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How productivity culture and technology became emblematic of the American economic system in pre- and postwar Germany.The concept of productivity originated in a statistical measure of output per worker or per work-hour, calculated by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. A broader productivity culture emerged in 1920s America, as Henry Ford and others linked methods of mass production and consumption to high wages and low prices. These ideas were studied eagerly by a Germany in search of economic recovery after World War I, and, decades later, the Marshall Plan promoted productivity in its efforts to help post-World War II Europe rebuild. In Productivity Machines, Corinna Schlombs examines the transatlantic history of productivity technology and culture in the two decades before and after World War II. She argues for the interpretive flexibility of productivity: different groups viewed productivity differently at different times. Although it began as an objective measure, productivity came to be emblematic of the American economic system; post-World War II West Germany, however, adapted these ideas to its own political and economic values. Schlombs explains that West German unionists cast a doubtful eye on productivity's embrace of plant-level collective bargaining; unions fought for codetermination—the right to participate in corporate decisions. After describing German responses to US productivity, Schlombs offers an in-depth look at labor relations in one American company in Germany—that icon of corporate America, IBM. Finally, Schlombs considers the emergence of computer technology—seen by some as a new symbol of productivity but by others as the means to automate workers out of their jobs.

In May 1917, William and Elizebeth Friedman were asked by the U.S. Army to begin training officers in cryptanalysis and to decrypt intercepted German diplomatic and military communications. In June 1917, Herbert Yardley convinced the new head of the Army¿s Military Intelligence Division to create a code and cipher section for the Army with himself as its head. These two seminal events were the beginning of modern American cryptology, the growth of which culminated 35 years later with the creation of the National Security Agency. Each running their own cryptologic agencies in the 1920s, the Friedman-Yardley relationship was shattered after Yardley published a tell-all book about his time in military intelligence. Yet in the end, the work they all started in 1917 led directly to the modern American intelligence community. As they got older, they became increasingly irrelevant in the burgeoning American cryptologic fraternity. Topics and features:* Examines the lives of three remarkable and pioneering cryptologists* Offers fascinating insights into spies, codes and ciphers, rumrunners, poker, and military history* Sheds new light on interesting parts of the cryptologists¿ careers¿especially Elizebeth Friedman, whose work during World War II has just begun to be explored* Recounts several good stories, i.e., What if the Friedmans had gone to work for Herbert Yardley in his new Cipher Bureau in 1919? What if Yardley had moved back to Washington to work for William Friedman a decade later? This enjoyable book has wide appeal for: general readers interested in the evolution of American cryptology, American historians (particularly of World War I, the inter-war period, and World War II signals intelligence), and historians of¿and general readers interested in¿American military intelligence. It also can be used as an auxiliary text or recommended reading in introductory or survey courses in history or on the related topics.

Cyber security is the greatest risk faced by financial institutions today, a risk they have understood and managed for decades longer than is commonly understood. Ever since the major London banks purchased their first computers in the early 1960s, they have had to balance their dependence on those machines with the need to secure their operations and retain the trust of their customers.Technological change in the second half of the 20th century prompted British banks to reevaluate their function as trusted protectors of wealth. In the City of London, the capital's oldest area and historically its business and commerce hub, the colossal clearing banks employed newly commercialised electronic computers-the processing power of which could transform the highly clerical clearing and settlement process. What unfolded over the following three decades was a relentless modernisation drive. Revolutionising the way that banks and other financial institutions conducted business and interacted with each other and permanently altering the speed and scale at which the United Kingdom's financial sector functioned, this rapid modernisation thrust computer security into the consciousness of bank executives and their clients alike.Dependence on computers quickly grew, and the banks immediately realised the need to secure their new software and hardware. Focusing on the period 1960 to 1990, this book uses newly released and previously unexplored archival material to trace the origins of cyber security in the UK financial sector.Topics and features: Describes how institutions managed the evolving challenge of computer security in the second half of the 20th century Demonstrates continuity in banks' views of security through the prism of confidentiality, integrity and availability, and the concept of resilience Presents case studies of bank collaboration on computer security through creation of payment systems like SWIFT and CHAPS Outlines the shift from focusing on physical security measures to technical network-protection measures Explores the relationship between banks and the UK Government as bank operations became dependent on computer and network technology This work will be of value to students and academic researchers in the history of computing, financial history, and the history of intelligence and security, as well as the general reader interested in contemporary intelligence, cyber security, and finance.

