Geek Silicon Valley

Silicon Valley veterans and newbies alike will want to explore this book that delves into the rich history behind the region that birthed the world's most important industry. Technology journalist Ashlee Vance has captured almost every aspect of the area stretching between San Francisco and San Jose, California, starting with the eager radio and electronics enthusiasts of the early 1900s and ending with the computing powerhouses of today such as Google and Apple. Along the way, the book profiles the people and places that have elevated Silicon Valley to an almost mythic pedestal. This book delivers Silicon Valley, taking us from success story to failed startup and back again as we drive the roads from San Francisco to Menlo Park, Palo Alto, Mountain View, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara and San Jose. It's full of profiles of the larger-than-life characters that pioneered the processor, computer, and Internet revolutions. The book's vibrant design includes "Silicon Valley Soundbytes" packed with insider information and trivia, and "Click Here" sidebars, which suggest places to eat, drink, and shop. Place by place, readers get the inside scoop on all the addresses that count, which include Microsoft research centers; the headquarters of Google, Hewlett-Packard, Intel, Sun Microsystems, and Oracle; research powerhouses such as Stanford University, NASA Ames, and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory; the Computer History Museum and The Tech Museum; the Shoreline Amphitheater; the Churchill Club; and many more.

Based in Silicon Valley, Ashlee Vance serves as US Editor for TheRegister.com, Britain's irreverent online rag keeping tabs on the high-tech industry. Vance covers numerous Silicon Valley corporations and various technology areas, including microprocessors, robots, supercomputers and national labs. The Register – fueled by its slogan "Biting the hand that feeds IT" – has amassed more than 5 million readers and counts as one of the most popular technology news destinations online in Europe, the US, Australia and Canada. Vance's writing has appeared in other publications such as the Economist, the New York Times, and the International Herald Tribune.

Outline Introduction: Shockley brings silicon to Silicon Valley Chapter 1: Palo Alto and Menlo Park · Federal Telegraph Company · Stanford University/Stanford Research Park/The Stanford Dish/Silicon Valley Archives · University Avenue and Stanford Shopping Center: collegiate eateries contrast with high-end mall · Hewlett-Packard: HP history and background with headquarters address · HP Garage: Thousands of people a year come by the house to try to see the garage, which a historic market designates as "Birthplace of Silicon Valley" · Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC) – Menlo Park: Fun with high-energy physics. Provides tours daily and hosts thousands of visitors each year · Xerox PARC (Palo Alto Research Center). Campus located on beautiful, hilly bit of land in Palo Alto.No tours, but it offers talks open to the public every Thursday. · Sand Hill Road/3000 Sand Hill Road: Where everyone goes to get venture capitol · SRI International, Menlo Park · Fairchild Semiconductor Chapter 2: Mountain View Shockley Semiconductor Computer History Museum Fenwick & West quintessential SV law firm Microsoft's Silicon Valley Campus: SGI: Silicon GraphicsThe Stevens Creek Trail: NASA Ames:S ETI Institute etscape HQ Google/Googleplex Chapter 3: Santa Clara and Sunnyvale Intel/Intel Museum/Intel Headquarters Lockheed Martin Sunnyvale Sun Microsystems/Sun's Headquarters AMD Advanced Micro Device Yahoo Sunnyvale Chapter 4: San Jose World's First Broadcasting Station: KQW IBM's Almaden Research Center/Magnetic Disk Heritage Center San Jose City Hall Santana RoweBay Winchester Mystery House/Tours. Thousands go each yearSan Jose State University Pulgas Water Temple Lick Observatory Cisco Systems The Tech Museum of Innovation hildren's Discovery Museum Chapter 5: San Francisco Green Street Lab The Exploratorium The Wave Organ The Letterman Digital Arts Center Moscone Center The MetreonC raigslist.org Golden Gate Yacht ClubS ilicon Justice: San Francisco's courthouses Electronic Frontier Foundation Microsoft Research Center Genetech California Academy of Sciences Bay Area Laboratory Co-operative Technology Publishers RowA T&T Park Monster/Candlestick Park Chapter 6: Out and About in Silicon Valley: The Surrounding Scene Windy Hill Oracle, Redwood Shores Hiller Aviation Museum, San Carlos Joint Genome Institute, Walnut Creek Atari, Sunnyvale Electronic Arts, Redwood City Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory/Discovery Center Sandia National Laboratories, Livermore Excite@Home Alviso: Home of Tivo Drawbridge (ghost town)Apple Computer, Cupertino Drive the Valley: Best Routes for Seeing it All Suggested Reading Surf the Valley Index