Category Archives: Computers and Internet

Who Can You Trust?

Posted on February 9, 2019 by Harry Katz

Who Can You Trust?  How Technology Brought Us Together and Why It Might Drive Us Apart By Rachel Botsman Public Affairs, New York, 2017 Trust is like engine oil: when it’s present everything runs smoothly, but when it’s not they … Continue reading →

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We Don’t Say Goodbye Anymore

Posted on August 25, 2018 by Harry Katz

A while ago I was watching an episode of Murdoch Mysteries, a detective series set in Toronto in the late 1890’s. At the end of the episode our hero, Detective William Murdoch, says goodbye to the visiting Egyptologist who was … Continue reading →

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Machine, Platform, Crowd

Posted on October 26, 2017 by Harry Katz

Machine, Platform, Crowd: Harnessing Our Digital FutureBy Andrew McAfee and Erik BrynjolfssonW. W. Norton & Co., New York, 2017 Machine, Platform, Crowd is an update to Andrew McAfee and Erik Brynjolfsson’s fabulous 2014 book, The Second Machine Age. (My review … Continue reading →

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Data and Goliath

Posted on July 26, 2015 by Harry Katz

Data and Goliath:  The Hidden Battles to Collect Your Data and Control Your WorldBy Bruce SchneierW. W. Norton & Company, New York, 2015 Whether you know it or not, whether you like it or not, you’re being watched. Everywhere. All … Continue reading →

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Ada’s Algorithm

Posted on March 9, 2015 by Harry Katz

Lady Ada Lovelace has a good claim to being the first Woman in Tech. Born in 1815, she was the daughter of the poet Lord Byron. She’s best known for her collaboration with Charles Babbage, inventor of the Analytical Engine, … Continue reading →

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The Imitation Game

Posted on January 2, 2015 by Harry Katz

I’m sure the Imitation Game takes all sorts of liberties with the story of Alan Turing’s life and his contribution to breaking Nazi codes during WWII. It’s not a documentary after all. But the broad outlines of the story and … Continue reading →

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Compaq & Zotac

Posted on November 10, 2014 by Harry Katz

I’ve finally decided to retire my venerable Compaq Presario 6000 desktop computer. When I bought this computer in 2002, around the time Compaq was acquired by Hewlett Packard, it was a pretty powerful machine with a 2 GHz Pentium processor … Continue reading →

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Book Review: The Second Machine Age

Posted on March 14, 2014 by Harry Katz

The Second Machine Age By Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee W. W. Norton & Company, New York, 2014 The steam engine was the iconic invention and the driving force behind the first machine age. It transformed the world by enabling … Continue reading →

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Glasses online

Posted on February 26, 2014 by Harry Katz

A couple of weeks ago I bought eyeglasses online for the first time. Maybe I’m late to the party, but it had been a few years since I last needed new glasses – my prescription hardly ever changes – and … Continue reading →

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Ambient awareness

Posted on September 9, 2008 by Harry Katz

Very interesting artilcle on the effects of social networking by Clive Thompson in the Sept. 7, 2008 Sunday New York Times Magazine.  The article describes how services like Twitter and Facebook facilitate "ambient awareness" about a large group of people … Continue reading →

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