Makers: The New Industrial Revolution

I've listened to all of Chris Anderson's books, and they are always interesting and thought provoking. He also writes with great flow, meaning that the story moves forward in a logical and engaging way without a lot of unnecessary repetition.

This book is the logical culmination of taking the Long Tail from the world of bits to the world of atoms. Anderson's insights regarding new manufacturing techniques (mainly 3D printing) and their widespread availability to the masses are important. Anderson always approaches things from an open source point of view, and I don't entirely agree with that (neither for that matter would Steve Jobs). The methods of monetizing open source largely remain to be discovered and proven.

All that said, this is an important and very interesting book. Anyone who works in the manufacturing field should read it.

If I had a friend that knew nothing of CNC technology or rapid prototyping and they simply wanted to understand the industry at a surface deep level, I would surely recommend this book. The problem is that the author really did not offer up any new information outside of what one might read in a couple news articles. There are surely more efficient ways to get this information outside of sitting through this book.

Probably not. Maybe good news articles, but he should lay off from writing books.

Good narration.

haha, really? no. This is a technical/business book, not really something tv worthy. Ok, I will play along... Charlie Sheen can play narrator/womanizer, Nicholas Cage can run around being over dramatic about 3d printers.

This book was not entirely bad, it just lacked solid information and really just skimmed the surface. More what I would expect from an article in the paper than from a full book. At times the author seems to be talking simply to use up space and meet the publishers word count. I have quite a bit of experience with cnc tools and a little background (3 college credits) on rapid prototyping (essentially what the author calls 3d printing). I found a lot of the information to be factually wrong and over simplified. Clearly the author is writing as if he is an expert on the subject, but really only has a textbook (or Google) understanding of the subject. Once again, if you are coming at this subject with no background and very little interest, you will learn a little. But you are probably better off reading up on the subject elsewhere if you want a working knowledge of the subject. This book may serve as a good superficial primer to the subject. Also remember, the author makes everything out to be easier than it really is. This technology was developed by Engineers for engineers, not to say that anyone can not take it on. Just remember, it is not going to be as easy as imagining a pretty object and then hitting print. Likewise, there is still quite a bit of post processing that needs to happen before you will ever have a reasonable final product (with certain exceptions).

Are you interested in the future of small business and manufacturing in the US? Do you want to know what is happening on the cutting edge of design technology? Do you know what 3-D printing, digital fabrication and the makers are? Then Chris Anderson’s introduction titled Makers: The New Industrial Revolution will bring you up short for sure. Anderson (The Long Tail; Free: How Today’s Smartest Businesses Profit by Giving Something for Nothing) is the editor of Wired Magazine who will guide you through the brave new technological world that is pushing us into the future. He opens with an introduction to the invention revolution and how it is contributing to the new industrial revolution. He explains how design and manufacturing are changing the face of the economy and how desktop factories linked to open hardware are driving that revolution. His description of 3-D printing is worth the price of the book to the unfamiliar. He clearly introduces computer numerical control, G-code and its importance, and software like CAD and its use. Those who despair for the US economy and manufacturing there is hope, for Anderson tells how custom batch work can well come home. Some may find Anderson’s approach a bit Pollyannaish, simplistic, or overly optimistic, but there is still much here to stimulate thinking and inform readers. This is a good book readily available to the nontechnical type just interested. The reading of Rene Ruiz is excellent.

Fascinating survey of how the world of bits has impacted product design and manufacturing. Loved one of the soundbites: "barriers to entry are now ankle high."

After the introduction, the book ends. there is nothing new happening later on. the same theme is getting repeated over and over again.
Just like his other book, Long Tail, this book as well gets a bit chewy.
as much as I like the the concepts of this book and his last book, i just wish he could make it packed with more varieties of information, make it more interesting. I found it was difficult to cling on to this book as there was nothing new to be found. But that could be just me, as I probably already know a lot about this field than someone new to the same.

no

I can't say.

Nope.

Yes, this was an excellent and inspiring book for people who like to design, create, and invent.

I didn't realize there were so many people like me. This book opened my eyes to the world of 'Makers' and also provided a guide to making my ideas reality. I have been using the concepts in this book to bring my ideas and inventions to life.

I find the whole idea of the book fascinating and have a huge respect for the people and communities that drives the maker revolution. The book is well written and the narration is good - so an easy listening. I can recommend the book to anyone who has an interest in "userdriven" invention and community driven innovation.

Makers is a keeper. It is not riveting, but it is a book that stimulates thought. It would be a great 'read' for a study on innovation and change.

Easy to follow - well explained when the stories might have been foreign to the reader's experience.

Yes

From Bolts to Bytes

Worth your time unless you are looking strictly for entertainment!

I loved this book! I have been buying MAKER magazine and getting to know more and more about the DIY community. Firstly, the narration is probably the best I have heard on Audible. Clear, easy to listen to and almost addicting. The examples, the stories and the common sense that the author dishes out is pretty cool. Its very easy to "Get" what he is saying and its one of those books that makes you want to read/listen the next chapter and not put it down. I listened to this book in 3 days and I put it at the top of the list of books i have purchased from Audible.

Chris Andersen has been accurate in the past with uncovering important phenomena associated with technology advancement, consumer demand and general business economics i.e. the long tail. I think he is very right again with the potential impact of custom fabrication and DIY design and manufacturing. He brings his ideas to light with many relevant examples.

It does for manufacturing and design what "The Long Tail" did for retail.
Also has similarities to "Wikinomics" by Don Tapscot.

Not much. Pretty standard narration.

No. It just made me think.

Great for entrepreneurs thinking about finding an opportunity in an emerging wave of change.