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Googled: The End of the World as We Know It
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| Part No: | 1441820973 |
| Manufacturer: | Brilliance Audio on CD Unabridged |
| MFG Part: | |
| Customer Rating: | 4.0 / 5.0 |
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In Googled, esteemed media writer and critic Ken Auletta uses the story of Google’s rise to explore the inner workings of the company and the future of the media at large. Although Google has often been secretive, this book is based on the most extensive cooperation ever granted a journalist, including access to closed-door meetings and interviews with founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, CEO Eric Schmidt, and some 150 present and former employees. Inside the Google campus, Auletta finds a culture driven by brilliant engineers in which even the most basic ways of doing things are questioned. His reporting shines light on how Google has been so hugely successful—and why it could slip. On one hand, Auletta reveals how the company has innovated, from Gmail, Google Maps, and Google Earth to YouTube, search, and other seminal programs. On the other, he charts its conflicts: the tension between massive growth and its mandate of “Don’t be evil”; the limitations of a belief that mathematical algorithms always provide correct answers; and the collisions of Google engineers who want more data with citizens worried about privacy. More than a comprehensive study of media’s most powerful digital company, Googled is also a lesson in new media truths. Pairing Auletta’s unmatched analysis with vivid details and rich anecdotes, it shows how the Google wave grew, how it threatens to drown media institutions once considered impregnable—and where it is now taking us all.
| Very Informative | 2010-03-11 | 5 / 5 |
| | I thought it was a great book. I used the book to do research on Google for a class but i really got into the book. There is probably everything a person would want to know or learn about Google in this book. |
| Slow Reading on a Fast Medium | 2010-03-10 | 3 / 5 |
| | The thought that ran through my mind in reading Ken Auletta's GOOGLED is that it was like a Saturday Night Life sketch that was fine in and of itself, but weakened when made into a full length movie. The chapters that sparkled were those right out of the gate on Google creators Larry Page and Sergey Brin. After that, the narrative was consistently the same--Google doesn't want to be like others, it is and isn't concerned about revenue, it is tearing down the old media. Interestingly in and of itself, but not enough to fill up a book of over 350 pages. |
| Efficiency | 2010-02-25 | 3 / 5 |
| Ken Auletta's book, Googled: The End of the World As We Know It, presents the creation and explosive growth of the company that is also a verb: Google. This is a well-written account of the people and the culture, and shows off fine writing following significant access to key people. This is a story of the impact of efficiency: smart engineers who make things better. The success from their work is obvious; the fallout for others, especially traditional media companies (that Auletta knows well), would be less well done in the hands of a different author. Auletta excels at description, examples and insight. Googled melds personal stories with corporate culture and competitive behavior in ways that will interest many readers.
Rating: Three-star (Recommended)
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| Fascinating look at the history of Google | 2010-02-23 | 4 / 5 |
| Googled is a well-written, engaging look at the history of Google and the key people who have made, and continue to make, Google what it is: a powerful, game-changing global company with seemingly good intentions. Auletta gave me some great food for thought. I, like millions of people across the globe, trust Google with my information as a Gmail, Reader, and Docs and search user. Google uses the information it gathers to increase their coffers with money it makes as an advertising giant. What will Google use this information for in the long-run? Are we at risk?
The subtitle, "The End of the World as We Know It," refers to Google's game-changing practices. Information, be it what people search for on Web sites, found in books, in newspapers, etc., empowers people and is, according to Google, meant to be free. This practice informs many of Google's choices, disrupting the business-as-usual of old media and forcing them to make some really tough choices or doom themselves to an early grave. The future, therefore, is Google, and it will be a brave new world. |
| About the Media & Entertainment Industry rather than Google | 2010-02-21 | 3 / 5 |
| I read the book because I was seeking to learn more about Google's strategy and evolution. Be aware, that while the first 150 pages of the book provide a fascinating, behind-the-scenes look at Google, the second half of the book is less focused on Google specifically. Instead Ken Auletta provides an overview of the impact of the Internet (and Google) on the media and entertainment industry. He explores how television, newspapers, radio, magazines and traditional advertising agencies have been dramatically impacted by new media models. The second half content is interesting, but was not what I was expecting.
Nonetheless, the first 150 pages of Googled are superb! Auletta provides excellent insights into the behavior traits and characteristics of founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin. There is lots of interesting Google trivia including explanations of the relationships with Al Gore, Jeff Bezos and Stanford University faculty. You will learn about how co-founder Sergey Brin had an idea to start a hedge fund that would leverage Google's unparalleled access to data. And discover how Google's biggest potential competitors such as AOL, Netscape and Yahoo were actually key catalysts to accelerating Google's growth by providing lucrative search engine contracts. |
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