I am that much older, the really sad bits of the story hit me that much harder, even though I knew they were coming).

Also, the technological and social elements of this book feel almost trapped in amber: the book feels so innovative and cutting-edge, yet at the same time incredibly dated. The internet is only just starting to become a big deal—heck, area codes didn’t even have digits other than 1 or 0 in the middle—and there is not a word about smartphones, streaming music, or YouTube. Not that I expected there to be, of course. But I love reading books at the cutting edge of technology long after that edge has been blunted. It feels like time travel in a way.

I loved this book, but I know it is probably not for everyone. show less

This was a surprise. I really really loved this novel. A fascinating snapshot of the 1990's tech industry from the POV of an early Gen X software tester and programmer. Doesn't sound like it would be entertaining? It blew me away, it was so fun and hilarious, from the pseudo-deification of Bill Gates (referred to only as "Bill"---said with the gravity of saying "God"), to the Lego decorated office, to the pet hamsters named "Look" and "Feel," to the typical 90's Gen-X conversations--philosophizing over pop culture (cereals, 70's TV shows, childhood toys, etc).

There were more serious themes too, such as finding love, how older generations are lost on the new tides of the technology boom, finding purpose and meaning in life after the show more success-driven 1980's. So, even though it was a fun book, it wasn't shallow. show less

Quirky, funny, and touching. Not my usual genre, and I'm not a geek, so I can't imagine what possessed me to pick this book up in the first place, but I'm so glad I did. It's so well written, and about far more than the world of programming and computers. I just loved it.

I probably should not have read JPod before reading Microserfs. Microserfs came out in the mid-nineties, and tells the story of a group of Microsoft employees and their startup. This is before the internet became big, before the bubble, before everything really.... Jpod is its noughties counterpart.
Because I have read JPod before, and because JPod was more of "my" decade, I didn't like Microserfs as much as I thought I would. I found the writing style (the diary of Dan), which is the same type as in JPod, gimmicky, while I loved it in Jpod. All in all it was a nice book, but a bit of a disappointment.

I read a great deal of negative reviews of this book but I thought it was hillarious! It was like a diary or stream of consousness but there were so many "weird" facts and theories intertwined that it really made me think. I thought the end was very different from the tone of the rest of the book but it really made me think. I wouldnt exactly give it 5 stars because Im trying to be more conservative with stars, but I really enjoyed it!

It's not quite five stars, but there are enough good points it's more than 4.

What a weird ride! This covers so much of the tech and attitudes of geek culture in the early 90s, and ideas about the changing landscape of technology and society, it's fascinating.

This is the story of a particular coder working at Microsoft, and his journey into other areas, and exploring the difference between Seattle and Silicon Valley, and even Las Vegas. A big tech convention (CES) meets in Las Vegas. This is a much more realistic look at geeks and nerds of the time, and doesn't exploit them the way they do in Big Bang Theory, which makes sense, a book has a different kind of audience, and can tell a story more on its own terms than a TV show can.

I show more liked the way things unfolded, and there are some real moments that don't *quite* fit the story, but they feel like life, things happen, and you deal with them, the best you can. show less

Near perfect in form, presentation and emotional drain. A handful of similarly quirky but unqiue characters handle similarly quirky but unique situations through a variety of historical, current and futuristic technologies, all while building a LEGO simulator that will put their new gaming company on the map. Great portrayl of Bill Gates and the Microsoft culture, as well as the campuses and lifestyles of a variety of other tech companies of the time. Fairly unique in presentation, often incorporating a literal reprinting of computer-related topics presented in each chapter, including the main character's computer's "sub-conscious" files acting as barriers between chapters. Taught me many a random factoid - the amounts of chemicals in show more the human body and the various uses for them, the body as a form of memory, flatland foods - and many a life lesson - why talking to someone through "license plate" speak can be the most heartbreaking and hopeful communication in the world. Touching, honest, hilarious and surprisingly warm look at the computer industry, nerds, and the Silicon Valley. show less