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kareila_booksI put off reading this 1984 "classic" for so long that by the time I finally got around to it, even the afterword of the 25th anniversary edition felt dated. The term "hacker" is used here in its original sense of "self-guided technology enthusiast" and doesn't necessarily imply using computers for nefarious purposes. A better subtitle might have been "Lifestyles of the Smart and Anxious."
Steven Levy is primarily known as a writer and editor for Wired magazine, which has always emphasized glamour over substance in its technical reporting. Most of the content of the book comes from extensive interviews centered around three major hotbeds of computer history: MIT in the 1960's and early 1970's (specifically Tech Model Railroad Club and the early AI lab), California's Homebrew Computer Club, and the offices of game publisher Sierra On-Line. Levy uses these to map out a shared set of values he calls the Hacker Ethic, which he depicts as being threatened by capitalism as his narrative draws to a close, but would soon come to be known as the free software movement.
All of this is interesting as far as it goes, but it barely touches on the advent of the internet, mostly focusing on personal computing and the growth of the eventual home market for video games. Levy ultimately seems more interested in the personal lives of his "hackers" than in considering the broader impact of their innovations on society.
Steven Levy is primarily known as a writer and editor for Wired magazine, which has always emphasized glamour over substance in its technical reporting. Most of the content of the book comes from extensive interviews centered around three major hotbeds of computer history: MIT in the 1960's and early 1970's (specifically Tech Model Railroad Club and the early AI lab), California's Homebrew Computer Club, and the offices of game publisher Sierra On-Line. Levy uses these to map out a shared set of values he calls the Hacker Ethic, which he depicts as being threatened by capitalism as his narrative draws to a close, but would soon come to be known as the free software movement.
All of this is interesting as far as it goes, but it barely touches on the advent of the internet, mostly focusing on personal computing and the growth of the eventual home market for video games. Levy ultimately seems more interested in the personal lives of his "hackers" than in considering the broader impact of their innovations on society.
