The First $20 Million is Always the Hardest

The First $20 Million is Always The Hardest, Po Bronson, Random House, 1997

At a Silicon Valley company called Omega Logic, Andy Caspar, a young software tester, wants to become one of the techno-elite. He figures the way to get there is to get involved in a hot project at Omega to build a 686 computer. Instead, through a bit of upper-management maneuvering, he is made project manager on what seems like a bottom-of-the-list project, to build a computer with a $300 price tag.

From the 3D characters to the interesting, easy to read story to the fact that Bronson does a good job at keeping the technical parts from getting too overwhelming so that no special computer knowledge is needed, this is a first-class story for everyone, not just those in the computer field.