Rating:  - Borring
Borring......This book had me asleep, I struggled through the first chapters hoping it would get better, but after a few chapters I had to give up.
if you are interested in the hacker community and not this completely too detailed borring history, buy "masters of Deception" A much better book
Rating:  - GREAT BOOK!!!!
This book is WONDERFULL. I would suggest it for anyone that is interested in computers and the hacker way of life. It has really opened my mind up A-LOT!!!
Rating:  - Yawn...
A really boring book I got here. Many words but it's a really good effort by the authors and the ppl involved. Hope to finish it someday...
Rating: - A fascinating look at how it all began
Contrary to popular opinion, hackers are not computer criminals. They are those who are inspired by the power to control technology, and for whom computing is an art form.
The book traces the history of computing, from the early days of the Tech Model Railroad Club at MIT in the late 50's to the game designers of the mid 80's. It's the story of brilliant programmers devoted to their dream of a better world.
Among the characters covered in the book are the first generation hackers, the students at MIT who fought against the system, with its batch processed IBM computers, because they believed that computers should be for everyone, not just the "high priests" entrusted to protect them from the masses. The book also discusses the philosophical hackers of the late 60's who believed the computer age would change the world, as well as the hardware hackers of the late 70's who built their own home computers from discarded parts. In the 80's, with the advent of the affordable home computer, a new generation of hackers emerged - game designers.
Levy also talks about the most famous hackers of all - the two Steves (Jobs and Wozniak), who created Apple in the late 70's, and Bill Gates, the young programmer who broke an unwritten rule and prevented the hacking community from using his software freely.
Hackers was first published in 1984, and understandably, things have moved on since then. Yet it is still an exceptionally good read. It covers a large amount of ground without ever becoming dry.
I bought a copy of Hackers after reading several glowing recommendations from other readers. This is a book that should be considered essential reading for anyone with an interest in computing. Hackers will take you back to where it all began. I highly recommended it.
Rating: - Great history of computers...
This is a great history of computers. This covers all of the people that "invented" modern computing, etc. Starts out with the software hackers of the 1960s and 1970s, then moves into the hardware hackers of the late 1970s and 1980s. Some of these hardware hackers include how Woz (Steve Wozniak) started Apple computer and made a mint. It then moves on to software companies like Sierra On-Line and Broderbund and how they got their start...
Definitely a cool book. Great computer history book.
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