Book · 1999
Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software
by Charles Petzold
Charles Petzold builds a working computer from a doorbell, a flashlight, and a length of wire, then keeps going until it's running software.
What does Reddit think of Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software?
Reddit shortens it to 'Code' more than it uses the full title, but when a comment names it directly, the endorsement runs hot. The ↑270 r/learnprogramming comment opens with 'I'm surprised no one has mentioned this yet' before calling it the best book in the thread for beginners, and the ↑380 comment backs a full recommendation with an honest caveat: the sections on electrical history 'went over my head.' That combination, real enthusiasm plus admitted difficulty somewhere in the middle, repeats often enough to read as the actual shape of the book rather than one reader's experience. r/learnprogramming accounts for the large majority of tracked mentions, more concentrated in a single sub than almost anything else in this corpus, and 2023 saw a sharp jump in mentions against a much flatter run of years around it — something pushed it back into rotation that isn't visible in the displayed quotes themselves. r/compsci shows up too, with no scored sentiment attached, suggesting it gets cited there more than argued about.
Community feedback & reader fit
Themes
- · Builds computer logic up from relays and electrical switches
- · r/learnprogramming's default answer for 'how does a computer actually work'
- · Concrete history favored over abstract CS theory
- · A 2023 mention spike with no visible cause in the data
- · Dense in the middle, accessible at the edges
Common praise
- + The ↑270 comment leads with surprise nobody had named it yet, then calls it the best book in the thread for beginners.
- + The ↑380 comment gives a full recommendation despite admitting the electrical-history sections 'went over my head.'
- + The large majority of tracked mentions come from a single subreddit, learnprogramming, unusually concentrated for a book this old.
- + It gets reached for specifically when someone asks how computers work at the hardware level, not as a generic 'best CS books' entry.
Common criticism
- − The same fans who recommend it flag the electrical-engineering stretch as the part that lost them, per the ↑380 comment directly.
- − r/compsci logs mentions with no scored sentiment at all — cited there, not discussed.
- − Coverage outside r/learnprogramming is thin across r/programming, r/AskProgramming, and r/ExperiencedDevs — it doesn't travel far past the beginner-learning subs.
- − The 2023 spike in mentions has no explanation in the displayed data; something drove renewed interest the quotes don't show.
Who it's for
The people who get the most out of this are the ones for whom 'how does a computer actually work' is a real question, not a rhetorical one — that's the specific gap r/learnprogramming keeps pointing this book at. Expect the middle stretch on relays and electrical logic to slow you down; more than one recommender admits it lost them there before the book picked back up. Already have a CS degree's worth of hardware background? r/compsci's citations suggest people reference it more than they reread it. It rewards patience with the boring-sounding chapters more than it rewards skimming for the interesting ones.
Mentions over time
Which Reddit comments matter for Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software?
The most relevant excerpts across the subreddits where this book is mentioned — opinionated, argued takes first, then top-upvoted mentions. Click through to read the full thread.
“What I would call the classics: * Design Patterns - Elements of Reusable Object-Oriented Software * Code Complete * Rapid Development * The Pragmatic Programmer * The Mythical Man-Month * Operating Systems Design and Implementation * Refactoring - Improving the Design of Existing Code * The Algorit…
“Here's the list, for anyone interested in just that: 1. The Pragmatic Programmer by David Thomas & Andrew Hunt (67% recommended) 2. Clean Code by Robert C. Martin (66% recommended) 3. Code Complete by Steve McConnell (42% recommended) 4. Refactoring by Martin Fowler (35% recommended) 5. Hea…
“I 100% recommend Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software. Parts of it did go over my head, because it talks a lot about the history of computers and a lot of technical mumbo jumbo regarding electricity. I enjoyed it though, I read…
“Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software I'm surprised no one has mentioned this yet. This is the best book fo…
“I read Charles Petzold's CODE then bought The Elements of Computing Systems (the nand2tetris book) and did those projects. Although this was over 10 years ago, barely a week goes by that I don't still think about lessons learned in them. Those 2 books were responsible for my greatest leap of underst…
“Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software by Charles Petzold. I’m a computer science student working on an undergraduate degree, and have started reading this book. I’m not finished, but I’d fully recommend it for your purposes. It does not teach someone how to code exactly, but …
“I read this book before I started my EE classes, and holy cow it made me feel like a genius compared to my peers in the intro classes, really helps wrap your heads around logic gates etc Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software
“I don't know if it is a 'must read', but "Code" by Charles Petzold immediately comes to mind. It's one of those books that you can read multiple times. I feel it makes me appreciate the miracle that is software engineering.
“Like most people, I "started somewhere in the middle" too. But later I found this book by Charles Petzold. Highly recommend it as a way to start from base principles all the way up to a rudimentary computation device. Warning, this book will not teach you ho…
“Code by Charles Petzold is one of my favourite books. It’s a little bit of a history of computing but with a lot of information about computer internals. A journey from the telegraph to GPUs.
“I recommend the book Code by Charles Petzold. It's great. I truly believe anyone who is capable of graduating high school can pick up this book, read it, and come away with a truly fundamental understanding of how computers actually work. The book is very conversational, and starts out by comparing …
“Read "Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software" by Charles Petzold. He explains how this stuff works all the way down to the metal.
“If you want to learn how we banged rocks together to make them think, try reading Code - by Charles Petzold. This starts out at the most basic logic gates and goes up from there, but I think at avery reasonably pace.
“Just wanted to second the recommendation on “Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software” Very eye opening
“I think the best primer I’ve read on the subject is the book *Code* by Charles Petzold. It takes a bit of time to get to computers, but that’s because it goes through the concepts of message transmission and reception before it gets to logic gates before it gets to higher concepts like operating sys…
Convinced? Pick up Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software
Readers also mention
Books that share discussion threads with Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software — counted from the comments, not curated.
Guides featuring Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software
Ranked best-of lists and editorial guides where this book's tracked mentions place it.
Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software — frequently asked
Is Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software good for beginners?+
Yes, per the strongest displayed endorsement — the ↑270 r/learnprogramming comment calls it the best book in a beginner-focused thread, opening with surprise that nobody had brought it up already. The caveat, from a separate ↑380 comment, is that the middle section on electrical history and relays 'went over my head' even for a reader who otherwise recommends it fully.
Why did mentions of Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software spike in 2023?+
The tracked data shows a real jump that year against a flatter run in the surrounding years, but nothing in the displayed excerpts explains the cause — no viral thread or news hook shows up in the quotes themselves. It's a genuine pattern in the numbers without a visible driver.
Is Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software too technical for a first read?+
Parts of it, according to readers who otherwise recommend it. The ↑380 comment flags the electrical-history sections as content that 'went over my head' while still giving the book a full endorsement. Expect a slower middle third if you don't already have a hardware background.
Who actually discusses Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software on Reddit?+
Mostly r/learnprogramming, which accounts for the large majority of tracked mentions — more concentrated than almost any comparable title in this dataset. r/compsci logs mentions with no scored sentiment, more citation than debate. It barely registers in r/ExperiencedDevs or r/webdev, consistent with a book aimed at people still building fundamentals.