NPR marks the 20th anniversary of the Morris Worm | Hacker News Reader

NPR marks the 20th anniversary of the Morris Worm

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8 pointsgruseom7 comments

Would have been better if they'd just interviewed rtm.

my thoughts gruseom. I remember writing about the morris worm in more detail than this back about 8months ago ~ http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=350477 One point I did find interesting that may explain why rtm wasn't interviewed:

Reading through these articles with the quaint descriptions of legal authority you sense the outrage and hysteria of a single user disrupting 6000 computers seemingly at will.

    Significantly, the Morris case may represent a 
    turning point in how society views its computer
    wizards. Until the early 1980's, those who broke 
    into computer systems were widely admired, at 
    least if movies and novels are any indication, 
    for their combination of daring and technical 
    skill. Markoff, NYT, From Hacker to Symbol,
    January 24, 1990.

Reading the John Markoff article, 'From Hacker to Symbol', writing at the time of sentencing, I found one legacy that I didn't previously know of - the point in time where term "hacker" became demonised in the press.

Morris (never heard him referred to as 'rtm' before) doesn't deserve any fame for his actions.

His "actions"? Boy did you pick the wrong crowd to come out with that self-righteous bromide.

never heard him referred to as 'rtm'

A tip: it's in that capacity that he administers the server you're posting to.

I think most people on Hacker News know that Robert Morris working for Y Combinator doesn't retroactively make breaking into people's machines a good thing.

I'm not sure why you think disliking these actions is self righteous - how would you feel if someone brought down your server for 'curiosity'?

CYBERPUNK: Outlaws and Hackers on the Computer Frontier, ISBN-10: 0684818620, ISBN-13: 978-0684818627, had a very entertaining account of rtm's youth and the creation of the worm. I have no idea how accurate the book is, but it highlights the fact that not all "hackers" are similar. Some did it for the pride that came with it, others did it to sell secrets, and still others did it by accident. None of the caricatures resembled Zero Cool. (Well, maybe Mitnick and his gang... a little bit.)

The Watchmen, about Kevin Poulsen, is a great read, especially when he wins a red Porsche 944 (a car I've been intending to buy just because of this book).

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