iWoz

How I Invented the Personal Computer and Had Fun Along the Way

By: Steve Wozniak, Gina Smith

Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor

Length: 9 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

The mastermind behind Apple Computer sheds his low profile and steps forward to tell his story for the first time.

Before cell phones that fit in the palm of your hand and slim laptops that fit snugly into briefcases, computers were like strange, alien vending machines. They had cryptic switches, punch cards, and pages of encoded output. But in 1975, a young engineering wizard named Steve Wozniak had an idea: what if you combined computer circuitry with a regular typewriter keyboard and a video screen? The result was the first true personal computer, the Apple I, a widely affordable machine that anyone could understand and figure out how to use.

Wozniak's life before and after Apple is a "home-brew" mix of brilliant discovery and adventure, as an engineer, a concert promoter, a fifth-grade teacher, a philanthropist, and an irrepressible prankster. From the invention of the first personal computer to the rise of Apple as an industry giant, iWoz presents a no-holds-barred, rollicking, firsthand account of the humanist inventor who ignited the computer revolution.

©2006 Steve Wozniak (P)2006 Tantor Media, Inc.

A different look into the Apple story

I like how this gives a different point of view on Apple, and the engineer that made the Apple 1 and 2. Especially given that I'm interested in learning how electronics work, I was able to glean some details on the type of brilliancy and philosophy that Steve Wozniak brought to the projects he worked on. Surely, the Apple 2 wouldn't be what it was without those expansion slots. That's the whole point of microprocessors, the ability to make logic quickly and easily using code instead of hardware. Without peripherals, what would a computer be but just a limited device.

Love this book!

Learning about Woz is intriguing. This book gives readers a broad insight I've listened to it multiple times it doesn't get boring.

He Woz

best book I have read since surely your joking mr Feynman. It has really the really simple grammar of a scientist or engineer which makes it easy to understand. Not for everyone, but if you like science an engineering it nice to get a perspective from someone who created the first personal computer.

entertaining, inspiring and educational.

I grew up in tech but had almost no idea of many of the details in this story. Really glad he took the time to tell us how his part of history really happened

Irrepressible

Steve Wozniak is clearly himself in this book, a shy, puckish, kid who is still a quasi-adolescent at an advanced age. Yet he is clearly brilliant. One is amazed at the companies that turned down his design that became the Apple. A case of casting pearls before swine. Overall, a great listen.

A good solid read all around.

Excellent narration captures the "gee whiz" approach to life that seems to be the core of Woz. Clearly he was and is a kid at heart as well as the extremely intelligent engineer that created the original Apple 1 and 2. Without a doubt, his work helped to revolutionize how people live, work and play on a global scale. What came though for me was that Woz the engineer could neither communicate effectively with non-engineers nor could he envision how to market his products. I can see where some might think the story self-indulgent but it is, after all, an autobiography. Woz, ever the engineer, takes the logical approach of telling his story straight out, make of it what you will. What some find self-indulgent I took as Woz believing in himself and his accomplishments and wanting to get his side of the story on the record. The book was made more poignant for me as I was about halfway though when Apple announced that Steve Jobs had died. Woz was clearly a gifted engineer but without the marketing vision of Jobs, Woz might have remained just another engineer in the backroom. I was a high school student in 1970 and actually used most of the computers discussed in the book. It brought back some great memories. I found it to be a compelling, interesting story very well read by Patrick Lawlor.

Excellent!

IWoz puts one right into the mind and world of Woz! Yes, he's makes a big deal about how smart he is... and it gets a bit irritating. The practical jokes are silly and stupid. His invention (the Apple I and II) are absolutely brilliant. Steve Jobs struck it rich with Woz and made both of them very wealthy.

The narrator, Patrick Lawlor, deserves highest praise! He doesn't just narrate... he "becomes" Woz! One really gets the impression that Woz is reading his book.

What a great story

What a great story and motivation. This book is must read specifically for all tech people out there.

I can SO relate!

Being an older engineer and now software developer, I followed all the technologies Woz is talking about in this book. What a great stroll down memory lane through the eyes of one of the greatest!

iWoz is Wonderful

This was a very interesting story about the life of Steve Wozniak... one of the most talented and brilliant men of our time. Steve sets the record straight about his life before/during/ and after Apple. Definitely worth a download if you're at all interested in technology or engineering.