How were banks able to perform complex interest calculations as early as ancient times? Did computers assist in the persecution of Jews and mass murder? And what role did they play in the development of the atomic bomb? The cultural history of computers—from the abacus to calculating machines to artificial intelligence—depicts them both as calculating servants and useful helpers to their masters, and as apprentices who continually take on new functions and act increasingly independently. Norbert Geiss vividly illustrates how people over the past 2500 years have influenced the invention and development of computers as real or potential users, and how computers continue to impact the lives of individuals and the coexistence of society today.