{"product_id":"9780385419949","title":"Silicon Snake Oil: Second Thoughts on the Information Highway","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eSilicon Snake Oil\u003c\/i\u003e, Clifford Stoll, the best-selling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Cuckoo's Egg\u003c\/i\u003e and one of the pioneers of the Internet, turns his attention to the much-heralded information highway, revealing that it is not all it's cracked up to be.  Yes, the Internet provides access to plenty of services, but useful information is virtually impossible to find and difficult to access. Is being on-line truly useful? \"Few aspects of daily life require computers...They're irrelevant to cooking, driving, visiting, negotiating, eating, hiking, dancing, speaking, and gossiping. You don't need a computer to...recite a poem or say a prayer.\" Computers can't, Stoll claims, provide a richer or better life.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA cautionary tale about today's media darling, \u003ci\u003eSilicon Snake Oil\u003c\/i\u003e has sparked intense debate across the country about the merits—and foibles—of what's been touted as the entranceway to our future.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47011030728944,"sku":"9780385419949","price":14.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9780385419949_p0.jpg?v=1763694530","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9780385419949","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}