For readers
If you have read the book, this page is for you
Some of you are here because the last page of Notes for a Future Reader pointed you to zimering.com. Thank you for following it this far.
This is the quiet part of the site: a few answers to the questions readers ask most often, and a way to reach Howard directly. He would be glad to hear what you thought of the book, to answer a question about it, or simply to know you read it.
Addressed to a future reader. Apparently you arrived.
Frequently Asked Questions
Questions and answers will be added here as they come in. Each entry opens and closes on its own; nothing is hidden behind scripts.
How did the idea for the novel begin?
I have spent thirty-five years in IT. In that time I have watched a great deal of new technology arrive, and I have usually been the one putting it into people’s hands. What I am seeing now with artificial intelligence worries me in a way the earlier waves did not.
Where I work today, I watch people grappling with how much of it to adopt, and when, and on what terms — and underneath all of that, with how it changes the way we relate to one another. Those questions stayed with me. I wanted somewhere to think them through properly, and that turned into this book.
I have about ten years left before I retire, and I do think about them. It is possible that by the time I get there — if the career even lasts that long — my lifetime will have aligned exactly with the moment in history when writing software was a human thing. Not a lifetime before mine; not one after. Some days I think I could be in a museum myself, a stand-in for software coder.
Will there be another book?
Yes. Howard is working on his next book, targeted for late 2027. Details will be shared on the About page when they are ready.
How can I send feedback or ask a question?
Write to book@zimering.com. Every message is read.
Write to Howard
To send feedback about the book, or to ask Howard a question, email:
There is no form to fill out — just a plain email address, which goes straight to him.