'[Winston's] breadth of experience is evident in this thorough and lucid history The scope of the material and the detail presented in 300 information-rich pages plus some 250 references is impressive Winston not only picks out the key 'facts' about a period or a technology, but what is more difficult, manages to tell the truth about what was going on at the time' - John Ashford, Journal of Documentation, Volume 55'Anyone seriously interested in the field is likely to find much of interest, and to retain the history as a reference for use when presented with dubious 'facts' by enthusiasts of the new technologies This is recommended reading.' - John Ashford, Journal of Documentation, Volume 55

• Introduction: The Storm from Paradise: Technological Innovation, Diffusion and Suppression: Part One: Propogating Sound at Considerable Distance 1. The Telegraph: The First Electrical Medium 2. Before the Speaking Telephone 3. The Capture of Sound Part Two: The Vital Spark & Fugitive Pictures 4. Wireless and Radio 5. Mechanically Scanned Television 6. Electronically Scanned Television 7. Television Spin-Offs and Redundancies Part Three: Device for Casting Up Sums Very Pretty 8. Mechanising Calculation 9. The First Computers 10. Suppressing the Mainframes 11. The Integrated Circuit 12. The Coming of the Microcomputer Part Four: The Intricate Web of Trails 13. The Beginnings of Networks 14. Networks & Recording Technologies 15. Communications Satellites 16. The Satellite Era 17. Cable Television 18. The Internet Conclusion: The Pile of Debris From the Boulevard des Capucins to the Leningradsky Prospect