Moonwar
Moonwar

Author: Ben Bova

Publisher: Rosetta Books

Published: 2010-02-16

Total Pages: 513

ISBN-13: 0795309090

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A lunar colony faces off with corrupt Earth forces intent on destroying it, from the New York Times–bestselling author of Moonrise. This fast-paced, high-tech adventure is the continuation of the story of Douglas Stavenger, the Kennedy-esque scion of Moonbase’s founding dynasty. While Moonbase has been flourishing under Stavenger’s management, it’s existence, and even Stavenger’s life, both depend on nanotechnology that has been outlawed on Earth in response to a wave of suspicion, fear, and violence. Soon, United Nations peacekeepers arrive on the moon to enforce the anti-nanotech laws, bringing with them intrepid news reporter Edith Elgin, who soon falls for Stavenger. Meanwhile, his mother has chosen to return to Earth, but upon arrival she is held hostage by the secretary general of the UN who wants Stavenger to surrender his forces—and to be killed. Slick politicians, beautiful television anchors, and calculating corporate barons provide complex and engaging scenery: imagine Washington in the space age, with nonstop action and cool technology. “Ranks up there with Mars as one of Bova’s very best.” —St. Petersburg Times

The Friendly Orange Glow
The Friendly Orange Glow

Author: Brian Dear

Publisher: Vintage

Published: 2018-10-02

Total Pages: 642

ISBN-13: 1101973633

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At a time when Steve Jobs was only a teenager and Mark Zuckerberg wasn’t even born, a group of visionary engineers and designers—some of them only high school students—in the late 1960s and 1970s created a computer system called PLATO, which was light-years ahead in experimenting with how people would learn, engage, communicate, and play through connected computers. Not only did PLATO engineers make significant hardware breakthroughs with plasma displays and touch screens but PLATO programmers also came up with a long list of software innovations: chat rooms, instant messaging, message boards, screen savers, multiplayer games, online newspapers, interactive fiction, and emoticons. Together, the PLATO community pioneered what we now collectively engage in as cyberculture. They were among the first to identify and also realize the potential and scope of the social interconnectivity of computers, well before the creation of the internet. PLATO was the foundational model for every online community that was to follow in its footsteps. The Friendly Orange Glow is the first history to recount in fascinating detail the remarkable accomplishments and inspiring personal stories of the PLATO community. The addictive nature of PLATO both ruined many a college career and launched pathbreaking multimillion-dollar software products. Its development, impact, and eventual disappearance provides an instructive case study of technological innovation and disruption, project management, and missed opportunities. Above all, The Friendly Orange Glow at last reveals new perspectives on the origins of social computing and our internet-infatuated world.

Moonrise
Moonrise

Author: Ben Bova

Publisher: Rosetta Books

Published: 2010-02-16

Total Pages: 573

ISBN-13: 0795309031

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“[An] epic novel of lunar conquest” from the New York Times–bestselling and six-time Hugo Award–winning author of Mars (Orlando Sentinel). In the twenty-first century, the world is on the brink of a scientific renaissance, about to birth a future where space has become privatized and the moon transforms into a fertile commercial ground. As former astronaut Paul Stavenger works to turn a handful of abandoned government moon shelters into a full-fledged moonbase, powerful corporate lobbies align against him. Against the neo-Luddites is Masterson Aerospace, a company funding and creating major scientific breakthroughs. But Masterson is nearly crippled when its CEO commits suicide and his wife, Joanna, backs her lover Paul Stavenger, the former astronaut, over her mentally unbalanced son Greg in the board election that follows her husband’s death. So begins a power struggle that leads to murder and the ultimate conflict over Moonbase. “Ben Bova is trying to make us grow up . . . There’s certainly enough techie ornamentation, both in theory and in plausible practice, to satisfy the pocket-protector crowd, but there’s also more, and better developed, conflict among characters than many folks would expect.” —The San Diego Union-Tribune

A People’s History of Computing in the United States
A People’s History of Computing in the United States

Author: Joy Lisi Rankin

Publisher: Harvard University Press

Published: 2018-10-08

Total Pages: 337

ISBN-13: 0674970977

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Silicon Valley gets all the credit for digital creativity, but this account of the pre-PC world, when computing meant more than using mature consumer technology, challenges that triumphalism. The invention of the personal computer liberated users from corporate mainframes and brought computing into homes. But throughout the 1960s and 1970s a diverse group of teachers and students working together on academic computing systems conducted many of the activities we now recognize as personal and social computing. Their networks were centered in New Hampshire, Minnesota, and Illinois, but they connected far-flung users. Joy Rankin draws on detailed records to explore how users exchanged messages, programmed music and poems, fostered communities, and developed computer games like The Oregon Trail. These unsung pioneers helped shape our digital world, just as much as the inventors, garage hobbyists, and eccentric billionaires of Palo Alto. By imagining computing as an interactive commons, the early denizens of the digital realm seeded today’s debate about whether the internet should be a public utility and laid the groundwork for the concept of net neutrality. Rankin offers a radical precedent for a more democratic digital culture, and new models for the next generation of activists, educators, coders, and makers.

