highly reccomend reading Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and software. The author basically starts from how a telegraph works and extrapolates

highly reccomend reading Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and software. The author basically starts from how a telegraph works and extrapolates modern computing from that starting point. Great read, and helped me understand exactly what you're referring to, understanding classical computers down to the metal. http://amzn.com/0735611319 http://amzn.com/0735611319