After more than two years, I've finally gotten around to publishing my master's project on the Web.

What you see here is my first serious stab at trying to cover what, for lack of a better term, I like to call the hacker underground.

For those familiar with "the scene" you'll probably find a lot of things in this story that are incorrect, poorly described from a technical standpoint, or otherwise wrong. Like I said, this project was my first serious attempt to write about what makes a hacker tick. In my own defense, I can say that I've learned a lot since then.

So what exactly is a master's project?

Generally, the project consists of a long-form written story, written and researched over the course of seven months. In some cases, the final result makes its way to publicaton in mainstream magazines. While I made some attempt to get this project published, I instead found the contacts I made in the course of doing the research more valuable in the long run.

Why am I bothering to put it up on the web now? Why not? I've been meaning to do so since graduation, and I've finally gotten around to it.

One thing I have yet to add:

I have plans underway for a pretty comprehensive list of books, articles and primary documents about the hacking world. Given the nature of the Internet, it will require constant attention to keep it both updated and accurate. But it should contain some pretty interesting stuff when I get through with it. I'm hoping to have the first version of it ready by the beginning of February, 2000, so come back.

On with the show