Started: August 20, 2023 | Finished: August 31, 2023
Life Under the Sun
Although I did not finish reading "Life Under the Sun" -reading slightly past the halfway mark- it wasn't because the book isn't good. On the contrary I found the book quite engrossing and enjoyable. I DNFed it because I wanted to take stock of my reading strategy. I have begun to realize the great truth that all readers must come to face: There are too many books and too little time. Although I don't race through books trying to fill a quantity quota (or maybe I do this a little bit), I do tend to read haphazardly, my book selection is arbitrary and unfocused; as if, somehow, I would be able to read all the books that I want to read. Also, I've become a hesitant rereader even though I find real value in rereading. Then there is the matter of my reading all the time although I do have a life beyond books, this is a direct outgrowth of wanting too read all the books - a foolish goal. So I have to pause and rethink my reading strategy.
Anyway, back to "My Life Under the Sun". It is an account of the career of David Yen in information technology. In talking about his journey we see the transition from minicomputers to microcomputers. David Yen was involved with multi-processor servers in Sun Microsystems and it was fascinating to see how one product line expanded and how a new product line was born. It is equally fascinating to read about David's experiences like his travels and the people he met.
David and the people he worked with had a great work ethic which is inspirational to read about. It was not that they worked x hours; it was that they cared for their work so that work did not seem like work.
I understand that a reason why I like this book so much is because I work in the information technology industry and therefore, I come in with a background on the topics David was talking about. Those who are unfamiliar with computer concepts might find this book less appealing. On the other hand, I would heartily recommend "Life Under the Sun" to I.T. industry workers like myself.