[net.books] computers and books

echrzanowski (03/14/83)

   
  
Can anyone out there come up with a list of science fiction books in
which the main plot or theme centers around a computer. A couple of
examples are :
     The God Machine by Martin Caidin (out of print)
     The Colosus Trilogy i.e.  Colosus: The Forbin Project
                               The Fall of Colosus
                               Colosus and the Crab
     also The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by R. Heinlein.

geo (03/15/83)

	Ed, you asked for pointers to science fiction books
	which focus around computers.  One that comes immediately
	to mind is "The Steel Crocodile", by D.G. Compton(sp?).
	The title is an analogy, Science is the steel crocodile
	which remorselessly tramples over everything that gets
	in its way.  I remember this book as being of a higher
	quality than most science fiction novels.

	Frederick Pohl recently wrote two novels that portray 
	computers in an interesting fashion.  I only remember
	one title "Beyond the Blue Event Horizon".

	I believe "Shockwave Rider", by John Brunner, was mentioned
	in a previous article.

	There are other science fiction books focussed around
	computers that in my opinion, are not worth reading.
	The book, "When Harlie was One", for example.

	You mentioned a book "The God Machine", by Martin Caidin,
	wasn't he the one who wrote the novel "Cyborg", on which
	the television series, "The Six Million Dollar Man" was
	based?  Could you comment on the quality of "The God
	Machine".

	Cordially, Geo Swan, Integrated Studies, University of Waterloo
	(allegra|decvax) !watmath!watarts!geo

gnu (03/15/83)

Actually, Heinlein has written several good books with computers as main
characters.  "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" was already mentioned and was
about how easy it is to take over an organization if its computer is
friendly to you.  "Time Enough for Love" includes a character who begins
"life" as a computer complex enough and with enough stimuli to become
sentient, and ends up transplanting herself into a body created her own
specs by genetic techniques common at the time.  Since "T.E.F.L" his books
have tended more towards modern-day computer capabilities (eg, programming
the machine in "Number of the Beast" to respond with a parrot line upon
being given a command) rather than sentient machines.

As the ultimate teleportation book is Alfred Bester's "The Stars My
Destination" and the ultimate time-travel book is David Gerrold's "The
Man who Folded Himself", the ultimate datanet book is John Brunner's
"The Shockwave Rider
".  If you care what you are creating, read this book!

	John Gilmore, Sun Microsystems

turner (03/20/83)

#R:watmath:-473000:ucbesvax:13500010:000:299
ucbesvax!turner    Mar 19 06:15:00 1983

	Also: "This Perfect Day", by Ira Levin, author of "Rosemary's Baby".
    Computers totally control society, but the Last Free Man And His Woman
    try to make a run for it anyway.  A terrible novel, offered here only for
    the sake of completeness.

	    Michael Turner
	    ucbvax!esvax:turner

debray (03/25/83)

Also : "The Terminal Man" by Michael Crighton (author of "The Andromeda
Strain") : an interesting book about an attempt to interface a human brain
with a computer. Nice reading.

saumya k debray
suny @ stony brook
allegra!sbcs!debray

nyles (03/30/83)

#R:watmath:-473000:zinfandel:18100003:000:408
zinfandel!nyles    Mar 29 07:08:00 1983

Anybody remember the Nathan Brazil series?  The planet where most of the
action took place, called the Well of Souls, is a computer.  In fact, it
is the basis of existence for that universe... not exactly a minor role.

Of course, there's always Star Wars...

				Lord Morgon
				[...!decvax!sytek!zehntel!zinfandel!nyles]
				[...!teklabs!zehntel!zinfandel!nyles]
				Walnut Creek, CA          415/932-6900

jss (03/31/83)

Didn't you get the impression that, in the Well of Souls series, the
computer ran the universe, but Nathan Brazil built the computer?
judith
!decvax!brunix!jss