Go Computer Now! by Ben Zotto

Go Computer Now! How Sphere Corporation Invented the Modern Microcomputer—Then Disappeared is a reported nonfiction book about one of the first manufacturers of integrated desktop personal computers. Sphere operated outside of Salt Lake City, Utah, from 1975 to 1977.

The book was written by Ben Zotto (me) and published in 2026. The design (interior and cover) is by Sophie Wietlisbach, who brings a refinement and clarity to Sphere’s rough-around-the-edges technology and marketing.

Wietlisbach uses Optimo’s Media77 (the digital revival of Media) for the text, an effective nod to the mid-late-1970s era covered by the narrative. Captions are set in Media77 Condensed (as are the notes and index of the book, for higher information density).

My own Signetics CRT is deployed for the page numbers and dust jacket cover. This font was created for the book by starting with the bitmap letterforms produced by the Signetics 2513 character generator chip, then extruding the horizontal “pixels” to reflect the way that cathode ray tube video output appears on the screen of Sphere computers.

The cover text and the foil stamp on front board use a variable version of the Signetics font that subtly “jitters” the horizontal strips in the same way an imperfectly calibrated video circuit did in the 1970s, giving that text a less “perfect” and slightly more organic feel.

More information about the book can be found on gocomputernow.com. For more information about Sphere computers, see sphere.computer. The typography of Sphere’s corporate branding is covered in a previous post on Fonts In Use.