Discover The Digital Deli
I checked the 1984 book Digital Deli out of the library three or four times in the late eighties and early nineties. It was a funny and eccentric look at the emerging computer culture, and I loved reading and re-reading it. Eventually, it went missing from the library, and I had no luck tracking down a copy in used book stores or on eBay. Now the book has turned up online, at the Atari Archives site. It’s still oddly entertaining to read about those early days of phone phreaks, CP/M, and the online service known as “the Source”. Each chapter is written by a different person and from a unique perspective.
Of course, much (all?) of the information and advice is out-dated. For example:
When it comes time to list the century’s great orphaned ideas, the computerized checkbook will rank with the lava lamp. What’s surprising is that anybody took it seriously in the first place. Consider that my checkbook was given to me free by the bank, has nice pictures of sunsets and waterfalls on the checks, weighs three ounces, measures five inches long and fits in my pocket. Consider further that it takes twenty seconds to pull out and open this checkbook, write a check, sign it and enter it in the stubs. Oh yes, and I only need a pen to operate it.
That’s from an article listing Computer Applications to Avoid, which also includes the “computerized address book”, and “telecommunicating with friends” via text.
And I love this picture of Esther Dyson proudly display her futuristic Mac mouse:
Check out Digital Deli at the Atari Archives site.
