The Valley of Heart's Delight

miracle of Silicon Valley, I still look down out the planewindow and thrill at the miracle of the place, the little collection ofsuburban towns that changed history," he writes. It's a place "so dynamic,so protean, and so maddeningly complex that I will never grow tired of it,"he adds. The earlier chapters of the book were the most enjoyable and illuminating.In one refreshing, well-crafted chapter, Malone relates the history of theOhlone Indians who ruled the Santa Clara Valley for thousands of yearsbefore the Franciscans established their mission in 1777. He deftly contrasts the Ohlones' concept of cyclical or circular time with the beginning oflineartime brought by Spanish settlers. The tempo has been accelerating eversince, reaching warp speed in today's Silicon Valley, "where the dailyobsession is to shave a microsecond from every transmission, revision anddecision," Malone notes. Other chapters range from the meeting of David Packard and William Hewlettas Stanford University students, to the birth of the microprocessor, IPO dayfor MIPS Computer Systems and the boyhood of Steve Jobs in a 1960s "siliconsuburbia." These chapters, told with engaging narratives, provide glimpsesinto different eras and milestones of the modern Silicon Valley. Malone's strength lies in his deeply reported, richly detailed narratives.In one chapter, he traces his family roots back to Enid, Okla., where hisgreat-grandfather had settled in an 1893 land rush. A century later, Malonevisits Enid, finding evidence everywhere of the digital revolution thatSilicon Valley started. It's in the VCRs, computer labs and electronicsecurity keypads of Enid High School. It's in the electronics-laden digitalwatches, microwave oven, stove and video games of the house where hisgrandparents once lived. "My grandparents' house now has more computingpower than NASA did that day my grandparents sat on the mohair sofa with thedoily antimacassars and watched Neil Armstrong step out on the moon," heconcludes. The Oklahoma chapter, along with the one on the Ohlone Indians, are the bestin the book. They're beautiful pieces of storytelling that show the arc oftime and profound impact of technology. They weave together many elementsthat work on different levels. And they demonstrate one of the author's strengths--the ability to thinkexpansively about technology's profound impact on society. For Malone, thehometown boy, Silicon Valley is much more than a place: It's a state of mindand social force. (Maria Shao, Mercury News)

where I ve been asked to describe the miracle of Silicon Valley, I still look down out the plane window and thrill at the miracle of the place, the little collection of suburban towns that changed history," he writes. It s a place "so dynamic, so protean, and so maddeningly complex that I will never grow tired of it," he adds.

The earlier chapters of the book were the most enjoyable and illuminating. In one refreshing, well-crafted chapter, Malone relates the history of the Ohlone Indians who ruled the Santa Clara Valley for thousands of years before the Franciscans established their mission in 1777. He deftly contrasts the Ohlones concept of cyclical or circular time with the beginning of lineartime brought by Spanish settlers. The tempo has been accelerating ever since, reaching warp speed in today s Silicon Valley, "where the daily obsession is to shave a microsecond from every transmission, revision and decision," Malone notes.

Other chapters range from the meeting of David Packard and William Hewlett as Stanford University students, to the birth of the microprocessor, IPO day for MIPS Computer Systems and the boyhood of Steve Jobs in a 1960s "silicon suburbia." These chapters, told with engaging narratives, provide glimpses into different eras and milestones of the modern Silicon Valley.

Malone s strength lies in his deeply reported, richly detailed narratives. In one chapter, he traces his family roots back to Enid, Okla., where his great-grandfather had settled in an 1893 land rush. A century later, Malone visits Enid, finding evidence everywhere of the digital revolution that Silicon Valley started. It s in the VCRs, computer labs and electronic security keypads of Enid High School. It s in the electronics-laden digital watches, microwave oven, stove and video games of the house where his grandparents once lived. "My grandparents house now has more computing power than NASA did that day my grandparents sat on the mohair sofa with the doily antimacassars