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56th out of 196 books
—
132 voters
The Codebreakers: The Comprehensive History of Secret Communication from Ancient Times to the Internet
by
David Kahn
The magnificent, unrivaled history of codes and ciphers -- how they're made, how they're broken, and the many and fascinating roles they've played since the dawn of civilization in war, business, diplomacy, and espionage -- updated with a new chapter on computer cryptography and the Ultra secret. Man has created codes to keep secrets and has broken codes to learn those sec...more
Hardcover, 1200 pages
Published
December 5th 1996
by Scribner
(first published 1967)
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The book is comprehensive. At times boring, at times fascinating, it gives an in depth look at codes and code breaking through history. The book was published in the 1960s so the WWII coverage is lacking especially in regards to Ultra (this may have been corrected in a later edition) and the latest chapters chronologically, especially the one on the NSA should be 10 pages long, not the 30-40 that they are. In addition the author has a very triumphal tone with an Anglo-centric stance periodically...more
Jan 19, 2010
Mike
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Those curious about codes, code-breaking, and information theory
I read this book a a few years ago. It's fairly long and in places very technical. Translation: lot's of long and good examples of various codes and ciphers. It also clarified the distinction between a "code" and a "cipher", which i f you are like me, you probably thought were the same thing.
Because of it's comprehensiveness and length, it's a somewhat "daunting" book to start, but the author knows his topic, writes well, and includes lots of interesting samples and uses of both codes and cipher...more
Because of it's comprehensiveness and length, it's a somewhat "daunting" book to start, but the author knows his topic, writes well, and includes lots of interesting samples and uses of both codes and cipher...more
Jan 25, 2011
John Bickelhaupt
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommended to John by:
Found in used bookstore.
Shelves:
history-cryptography
Kahn wrote "The Codebreakers" in the 1960's. An update was added, I believe in the 90's, that discusses the entry of cryptography into the public sphere, largely because of the Internet, but this new section is short, comprising less than twenty pages. Information concerning British and American decoding of German and Japanese communication during World War II that has declassified since the original edition has not been added. Despite all these drawbacks, this is still the best history of codes...more
The magnificent, unrivaled history of codes and ciphers -- how they're made, how they're broken, and the many and fascinating roles they've played since the dawn of civilization in war, business, diplomacy, and espionage -- updated with a new chapter on computer cryptography and the Ultra secret. Man has created codes to keep secrets and has broken codes to learn those secrets since the time of the Pharaohs. For 4,000 years, fierce battles have been waged between codemakers and codebreakers, and...more
Nov 27, 2011
BarbaraNathalie
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommended to BarbaraNathalie by:
I stumbled onto it.
I find codes fascinating, and this complete overview is mind boggling to someone like me. Still it amazes me that individuals who are remarkable at deciphering codes exist. Their minds must be advanced beyond anything I can comprehend. As I repeat myself, I am reminded that the whole thrust of breaking a code would convolute my brain and give me an extreme headache just for the attempt. Bravo to anyone who can do it, and this book is highly recommended to anyone who finds the mystery of hidden w...more
The definitive book on the history of cryptography. Although even with this revised edition, the modern cryptography is clearly not the focus of this book, Bruce Schneier is probabbly better for this. If you are looking for a different view on several historical events, one focused on cryptography, this book is for you.
Awesome barely described it for me. I read a cut-down translated version of the 1967 edition and reading this revised version was like rediscovering the book itself.
Awesome barely described it for me. I read a cut-down translated version of the 1967 edition and reading this revised version was like rediscovering the book itself.
The book that started me on a lifetimes delving into 20th century biographies which we might now call history. A beautifully written exposition of the various ways people have attempted to transmit information and messages disguised from others. Following the bibliography to learn more took me into many many autobiographies and biographies and I'm still ordering books from the era when codemakers and codebreakers reached their pinnacle of abilities, i.e. World War Two.
I was interested in this book in the mid-sixties because I was in the Navy and working for the Naval Security Group which worked for NSA. Not much was publicly known about NSA back then and you don't see much about it nowadays either. So... I don't think I read the whole thing, just the NSA part. Obviously the edition I read had nothing about the internet or cell-phones. Date read is approximate.
Probably the definitive history on codes, codebreaking, and it's increasingly important role in shaping military history. It's comprehensive scope ranges from the ancient world to the public-key era, with special attention paid to the postal system of Vienna, the triumphs and failures of signal intelligence during the World Wars, and recently-declassified information about the early Cold War.
There are two things you need to know about this book. One, it is "comprehensive" which means looooong. It achieves this length by talking about anything and everything vaguely related to cryptography, even including the hypothetical reception of alien signals from outer space. Two, only roughly 2% of the book is about modern (computer/internet) cryptography.
Oct 23, 2007
Kyle
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Those with interests in military history, game theory, math, linguistics.
This book contains some fascinating material. The opeining chapter is particularly gripping, dealing with the decryption of the Japanese diplomatic service's codes and ciphers during the run up to Pearl Harbor. The main plotline of the book follows the development of cryptology from antiquity up to the mid 1950's. The parts of this covering about 1300-1940 are very good.
Unfortunately, the beginning deals with some very arcane topics, like Hebrew lyrical poetry. The last few chapters are very da...more
Unfortunately, the beginning deals with some very arcane topics, like Hebrew lyrical poetry. The last few chapters are very da...more
The best and most comprehensive history of cryptography available. Astonishingly well-researched and eminently readable. Not just for infosec practitioners.
A great history about codes. If you like puzzles, historical analysis, or strategy, this is definitely a book for you to read.
Новый взгляд на мировую историю сквозь призму криптографии. Книга про науку, призвание которой всегда находиться в тени.
I read this book in vietnames version. It's very good book for who like cryptography
Nice historical reading, but mostly unrelevant to modern cryptography.
A masterpiece.
ABANDONED. Well written and interesting in places, but the opening chapters on Pearl Harbour are really tedious (and it looks like we're to be treated to yet more of the same later in the book). Includes such 'balanced' comments as "It became increasingly evident that Nippon's march of aggression would eventually collide with American rectitude".
Jun 27, 2007
Jonathan Katz
is currently reading it
been very interesting thus far...i think cryptology is really cool. this is on the history side, there is very little math in it, but that's okay. there is actually a very rich history in cryptology that came into bloom during the late 1500s to early 1600s, and is still being pioneered even today (esp. 1970s).
I really wanted to like this book a lot, and much of it actually was very interesting. However, it was just too outdated and too long.
I was about 11 years old when I read this. I don't remember any of it. But the book was huge and was bigger in my little arms.
Fairly authoritative and certainly broad in scope.
good history !!
May 19, 2013
Olaino
marked it as to-read
May 19, 2013
Subhendu Mishra
marked it as to-read
May 17, 2013
Christopher
marked it as to-read
May 16, 2013
Conrad
marked it as to-read
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David Kahn is a historian who writes on military codebreaking.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
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Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
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