Shadow Moon
Shadow Moon

Author: Chris Claremont

Publisher: Spectra

Published: 2018-04-17

Total Pages: 547

ISBN-13: 1984800035

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From two of the greatest imaginations of our time comes a magnificent novel of adventure and magic...SHADOW MOON: First in the Chronicles of the Shadow War. The genius of Star Wars(r) creator George Lucas and the vision of Chris Claremont, the author of the phenomenally bestselling The Uncanny X-Men adventures, merge in what must be the fantasy event of the year. In Shadow Moon, war and chaos have gripped the land of Tir Asleen. An ancient prophecy reveals one hope: a savior princess who will ascend to the throne when the time is right. But first, a Nelwyn wanderer must face forces of unimaginable malevolence and dangerous, forbidden rites of necromancy that could bring back a powerful warrior from soulless sleep. George Lucas reshaped filmmaking in the '70s and '80s with his Star Wars and Indiana Jones films. When Bantam Books asked Lucas if he had any stories he would like to develop as novels rather than as films, Lucas turned to his 1988 fantasy film, Willow. "When I wrote the story for Willow, I began with the pre-story," Lucas said, "but the full story was yet to be told." Now, Lucas's vision is being fulfilled with the talented help of Chris Claremont. Having previously taken the reins of what was for a decade the bestselling comic in the western hemisphere (The Uncanny X-Men) Claremont assumes the reponsibility of foster parent to Lucas's creation. On sale in hardcover now, and available on BDD Audio Cassette as well, SHADOW MOON is a momentous new adventure for readers looking to spend part of this summer in a fantastic world. SHADOW MOON is one of Bantam Spectra's most exciting publishing events in 1995, the year we celebrate our 10th Anniversary as the premiere publishing imprint of books of speculative fiction.

The Moon War
The Moon War

Author: Bob Davey

Publisher: Createspace Independent Pub

Published: 2013-03-20

Total Pages: 376

ISBN-13: 9781480187214

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Bob Davey, an aerospace-engineering professor and former Air Force pilot, captures readers with this fast-paced and imaginative story ignited when the Russians announce a manned mission to the moon. Air Force Colonel Brandt Strickland, a member of a Pentagon group studying the Russian plan, is certain that the Americans must be on the moon first and that we have less than two years to get there. At stake is control of the world's energy supply. But he has no spacecraft, no crew, and a President vehemently opposed to his mission. The Moon War follows Strickland through the triumphs and tragedies of his incredible odyssey. The story volleys between America and Russia as the countries scramble to launch. Greed, corruption and deception, even at the very highest levels, cause the plot to twist and turn as the tension mounts. With extraordinary technical accuracy, Davey's story assembles a cast of astronauts, cosmonauts, politicians and engineers drawn from real life who react to the unending trials with uncanny realism. Reflecting Davey's experiences as an Air Force officer, an engineer, and an educator, The Moon War tells a tale that may well fill the pages of tomorrow's newspapers.

Martyr's Moon
Martyr's Moon

Author: J. Lowder

Publisher: Wordcrafts Press

Published: 2014-12-05

Total Pages: 370

ISBN-13: 9780692346259

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The Council of Ebon encircle the Cauldron, their grotesque features shrouded in shadows. With voices like ice shards scraping against stone, they disclosed their dark prophesy. "Mothers, guard babes; Fathers, draw steel, Thunder approaches, soon blood on the fields. Tempest of war, so black and so vile, Spreads o'er Allsbruth; lament suckling child." War between the dark nation of Ebon and rebel forces is imminent. The armies of Ebon are vast, well trained and accustomed to victory. The hopes of Allsbruth rests on the untried skills of a young storyteller, Elabea, the courage of a warrior named Romlin and an alliance with nations whose existence is little better than myth. The Martyr's Moon rises. The blood of a storyteller is spilled. Hope vanishes. Yet in night, the King of Claire whispers.

Moon Wars
Moon Wars

Author: Paul Bellow

Publisher:

Published: 2021-02-12

Total Pages: 416

ISBN-13: 9781839193538

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Can an RTS Player Save the Universe? It is 1999, in the last few months before Y2K. Alex, a sophomore in college at Ohio University, is failing his classes due to spending too much time playing Real Time Strategy (RTS) video games. Although he knows he should take a break from gaming soon, he also has to figure out his response to two new people in his life: Haley is a classmate who because she is a fellow gamer seems to understand him better than most of his friends, while the mysterious Que has sent the two of them an unreleased RPG/RTS Moon Wars with a challenge to beat the hybrid game. Despite an initial aversion to the RPG aspect of the challenge, Moon Wars, Alex finds himself driven to skill up and master the tough challenges. The singleplayer campaign, consisting of conquering sufficient bases on the Moon to withstand an invasion from Earth, seems impossible. Not one to give up easily, Alex uses all his experience (and help from Haley) to strategize his way forward. Along the way, they stumble upon secrets buried inside the game.

Mars
Mars

Author: Ben Bova

Publisher: Rosetta Books

Published: 2010-02-16

Total Pages: 560

ISBN-13: 0795308809

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Considered one of Ben Bova’s most famous Grand Tour novels: “A gripping, realistic tale of man’s first expedition to the red planet. Don’t miss it” (Terry Brooks, New York Times–bestselling author of The Shannara Chronicles). Jamie Waterman is a young Navaho geologist who is picked for the ground team of the first manned expedition to Mars. He will be joining an international team of astronauts and scientists. But once the crew land on the red planet, they soon discover they must battle not only the alien land on which they have invaded but earthbound bureaucrats as well. When they come face to face with a chasm ten times as deep and large as the Grand Canyon, all twenty-five astronauts must face the most shocking discovery of all . . . “The science fiction author who will have the greatest effect on the world.” —Ray Bradbury, author of Farenheit 451 “A splendid book . . . Of his many books, Mars must be the most important.” —Arthur C. Clarke, author of Islands in the Sky