Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution

by Steven Levy

Ken Williams was far from a dazzling programmer when he finished Control Data Institute, but he was certainly prepared to do anything required of him. And more. As much work as possible, to help him go as high as he could. Then take on another, more demanding job, whether or not he was qualified. Instead of cleanly breaking with the previous employer, Ken tried to keep on the payroll, in consultant mode. He would claim to know computer languages and operating systems he knew nothing about, reading a book about the subject hours before a job interview and bullshitting his way into the position. “Well, we’re looking for a programmer in BAL,” they would tell him, referring to an esoteric computer language, and he would laugh almost derisively. “BAL? I’ve been programming in BAL for three years!” Then he would immediately rush out to get hold of some books, since he had never even heard of BAL. But by the time the job started he would have procured documentation, uniformly buried in dense, cheaply printed loose-leaf manuals, to fake expertise in the “BAL environment,” or at least buy time until he could get into the machine and divine the secrets of BAL.