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Written by NHC
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Thursday, 23 June 2005 09:54 |
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INTRODUCTION
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ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
Copyright (C) 1992 by Kevin Beck
Box 714 Airport Road, Swanton Vermont 05488
ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÛßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ
ÛÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝ WHAT IS CYBERPUNK? ÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÛ
ßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÛßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßß
The word "Cyberpunk" was coined by the science fiction author William Gibson
in his book "Neuromancer". But since that book was published, the word has
come to mean many things. These days, it seems to refer to anybody who uses
a superior knowledge of technology to gain an advantage over those who can't
keep up to date with all the latest developments.
Another important book is "Cyberpunk". (One of the co-authors, Katie
Hafner, has an indirect connection with this collection of stories you are
reading now.) The book "Cyberpunk" explored three stories of computer
mayhem, including the espionage case described in Cliff Stoll's book "The
Cuckoo's Egg". The book also covered the well-known story of "The Internet
Worm", created by Robert Morris. Despite its somewhat sensationalist title,
this book takes the time to actually delve into the motivations of the
cyberpunks.
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No cyberpunk library is complete without a copy of these classics:
"Shockwave Rider" (John Brunner). One of the earliest cyberpunk books -- a
real ground-breaker.
"True Names" (Vernor Vinge). This novellete concentrated on the imagery of
cyberspace. It really captured the thrill of plying the nets.
"Hackers" (Stephen Levy) Concentrated on the hacker ethic, and the hacking
process. He demonstrated that hackers don't just play with computers, but
with any system that needs to be understood, be it the telephone system, a
model railroad, or a Chinese menu.
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Here are a few other books you might wish to look for in your local book
store...
"The Adolescence of P1" This book bears a superficial similarity to
"Collosus: The Forbin Project", but from a technical standpoint it is much
more believable. The book is now somewhat dated, but it's still a good
read.
"Out of the Inner Circle" This is a "how-to" book of system cracking. The
author isn't very apologetic about his hobby! Anybody who has shared his
hobby will wax nostalgic as they read this book.
ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÛßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ
ÛÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝ
THE CONTEST
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ßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÛßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßß
In May of 1992, the GEnie system held a contest to see who could come up
with NEW ideas in Cyberpunk. One of the featured judges was Katie Hafner,
co-author of the book "Cyberpunk". The prizes? Copies of the book
"Cyberpunk"!
One GEnie user by the name of Tim Campbell (T.CAMPBELL11 on GEnie) was
intrigued by the challenge, and created several very different cyberpunk
scenarios. Inspired by the book "Hackers", he decided to avoid "obvious"
scenarios (i.e. "Gee, let's break into a computer" or "Gee, let's write a bad
virus"). He decided instead to avoid restricting himself to the computer
world. Instead, he explored how technical expertise can be used to gain an
unfair advantage anywhere.
The contest was divided into two categories: Constructive Hacking and
Destructive Hacking. All of Mr. Campbell's entries (including his prize-
winning material) are reproduced here, with the exception of one
"Destructive" idea that Mr. Campbell refused to publish, considering that it
was too dangerous an idea to release into general circulation.
ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿
³ If you are curious about the idea that Mr. Campbell considered "too ³
³ destructive to publish", you can obtain a copy of the article, on ³
³ diskette. You can get this by sending $3 (or a diskette and a stamped, ³
³ self-addresed envelope) to Mr. Campbell at CP386 Mont Royal, Quebec, ³
³ Canada H3P 3C6. (Sorry, he can't use American stamps!) A more practical ³
³ alternative is to ask him for a free copy when you order his "Shareware ³
³ Sampler". You can NOT receive this special diskette unless you receive ³
³ an authorization number by calling Mr. Campbell at 514-345-9578. You can ³
³ call any time, but he say he will not accept collect calls, nor will he ³
³ return toll calls. I guess that's pretty
reasonable.
³
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If you have any questions for me, you can write to me at:
Box 714 Airport Road, Swanton Vermont 05488
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Last Updated on Thursday, 23 June 2005 10:56 |