everyware - adam greenfield*
This is going to be a rave review, you've been warned: I think that basically anyone who is smart should read this book, whether you're in the IT/web/mobile business or not. Science fiction writers should read it, for instance, and journalists, and people in politics, and designers, and most of all marketing people. Ubiquitous computing is such an exciting field, and there are so many implications for all our lives, that really, it's required reading.
And to boot, Everyware - The Dawning Age of Ubiquitous Computing is brilliant, lucid, compassionate, practical, and hugely motivating to a (any?) person in the wonderful world of computing/user experience.
Perhaps I'm still a little high from @media, which was full of brilliant and very sweet optimistic people, but books like this make me feel good about the field I find myself in. We're doing important things here! Caring about standards and accessibility and graceful degradation (or progressive enhancement, a term I'm finally starting to get) and, well, people, is important and worthwhile.
And since we're living in such interesting times ubicomp-wise, it's more important than ever to stay aware and keep your finger on the pulse and your eye on the welfare of the person using the fruits of your work. Marketing and politics people: this means you! I think we could all learn a thing or two from the crazy touchy-feely people (who, strangely enough, are mostly white, mostly male, mostly slightly strange, or at least not your run-of-the-mill corporate types) at events like @media, with their ethics and sharing and working together to make the world a better place. Hurray for my people 
. And hurray for Adam Greenfield, who has written such a beautiful book for all of us.
21-06-2006
