The Tao of Computing provides readers with the knowledge, concepts, and skills necessary for computer fluency as defined in the National Research Council’s report, Being Fluent with Information Technology.

Motivated by a belief that students learn best when material connects with their experiences, backgrounds, and perspective, author Henry Walker has built The Tao of Computing around a unique question-and-answer format. Each chapter and section begins with a “real-life” computing question, the answer to which serves as the starting point for an in-depth discussion of a fluency-related concept. The questions have been carefully developed to be representative of those asked by general computer users and were, in many instances, posed by the author’s students. Individually, they help students easily build an understanding of important IT concepts. As a whole, they address completely all of the topic areas that the NRC has defined as critical to developing IT fluency. 

The book’s conversational format engages the reader and presents key material in a clear, easily understandable fashion for those with little or no background in computing, and helps them develop an “IT vocabulary” without overwhelming them with jargon and acronyms. 

Taken from the Chinese and loosely translated to mean "the way,” the word and concept tao is the essence of the ancient spiritual text Tao Teh Ching (“Way of Life”). The Tao of Computing focuses on information technology rather than spiritual philosophy, but like the ancient manuscript, it aims to provide understanding, guidance and context for those seeking to know the essence of computing.