We've all become blase about our computing: computers in our pockets, in our washing machines, controlling our car engines, in our greeting cards, in our ski boots and tennis shoes. The giddy sense of amazement, of possibility, has gradually given way to complacency and a vague sense of unfulfilled entitlement. To see how we got here, and what we now have, we need to step back from today's reality. You can't get a clear perspective on the reality you're embedded in - you have to find another vantage point. You can't appreciate where you are unless you know where you came from. The author starts from his own computing history.