In The Computer Boys Take Over, Nathan Ensmenger traces the rise to power of the computer expert in modern American society. To many of their contemporaries, it seemed the 'computer boys' were taking over, not just in the corporate setting, but also in government, politics, and society in general. As the systems that they built became evermore powerful and ubiquitous, these specialists became the focus of a series of critiques of the social and organizational impact of electronic computing. Known alternatively as 'whiz kids,' 'hackers,' and 'gurus,' this new breed of technical specialists were alternately admired for their technical prowess and despised for their eccentric mannerisms and the disruptive potential of the technologies they developed. Instead, it tells the story of the vast but largely anonymous legions of computer specialists-programmers, systems analysts, and other software developers-who transformed the electronic computer from a scientific curiosity into the defining technology of the modern era. Unlike most histories of computing, it is not a book about machines, inventors, or entrepreneurs. This is a book about the computer revolution of the mid-20th century and the people who made it possible.
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