b52api: I enjoyed a pre publication copy of the book. It brought back memories of the beginning of my own 45 year career in IT. I remember seeing a demo of the Xerox graphical user interface in about 1982, and thinking it was really the way to go. Both Windows and Apple copied Xerox's interface.

I reacted to the book professionally. The project management and software integration on the Star project would have gotten me fired at the banks and insurance companies I worked for as a computer programmer in the 1970's and 1980's. It's no surprise that Xerox reaped few financial rewards from this effort. However, the book gives you the feeling you're part of the development team, working on the project. It's very well written.

I have no idea how this book would look to a general reader. I understood all of the concepts involved, because of my education and background. The book didn't use any heavy technical terms, but I don't know if a general reader can follow the descriptions or not. On the other hand, I don't know if it matters if you understand the technology while following the development story described in the book.