In "Microserfs," Douglas Coupland captures the zeitgeist of the 1990s tech boom through the eyes of Dan Underwood, a disenchanted Microsoft programmer. Narrated via Dan's Powerbook entries, this novel dives deep into the lives of six friends, the titular "microserfs," who are tethered to their keyboards in the monolithic shadow of Bill Gates' empire. They inhabit a world where meals are "flat" to fit under doors, where the fear of a dismissive email from Gates himself looms large, and where their existence is quantified by the code they produce. Coupland crafts a narrative that is at once a satire of Silicon Valley's peculiar culture and a poignant exploration of the human need for connection and purpose amidst the sterile hum of computer fans. When the microserfs decide to break free from their corporate shackles and start their own company, Oop!, the novel shifts gears. The group's journey from being mere cogs in a vast machine to embarking on a venture fraught with uncertainty and the promise of autonomy encapsulates the dream and dread of the digital age. Their communal living situation, dubbed "Our House of Wayward Mobility," becomes the stage for explorations of love, identity, and the search for a life beyond the screen. Douglas Coupland's "Microserfs" is not just a snapshot of a pivotal moment in tech history; it is a deeply felt story of the quest for meaning in the modem age, making it a landmark novel that resonates well into the 21st century.