John Gilbert reviews the latest titles on the bookshelf
PUBLISHERS are beginning to realise that there are few general
introductory books to computers on the market. Several new
titles have been released in the last few months and they have
steered clear of introductions to specific machines. The Pre-
computer Book by F A Wilson is published by Bernard Babani. The
book has an odd title but that is the only strange thing about
it. Wilson provides an introduction for the complete beginner.
The concept of the computer is examined, together with such
diverse subjects as number bases, hardware and simple
programming. As a result it covers a great deal in very few
pages. The book will satisfy your curiosity if you want to know
what a byte is or where to find the ROM of a machine, but if you
are looking for very detailed information, this general guide is
not for you and does not pretend to be. The Pre-computer Book
costs £1.95 and is one of the least expensive books which have
been reviewed to date. Another book for