Crashing Computers (Knowledge) by Michael Coleman

The Knowledge

by Michael Coleman

This interactive guide offers lots of data about computer games and computing robots, computer crooks and virtual reality. Find out how to surf the net, how to e-mail a mate, whether computers really are cleverer than us, and how to turn your teacher into a Tamagotchi.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, Childrens, Comedy, History, Collections

Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Coleman was born in Forest Gate, a suburb in east London. Not long after he was born, his family moved a few miles east to Barking. At the time of his arrival, the area was just starting to recover from the damage it had received during World War II. He lived in a house on Bevan Avenue, named after Aneurin Bevan the architect of the National Health Service. He lived in that estate for 20 years. The area helped develop Coleman's love of sport due to the oblong shaped lanes of grass leading up the estate, which could be used as mini-stadiums. He pretended to play at various sporting events of the time, e.g. the Melbourne Olympics of 1956, the soccer Cup Final at Wembley Stadium, and the games at Lords Cricket ground. He still has medals he won for being school champion in the 100m sprint and the long jump. As said by Coleman himself "My information series Foul Football tries to convey some of the magic I felt about the game of soccer by relating the weird and wonderful history of the game and the personalities it has seen over the years. On the fiction side, my series about a junior soccer team called Angels FC tries to bring out the humour and sheer fun that you’ll find at the heart of the game when it’s played by youngsters who don’t even know how to spell the word cynicism." Coleman had his first children’s book published when he was 46 years of age. He has also said: "I didn't [want to become a writer] at first. I used to teach computer science at a university and my first book was a boring one about computers. I livened it up by putting a few jokes in. At the end I thought I'd try writing a few more things, but this time forgetting about the computers and concentrating on the jokes. After lots of failures I realised that youngsters enjoy jokes more than adults and started writing for them. Eighty books later, I'm still doing it...I write both fact and fiction. The Foul Football series are favourite fact books, simply because they're about football. On the fiction side, I'm just finishing a trilogy called The Bearkingdom. They're dark and scary, quite different to anything I've written before."

Reviews

[Maarten · Rating 3 out of 5]

De Waanzinnig om te Weten serie blijft ook vandaag de dag gewoon hartstikke leuk. Ik lees mijn exemplaren over de Grieken en de Middeleeuwen nog af en toe terug en geniet er nog steeds van. Crashende computers heeft een minder tijdloze inhoud though. Een boek uit 2000 over computers is zoals rte verwachten valt volledig achterhaald in 2021. Het blijft een vermakelijk boekje, maar het heeft hierdoor niet de magie van sommige andere delen.

[Philippa Brunt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Detailed and interesting but a little dated as it was published in '99. The predictions for the advances of the 50 years following publication were interesting to measure up to what is aready available.

[Fareed Ahmed · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Most Informative And Comical Book I've Ever Had 5 reasons u gotta buy this:
1) REALLY ADDICTIVE!!!
2) Really fun to read.
3) Has Facts Which u don't know.
4) Picture's add more Fun to the book.
5)Cause It's Part Of The Knowledge Series.

[Ashwin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good

[Jana Babáčková · Rating 5 out of 5]

The funniest book about computer history ever :o) Was good inspiration for some of my school work, because is full of facts anyway and the jokes inside are still funny :o)

[Mathijs van Meerkerk · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book that gives insight into how computers work and how they are different to humans

[Indah Threez Lestari · Rating 4 out of 5]

877 - 2016