Creating the Ideal Computer, Astronomy Hacks, and the Illustrated Guide to Astronomical Wonders are all coauthored by Robert Bruce Thompson. Thompson made his first computer out of discrete chips in 1976. It contained 256 bytes of memory, toggle switches and LEDs for I/O, and ran at less than 1 MHz with no operating system. He's bought, constructed, upgraded, and repaired hundreds of computers for himself, employers, customers, friends, and clients since then. Thompson relaxes by reading mysteries and nonfiction, but only on overcast nights. He hunts for dim fuzzies with his 10-inch Dobsonian reflector telescope on most clear, moonless evenings, and is currently designing a larger truss-tube Dobsonian (computerized, of course) that he hopes to build.