Levy_S-Hackers-Heroes-Computer-Revolution

pioneers who had begun their businesses thinking that the magic technology theyhad to offer would make their businesses special. Mass marketing loomed in frontof them like some omnipotent Tolkienesque ring: could they grab the ring and notbe corrupted? Could whatever idealism existed in their mission be preserved?Could the spirit of hackerism survive the success of the software industry?Ken worried about this: "When I used to work for Dick, I used to bitch aboutworking eight to five [and not in the freewheeling, hacker mode]. Now I want aprogramming staff that works from eight to five. It's like going from being ahippie to being a capitalist or something. I think there's a lot of programmers[here] who feel betrayed. Like John Harris. When he came up, it was open house,my door was open anytime. He could come in, we could talk programmingtechniques. I'd take him places. We never did business with a contract. Didn't needit. If we didn't trust each other, we shouldn't do business together. [Now] that'schanged. I don't know what my goals are anymore. I'm not sure which is the wayto run the company. Somehow, by hiring Dick, I copped out. It's the uncertaintythat bothers me 1 don't know if I'm right or wrong."Inexplicable events kept occurring. Like the incident in the programming office. Ayoung man working overtime drawing computer pictures for the overdue DarkCrystal adventure game, an On-Line employee from nearly the beginning, putdown his graphics tablet one day and began screaming, pounding the walls,pulling down posters, and waving a long knife at the terrified young woman whohad been tracing pictures beside him. Then he grabbed a stuffed toy dog andfuriously stabbed it, tearing it to shreds, its stuffing flying around the tinyworkroom. The programmers in the next room had to stop him, and the young manwaited quietly until he was calmly led away. Explanation: he just lost it, was all.Hacker JeffStephenson, working on the secret IBM project (also behind schedule),expressed the overall frustration: "I don't know who the company is being run for,but it's not the authors, who strike me as the bread and butter of the company. Theattitude is 'So you're John Harris, who needs you?' We do. He'd made a lot ofbucks for this company. But they seem to think that as long as you can get fancypacking and nice labels, it's going to sell."Indeed, John Harris had noticed this trend. The talkative game designer who hadwritten two of the most popular programs in microcomputer history was tornbetween loyalty and disgust at the way the Hacker Ethic was being ignored. Harrishadn't liked the fact that authors' names weren't on the new boxes, and he certainlyhadn't liked it when, after he mentioned this to Dick, Dick replied, "Hold on beforewe do anything, when is your next game for us done?" Quite a change from theSummer Camp days. Harris believed that the times everybody would stop workingand pull pranks like going to Hexagon House and turning everything in the house,