Hello and welcome to episode 29 of Floppy Days. My name is Randy Kindig and I’m the host of this podcast. This is a special interview-only episode of Floppy Days. I’m very excited to have with me today the authors of the various editions of the computer history book entitled “Fire in the Valley”; that being Paul Freiberger and Michael Swaine. I think a majority of the listeners will be familiar with the book. I have mentioned it several times before on this podcast and have used it as a reference for the vintage computers I’ve covered. Many listeners will also be familiar with the movie “The Pirates of Silicon Valley” starring Anthony Michael Hall as a young Bill Gates and Noah Wyle as a young Steve Jobs which was made based on the book. I was amazed when I recently contacted the authors about coming onto Floppy Days and both of them immediately responded that they would be happy to. Pay special attention to our conversation at the end of the interview, which may hint at something special to come on Floppy Days. Before we begin, I do want to warn you that the Skype quality for this interview was not the best at times. Nevertheless, I think you will enjoy it!!

Links:

“Fire in the Valley” 2nd Edition at Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/dp/0071358927/?tag=flodaypod-20

“Fire in the Valley” 3rd Edition at Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/dp/1937785769/?tag=flodaypod-20

“Fire in the Valley: The Birth and Death of the Personal Computer, Third Edition” by Michael Swaine and Paul Freiberger at the Pragmatic Bookshelf - https://pragprog.com/book/fsfire/fire-in-the-valley

“The Pirates of Silicon Valley” at IMDB - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0168122/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_38

“The Pirates of Silicon Valley” at Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0009NSCS0/?tag=flodaypod-20

Paul Freiberger’s Site - “Fire in the Valley: the Making of the Personal Computer” - http://www.paulfreiberger.com/book/fire-valley-making-personal-computer/

Swaine’s World - Michael Swaine’s Blog on Writing and Technology - http://www.swaine.com/wordpress/category/about/

Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/FireInTheValley

Paul Freiberger Contact Information:

[email protected]

Michael Swaine Contact Information:

Blog: www.swaine.com

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @pragpub or @mswaine