Lanier pens a Jeremiad against the whole panoply of stuff we associate with Web 2.0, notably the 'wisdom' of the mobs, free culture, open source, etc. etc. It's a fascinating, fun book, incredibly quotable. If I wasn't reading a library copy (I need to buy one), most every page would have multiple underlinings in it. Sometimes he tilts at straw menu, but that's part of the genre and necessary for him to make his point. Smart, sobering, provocative. Very enjoyable and very important. ( )

Some excellent ideas here. Unfortunately for me, a lot of it went over my head. ( )

People either love or hate Jaron; while I am one of the rare cases that find him both interesting and intermittently right and wrong about different ideas. This book is a must read for those of us that believe in the perfection of current digital technology, and while Jaron seems to see half-empty glasses, his ideas are challenges that deserve serious consideration.
Overall things are always more complicated than you can convey in a book so I would also not take this book as the last word on the subject, but I would hope that in particular people that dream about technologically enabled perfect futures would take into consideration its strongest critics and address these ideas in their scenarios.
The writing organisation is always a bit difficult to organise, it's an unsystematic critique, that is just a step above being a rant. If Jaron would set his attack in a well organised bottom-up manner, we might find less emotive responses to his critique and more productive engagement with these issues. ( )

Sometimes this book is a little hard to read if you've never heard of words like "neotony" or "juvenilia" or "Cephalopods." That's ok. I like to learn new words. And I like Lanier's brand of humanism. It's a refreshing antidote to Silicon Valley snuff. ( )

I've checked this book out of the library three times and have yet to finish it. This most recent time, I did not even crack it open, even though I had an inordinate amount of free time for one reason or another. I think the reason really boils down to this - it's not well written. On top of that, it's boring.

I think the ideas that Mr. Lanier brings up are interesting enough. The thought that current technology is affecting how people interact with each other and the world and perhaps even how they think is getting wide attention. But that is probably the book's problem. It needs to stand out in a sea of similar speculation. But all that this book has to offer is speculation. It's a series of disjointed anecdotes and observations by the author - an extended opinion essay. I made it almost half way through the book and I do not remember being offered a shred of substantive supporting science for the allegations being made.

And did I mention it was boring? It's almost as if the author expects the reader to pay attention and put up with any and all rambling simply because he is such an interesting person. Sorry. This book goes back to the library again, this time for good. I think I know where I saw an 'executive summary' of it. Maybe I'll make it through that. ( )