Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software

Name: Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software
Rating: 4.4 (909 reviews)
ISBN: 9780735611313

Charles Petzold

What do flashlights, the British invasion, black cats, and seesaws have to do with computers? In CODE, they show us the ingenious ways we manipulate language and invent new means of communicating with each other. And through CODE, we see how this ingenuity and our very human compulsion to communicate have driven the technological innovations of the past two centuries.

Using everyday objects and familiar language systems such as Braille and Morse code, author Charles Petzold weaves an illuminating narrative for anyone who’s ever wondered about the secret inner life of computers and other smart machines.

It’s a cleverly illustrated and eminently comprehensible story—and along the way, you’ll discover you’ve gained a real context for understanding today’s world of PCs, digital media, and the Internet. No matter what your level of technical savvy, CODE will charm you—and perhaps even awaken the technophile within.

GenresComputer ScienceProgrammingNonfictionTechnologyScienceSoftwareComputers

396 pages, Paperback

First published September 29, 1999

About the author

Charles Petzold

131 books222 followers

Charles Petzold has been writing about programming for Windows-based operating systems for 24 years. A Microsoft MVP for Client Application Development and a Windows Pioneer Award winner, Petzold is author of the classic Programming Windows, currently in its sixth edition and one of the best-known programming books of all time; the widely acclaimed Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software; and more than a dozen other books.

What do you think?

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars

6,070 (55%)

4 stars

3,428 (31%)

3 stars

1,120 (10%)

2 stars

216 (1%)

1 star

57 (<1%)

Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews

魏嘉汛

26 reviews

December 1, 2025

说来惭愧，这本书我没有完全读完。后面构造CPU的部分我有点跟不上了，后面有机会也许会再读。

总之，这是我非常推荐的一本书。名为“编码”，本质其实是计算机组成原理的知识。对于本书我印象最深的是两个部分：利用电磁感应开关构造门电路的那一章非常好的衔接了我高中电路知识到数字电路中我所缺失的一部分，更好的理解了晶体管之前计算机的存在形式；另一部分是书中后半部分无处不在的在线计算机演示Demo，从加法器到简单的CPU都通过Javascript在网页端进行了构造和模拟，对于我这样的初学者可以说是非常好的学习材料了。