Includes bibliographical references and index.

Preface -- Intrduction: llevelling the exponential curve -- Pt. 1 The ways we see technology incorrectly -- The birthday-present syndrome -- The perils of prediction -- The unintended wager -- If it ani't broke, be careful -- More powerful than a locomotive -- Faster than a speeding bullet -- Leap tall buildings in a single bound -- Corrective lenses -- Pt. 2 The moew things change... -- For better or for worse -- Playing with matches -- Fear and anxiety -- Technologies that touch us -- Innovation stimulation -- What's mine is mine -- Conclusion: vaccinate against the hype -- Notes -- About the author -- Index.

Annotation. Conventional wisdom says that technology is the greatest new growth frontier, coupling infinite potential with an ever-growing number of faster, more efficient, and more reliable products and instruments. According to this view, we live in an unprecedented golden era of technological expansion. Future Hype argues the opposite. Author Bob Seidensticker, who has an intimate understanding of technology on professional, theoretical, and academic levels, asserts that today s technological achievements are neither fast nor progressive. He explodes seven major myths of technology, including Change is exponential, Product cycle time is decreasing, and Today s high-tech price reductions are unprecedented. Examining the history of tech hype, Seidensticker skillfully uncovers the inaccuracies and misinterpretations that characterize the popular view of technology, explaining how and why this view has been created, and offering specific strategies for measuring progress against what is actually known rather than against what its boosters have promised.

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