March 9, 1995
This is in regard to your two stories on "hackers" ( Golden Gater, Feb. 28 and March 2 ). You define hackers as "cyberspace outlaws who break into the university's computer system" for "file disruption and file corruption."
BUZZ! Wrong. A "hacker," per se, is someone who uses a computer to gain knowledge. In other words, NONDESTRUCTIVE individuals.
Where do I get these definitions, you ask? From the book "The
Hacker Crackdown" by Bruce Sterling, as well as a few hundred others on the same subject. But of course your staff would know this if they bothered to do a modicum of research on a subject they clearly do not understand. Next time, try to get it right.
One more thing before I decide to step down off of my soapbox,
regarding your story on policing the Internet: the only way to censor the internet is to pull the plug. That might happen when I become the Pope. Right. So until next time kiddies, adios.