Binding: Paperback
Format: Bargain Price
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 464
Publication Date: December 31, 2000
Sales Rank: 399901
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Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - A well-written account of computer pioneers - just make sure you're interested in this stuff
As the description mentions, Steven Levy's "Hackers" is not about computer criminals, but refers to the more traditional definition of "someone who delights in having an intimate understanding of the internal workings of a computer and computer network." I purchased this book because I was intrigued with Sierra On-Line, and was interested in learning more about some of the founding software companies and people who became rich from the computer boom of the early 80s. Having just finished Where ... Read More
Rating:  - The positive side of hacking
It's so relieving to see Levy's capture of the positive side of the qualification to be able to hack. I believe the progress in the software and hardware development has been greatly advanced be the qualifications theses people have shown.
When it later comes to the aspect of what this qualification has been used for, the results are more dubious. It is sad, however, that todays meaning of the term hacker seems to cover only the negative side of the history.
Rating: - Couldn't put it down
Great read on the early days of computer hackers, only wish it was updated (the book ends in the 80's but does include a small update/list of where the main players are in later years (the 90's))
Very well written, it was easy to follow and understand. From the early days at MIT to the later years with Sierra On-Line, this tells of the early hackers and thier acheivements. There are some especially great stories behind the scenes in the later parts of the book.
Rating: - An amazing insight into the mind of a computer enthusiast
Steven Levy has written a masterpiece, and I will be forever grateful to him for it. Although when I read it (circa year 2001) computers were much more mainstream than the period this book covers (1960s-80s), the book still broke new ground for me. It was before the blogging era, and especially before all the aspiring hackers of the world "united" via a network of blogs, forums, feeds, "planets" (feed collections on specific topics) and link accumulators like Reddit and Digg. In other words, it was ... Read More
Rating:  - Oh, what might have been...
SL does a fine job of charting the early history of hacking at MIT and Stanford and beyond. As a member of the 3rd-generation-of-hackers generation (though, regretfully, not a hacker myself), I remember well the first personal computers and computer game systems, and the passion of friends and classmates of mine who were among the first to own and cut their programming teeth on them. It's amazing to think how far computers have come in my lifetime, a true technological revolution. SL's book reminds ... Read More
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