Book written by David Gelernter, full title 'Machine Beauty: Elegance and the Heart of Technology.' Published by Basic Books in 1998.

Essentially what the book covers is the idea that there are certain objects, places and memes that society collectively finds beautiful. With the introduction of such things as the telephone, radio, automobile and now the widespread use of personal computers has forced developers of nascent technologies to take into consideration aesthetic as well as functional needs. (Hence the initial debate/hatred over/of the Macintosh computer and accompanying OS. This is discussed in far more detail in the book itself.)
Furthermore, the idea of the perception of beauty also is extensively explored from not only the view of the creator but of the user as well. I.e. whether programmers writing code enjoy that because they find the work that they do beautiful or because they are told to do this. (Placement of spontaneous 'creeping featuritis' playing a role in this as well.)

(Personal note: Gelernter unfortunately was one of the victims of the Unabomber several years ago, and lost a hand in one attack. The fact that he continues to this day to not change his opinions, stop teaching or be otherwise affected by the irrational and ruthless attack I find extremely admirable.)

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