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I agree with you that we tend to ignore our immediate history and not see things for how they were - but, how do we fix this, exactly? By telling each other ab

I agree with you that we tend to ignore our immediate history and not see things for how they were - but, how do we fix this, exactly? By telling each other about these articles .. I was around in those days, my eyes have been rolling and rolling over the years as we see Hot New Stuff get released that is really just Old Stuff Ignored, Re-invented. There are definitely cycles of insomnia in our culture. So for me anyway its great to see these predictions coming out of the woodwork, and to recall some of the great, fine essays that were produced in the early years of electronic media consumption. So much great stuff, lost to the electrons of time..

simonh 11y ago
Yep. Of course this guy's post didn't exist in a vacuum, but most people aren't aware of how back online culture goes. Most hacker kids nowadays haven't even heard of Clifford Stoll or "The Cucko's Egg"(1). (1) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cuckoo%27s_Egg https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cuckoo%27s_Egg
- deleted 11y ago
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- chipsy 11y ago
  It took me a moment to realize why I was stuck in the internet revisionist mindset even though I know many of the early computer crime stories. It's because the security game has played out generationally - the publically known techniques used to break into systems in 1995 were less sophisticated than those seen now. This a war that has quietly been fought since the first secret messages, on a battlefield that is now shifting with increasing speed and is tilted heavily in favor of offense. The common advice one had to take control of one's information in the 90's just isn't any good now - there are critically failing holes in the infrastructure that make individual defense a Sisyphiean task. But relative to now, gaining unauthorized access to a valuable system in the 80's or 90's would still be challenging, as the bag of tricks would be different, less widely known, and you might need more expensive equipment.

simonh 11y ago

Yep. Of course this guy's post didn't exist in a vacuum, but most people aren't aware of how back online culture goes. Most hacker kids nowadays haven't even heard of Clifford Stoll or "The Cucko's Egg"(1). (1) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cuckoo%27s_Egg https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cuckoo%27s_Egg

deleted 11y ago
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chipsy 11y ago
It took me a moment to realize why I was stuck in the internet revisionist mindset even though I know many of the early computer crime stories. It's because the security game has played out generationally - the publically known techniques used to break into systems in 1995 were less sophisticated than those seen now. This a war that has quietly been fought since the first secret messages, on a battlefield that is now shifting with increasing speed and is tilted heavily in favor of offense. The common advice one had to take control of one's information in the 90's just isn't any good now - there are critically failing holes in the infrastructure that make individual defense a Sisyphiean task. But relative to now, gaining unauthorized access to a valuable system in the 80's or 90's would still be challenging, as the bag of tricks would be different, less widely known, and you might need more expensive equipment.