Life & fun · alternatives · 2026
24 alternatives to I wrote a novel about my work developing the Xerox Star
"As someone who reads just about any computing history non-fiction he can get his hands on, I was skeptical about reading a fictional book about computing history. I quickly realized the huge advantage of writing historical fiction as Robert Purvy's new book "This New Internet Thing" both teaches
Albert Cory's novel draws from his professional experience developing the Xerox Star, an influential computer system from the 1980s. The book combines memoir with fiction, offering an insider's perspective on… Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes. I wrote a novel about my work developing the Xerox Star launched in 2021; newer entries below may have overtaken it.
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I’ve been working on a unique storybook designed to teach kids about how computers work, and I would love to get your feedback. Set 500 years in the future, the story follows two kids – one a robot, the other a human – as they explore the workings of what to them is ancient technology: our present-day computers. I’ve aimed to keep each story short and engaging, sprinkling in humor and illustrations to captivate young readers. As an open-source project, you’re also welcome to check out the source here: https://github.com/yong/lostlanguageofthemachines
2024 · lostlanguageofthemachines.com · its alternatives →
- 2IM
2022 · networksfromscratch.com · its alternatives →
- 3IW
The book page links to a blog post that explains how I got about it (and has a link to sample content), but the TL&DR is that I could not find a lot of books that were on "our" history _and_ were larded with technical details. So I set about writing one, and some five years later I'm happy to share the result. I think it's one of the few "computer history" books that has tons of code, but correct me if I'm wrong (I wrote this both to tell a story and to learn :-)). My favorite languages are Smalltalk and Lisp, but as an Emacs user, I've been using the latter for much longer and for my…
Feb 2026 · berksoft.ca · its alternatives →
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The Supermen▲66Seymour Cray + technical wizards behind the supercomputer
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
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How the Sixties Counterculture Shaped the Personal Computer
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
- 6LF
This has been my Covid burnout project and I would love any thoughts or input, especially about the Bash code. I just am finishing the first chapter of the audiobook and would love any thoughts, positive or negative. The full pdf here: https://KyleBenzle.com/BlueScreen.pdf Free first chapter of the audiobook: https://soundcloud.com/landgrant/blue-screen-chapter-1 Giving away the Amazon ebook: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B084GHLYSX Blurb: Peter Gustafson wants to save the world. In the year 2984, Peter is an average kid with a secret; he’s…
2023 · its alternatives →
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A while ago I was looking for information on a obscure and short lived British computer. I found an article[1] in the archives of BYTE magazine[2] - and was captivated immediately by the tech adverts of bygone eras. This led to a long side project to be able to see all 100k pages of BYTE in a single searchable place. [1]: https://byte.tsundoku.io/#198502-381 [2]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17683184
2025 · byte.tsundoku.io · its alternatives →
- 8XA
Today I’m releasing the XR2000: A programming challenge with extensive science fiction backstory.
2025 · clearsky.dev · its alternatives →
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Work, progress, and prosperity in a time of brilliant techno
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
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It's a web app that uses AI to turn any book into a playable text adventure. Your favorite book, but your choices, hence your story. You can even "remix" the genre like playing Dune as a noir detective story. Note: Work in progress. Suggestions are welcome.
2025 · kathaaverse.com · its alternatives →
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A limited edition notebook by Baron Fig + Codecademy
2018 · baronfig.com · its alternatives →
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From the WTF? economy to the Next Economy
2017 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
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Inside look at the computer industry transition
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
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The future of narrative in cyberspace
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
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Hey HN! I've been curious about the history of computer science and decided to try to read Turing's 1936 paper where he conceptualizes the Turing Machine, etc. I had trouble understanding the paper, read The Annotated Turing by Charles Petzold (which is wonderful), but felt that reading a reference implementation would help formalize my understanding. When I couldn't find an open source implementation, I decided to write my own. The implementation includes: - Abbreviated tables (m-functions) - Conversions to Standard Descriptions and Description Numbers - A working universal machine - A…
2023 · github.com · its alternatives →
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Essays by Paul Graham
2015 · its alternatives →
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Original science fiction inspired by Microsoft
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
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Building a modern computer from first principles
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
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Just about a year ago, the concept for a sci-fi book popped into my head. I instantly knew I have to see it through despite not having any writing experience (and a pretty demanding job). Over 2025, I attended writer circles, improved my writing, and structured the story. Here is the first chapter. I hope you enjoy it :)
Jan 2026 · docs.google.com · its alternatives →
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Graphic novel inspired by real world programming hacks
2016 · kickstarter.com · its alternatives →
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Ranked by how close each launch is in meaning, then by votes. Prices were read from each product’s own site when checked and can change. Refine with your own description →