Tracks the evolution of the international cellular industry from the late 1970s to the present.The development of the mobile-phone industry into what we know today required remarkable cooperation between companies, governments, and industrial sectors. Companies developing cellular infrastructure, cellular devices, cellular network services, and eventually software and mobile semiconductors had to cooperate, not simply compete, with each other. In this global history of the mobile-phone industry, Daniel D. Garcia-Swartz and Martin Campbell-Kelly examine its development in the United States, Europe, Japan, and several emerging economies, including China and India. They present the evolution of mobile phones from the perspective of vendors of telephone equipment and network operators, users whose lives have been transformed by mobile phones, and governments that have fostered specific mobile-phone standards. Cellular covers the technical aspects of the cellphone, as well as its social and political impact. Beginning with the 1980s, the authors trace the development of closed (proprietary) and open (available to all) cellular standards, the impact of network effects as cellular adoption increased, major technological changes affecting mobile phone hardware, and the role of national governments in shaping the industry. The authors also consider the changing roles that cellular phones have played in the everyday lives of people around the world and the implications 5G technology may have for the future. Finally, they offer statistics on how quickly the cellular industry grew in different regions of the world and how firms competed in those various markets. Cellular is published in the History of Computing Series. This distinguished series has played a major role in defining scholarship in the history of computing. Hallmarks of the series are its technical detail and interpretation of primary source materials.

This is a volume of chapters on the historical study of information, computing, and society written by seven of the most senior, distinguished members of the History of Computing field.

"Bringing the history of modern computing fully up to date, from new applications to scientific computation to video games and the ubiquitous smartphone."--

Although it is popularly assumed that the history of computing before the second half of the 20th century was unimportant, in fact the Industrial Revolution was made possible and even sustained by a parallel revolution in computing technology. An examination and historiographical assessment of key developments helps to show how the era of modern electronic computing proceeded from a continual computing revolution that had arisen during the mechanical and the electrical ages.This unique volume introduces the history of computing during the ¿first¿ (steam) and ¿second¿ (electricity) segments of the Industrial Revolution, revealing how this history was pivotal to the emergence of electronic computing and what many historians see as signifying a shift to a post-industrial society. It delves into critical developments before the electronic era, focusing on those of the mechanical era (from the emergence of the steam engine to that of the electric power network) and the electrical era (from the emergence of the electric power network to that of electronic computing). In so doing, it provides due attention to the demarcations between¿and associated classifications of¿artifacts for calculation during these respective eras. In turn, it emphasizes the history of comparisons between these artifacts.Topics and Features:motivates exposition through a firm historiographical argument of important developmentsexplores the history of the slide rule and its use in the context of electrificationexamines the roles of analyzers, graphs, and a whole range of computing artifacts hitherto placed under the allegedly inferior class of analog computersshows how the analog and the digital are really inseparable, with perceptions thereof depending on either a full or a restricted view of the computing processinvestigates socially situated comparisons of computing history, including the effects of a political economy of computing (one that takes into account cost and ownership of computing artifacts)assesses concealment of analog-machine labor through encasement (¿black-boxing¿)Historians of computing, as well as those of technology and science (especially, energy), will find this well-argued and presented history of calculation and computation in the mechanical and electrical eras an indispensable resource. The work is a natural textbook companion for history of computing courses, and will also appeal to the broader readership of curious computer scientists and engineers, as well as those who generally just have a yearn to learn the contextual background to the current digital age."In this fascinating, original work, Tympas indispensably intertwines the histories of analog and digital computing, showing them to be inseparable from the evolution of social and economic conditions. " Prof. David Mindell, MIT

This important volume examines European perspectives on the historical relations that women have maintained with information and communication technologies (ICTs), since the telegraph. presents a comparative study of women in computing in France, Finland and the UK, revealing similar gender divisions within the ICT professions of these countries;

This engaging volume celebrates the life and work of Theodor Holm "Ted" Nelson, a pioneer and legendary figure from the history of early computing.

The effect of a commercialized Internet on American business, from the boom in e-commerce and adjustments by bricks-and-mortar businesses to file-sharing and community building.

Electronic Value Exchange examines the transformation of the VISA electronic payment system from a collection of non-integrated, localized, paper-based bank credit card programs into the cooperative, global, electronic value exchange network it is today.

The untold history of women and computing: how pioneering women succeeded in a field shaped by gender biases.

The history of the first programmable electronic computer, from its conception, construction, and use to its afterlife as a part of computing folklore.