Tubes
A travel book exploring the physical places and connections of the infrastructure of the Internet. Along the way, he explores data warehouses, meets some of the historical figures in the creation of the Internet and the people who keep everything humming along so we can get on with our virtual lives.
Stats for nerds
9recommend
15mentions
15people
2012–2026years
60% recommend40% neutral
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
- It is basic antitrust practice. If a company starts to control a vertical so much so that they start to exclude others, they get broken up into components and ordered to offer the basic infrastructure service to others. This is how it worked for 100 years (read up on telecoms/fiber; train companies/railroads; heck, even roads used to belong to people in the UK). This is why we have net neutrality - I recommend Tubes by Andrew Blum to go the heart of the matter. Imagine Internet if Google was able to throttle other services if you are not using their own? Here the author is arguing the search index is like infra that needs to be shared for public good. The state will not confiscate it - Google will break it into an independent company, will start paying for it, and let others to pay as well. It's not whitelabeling, stealing and reselling. Gosh - just read a bit people.
- "Tubes: A Journey to the Center of the Internet" by Andrew Blum - This book takes readers on a tour of the physical infrastructure that underpins the internet, including the network of undersea cables that connect countries around the world.
"The Undersea Network" by Nicole Starosielski - This book explores the history and politics of undersea cables, including the way that they have been used to connect and control different parts of the world.
"The Global War for Internet Governance" by Laura DeNardis - This book examines the complex political and legal issues surrounding the governance of the internet, including the role of different countries and organizations in managing the global network.
"Dark Territory: The Secret History of Cyber War" by Fred Kaplan - While this book is focused more broadly on the history of cyber war, it includes some fascinating details about the role that undersea cables have played in international conflicts and espionage.
"The Big Switch: Rewiring the World, from Edison to Google" by Nicholas Carr - This book explores the history of technological infrastructure, including the development of the telegraph, telephone, and internet, and how these innovations have transformed the way we live and work.
- Also very much worth reading on this topic: Tubes by Andrew Blum (https://www.andrewblum.net/tubes-2)
- I heartily recommend Andrew Blum's book Tubes: Behind the Scenes at the Internet for any non-technical folks interested in the physical infrastructure that makes all that internet magic happen. It's more in the travel memoir/popular history genres than actual engineering, but a very atmospheric layman's introduction.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23047146-tubes
And of course, if you're ever in SW England, the Museum of Submarine Telegraphy near Penzance is an awesome geek-out experience.
- Tubes by Andrew Blum does a great job at introducing how the infrastructure is layed put and operates to a certain degree, https://www.amazon.com/Tubes-Journey-Internet-Andrew-Blum/dp...
That said, I would love some more in-depth books on the topic.
- Also, Tubes by Andrew Blum to get a taste of the physical part of the Internet. (http://www.amazon.com/Tubes-A-Journey-Center-Internet/dp/006...)
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