3 ms·

Very well written and does a great job of stirring up emotions but when you really think about it, it doesn't say anything. Just that the author thinks he's sma

Very well written and does a great job of stirring up emotions but when you really think about it, it doesn't say anything. Just that the author thinks he's smarter than everyone and that there's nothing wrong with hacking absolutely but never goes into what he means by "hack", "hacking", or "hacker". I could see how it could strike a cord maybe 10+ years ago but today it feels hollow. The idea that all hackers are smarter than average, bored in school, and break into things (presumably - that's what I thought he meant) is something I don't agree with. This isn't the 90's anymore. Hackers nowadays are as much well rounded, often downright average individuals (sorry to burst all of our egos) as they are above average and the things he describes. That stereotype needs to die.

subsystem 14y ago
I think you should read it again, for one it indicates what kind of hacking he means in the opening paragraph. I'm on my phone, I'll write some more when I get home. Edit: Something came up so I don't have the time to write much. I will say that what you object to isn't snark, it's subculture. Subculture isn't around much anymore like it were in the 80s and 90s. Also information wasn't as abundant back then as it is today. I guess people have to decide for themselves if they want to understand or dismiss it, a starting point could be the "cfi-en" package in ubuntu/debian.
csixty4 14y ago
The world has changed a lot since then. It doesn't feel hollow to me, but it definitely feels like a time capsule, some kind of historic document. Man, there was a printout of this on my dorm wall. My hair is going gray now. So it goes. It was such a different world back then. Linux was new, and most people I knew bought it on CD-ROMs because it took too damn long to download. But it beat paying for a copy of Windows or...well, Windows. There was open source software, but nothing on the scale like you see today. And it was hard to get information on how things worked. Today, I can download the service manual for my TV in a handy PDF. Back then, I would have had to know somebody who had a copy and was willing to photocopy it for me if I paid him a few bucks. Billy Idol paraphrased The Cyberpunk Manifesto (http://www.sterneck.net/cyber/branwyn-cyberpunk/index.php http://www.sterneck.net/cyber/branwyn-cyberpunk/index.php) when he said "information is power and currency in the virtual world we inhabit". Back then, information was scarce. So was access to hardware and software. Not like today. It's probably cliche to say it, but I have a 1GHz Unix machine in my pocket. That still blows my mind. It's much easier to learn how to program now. It's much easier to quench that thirst for knowledge. And it's much easier to own a decent computer. I wish this link was presented with more context of what it was like being a geek in the 90s. Maybe there's a book I can write some day.
- cms07 14y ago
  This was actually the 80s, I believe.

subsystem 14y ago

I think you should read it again, for one it indicates what kind of hacking he means in the opening paragraph. I'm on my phone, I'll write some more when I get home. Edit: Something came up so I don't have the time to write much. I will say that what you object to isn't snark, it's subculture. Subculture isn't around much anymore like it were in the 80s and 90s. Also information wasn't as abundant back then as it is today. I guess people have to decide for themselves if they want to understand or dismiss it, a starting point could be the "cfi-en" package in ubuntu/debian.

csixty4 14y ago

The world has changed a lot since then. It doesn't feel hollow to me, but it definitely feels like a time capsule, some kind of historic document. Man, there was a printout of this on my dorm wall. My hair is going gray now. So it goes. It was such a different world back then. Linux was new, and most people I knew bought it on CD-ROMs because it took too damn long to download. But it beat paying for a copy of Windows or...well, Windows. There was open source software, but nothing on the scale like you see today. And it was hard to get information on how things worked. Today, I can download the service manual for my TV in a handy PDF. Back then, I would have had to know somebody who had a copy and was willing to photocopy it for me if I paid him a few bucks. Billy Idol paraphrased The Cyberpunk Manifesto (http://www.sterneck.net/cyber/branwyn-cyberpunk/index.php http://www.sterneck.net/cyber/branwyn-cyberpunk/index.php) when he said "information is power and currency in the virtual world we inhabit". Back then, information was scarce. So was access to hardware and software. Not like today. It's probably cliche to say it, but I have a 1GHz Unix machine in my pocket. That still blows my mind. It's much easier to learn how to program now. It's much easier to quench that thirst for knowledge. And it's much easier to own a decent computer. I wish this link was presented with more context of what it was like being a geek in the 90s. Maybe there's a book I can write some day.

cms07 14y ago
This was actually the 80s, I believe.