Trapped in the Net: The Unanticipated Consequences of Computerization Paperback - 1998

First line

are essentially inoperable if the electronic system that coordinates and schedules the required network of tightly coupled activities is damaged or destroyed. Enter the Computer The argument of this book is that the complacent acceptance of the desktop "personal" computer in almost every aspect of modern life is masking the degree to which computerization and computer networking are transforming not just the activities and computer networking are transforming not just the activities and instruments of human affairs, but also their structure and practice.

From the rear cover

"This is a major work of synthesis and insight that will prove invaluable not only to scholars and students but also to policymakers, large-system designers, and others concerned with the role of computers in society. Rochlin has mastered an amazingly broad body of literature, grasped its deeper implications, and presented his results in a highly readable form, well peppered with anecdote and narrative. He has also, and most importantly, hit upon the most important characteristic of the society-wide electronics infrastructures now being put into place: that such systems are socio-technical in nature and cannot be understood as mere hardware and/or software."--Paul N. Edwards, Author of The Closed World: Computers and the Politics of Discourse

Media reviews

Citations

• New York Times, 01/17/1999, Page 32