Hacker Archives - Wayne Pendragon Owens

Hack the Planet: Celebrating 30 Years of Hackers

Wayne Pendragon Owens — Fri, 20 Feb 2026 20:41:08 +0000

The Film That Told Us the Good Guys Wore Leather Jackets and Typed Really Fast

Thirty years. Let that sink in for a moment.

It’s been three whole decades since Hackers burst onto our screens in a neon‑soaked blaze of rollerblades, attitude, and the kind of computer graphics that looked like someone fed a migraine into a PlayStation One. And yet — somehow — it still feels fresh, iconic, and weirdly prophetic.

Because Hackers wasn’t just a film. It was a vibe. A manifesto. A love letter to the misfits who saw the world differently.

And, most importantly, it was one of the first mainstream films to say something radical for its time:

The hackers are the good guys.

Not the villains. Not the shadowy figures in basements. Not the boogeymen of the nightly news.

But the heroes.

Back in 1995, the word “hacker” conjured images of trench‑coated cyber‑criminals breaking into NORAD to start World War III. The media loved a good panic, and computers were still mysterious enough that people believed anything. Then along came Hackers: a film that said:

“Actually, hackers are curious, creative, rebellious, and often the only ones standing between the world and the real villains.”

And it was right. The film understood something the world would only realise years later: hackers aren’t dangerous. ignorance is!

What made the Hackers crew heroic wasn’t their ability to type at 200 words per minute while wearing sunglasses indoors. It was their mindset. They questioned everything. They refused to accept the official story. They dug deeper. They saw patterns others missed. They believed information should be free, or at least not weaponised by corporate greed.

In other words, they were the digital descendants of every curious soul who ever took something apart just to see how it worked. And let’s be honest, who among us hasn’t felt that itch?

A Film That Accidentally Predicted the Future

Let’s give credit where it’s due. Hackers predicted:

hacktivism
digital whistleblowing
corporate cyber‑crime
online communities
the idea that young people with laptops could change the world

It even predicted the fashion comeback of oversized coats and combat boots, though I’m not sure that was intentional. Sure, the film thought the inside of a computer looked like a rave held inside a skyscraper made of circuit boards, but hell, that only adds to its charm.

You may ask “Why does it matter 30 Years later?”. Why? Because the message hasn’t aged a day.

We still need people who question. We still need people who explore. We still need people who refuse to accept “that’s just how it is.” We still need digital rebels with a conscience. And that’s what Hackers celebrated: the idea that knowledge is power, and curiosity is a virtue, not a crime. It told a generation of young tech‑minded misfits that they weren’t alone. That their skills mattered. That they could be the heroes of their own story. And for many, that was life‑changing.

So Here’s to 30 Years of Hackers

To the rollerblades. To the neon. To the soundtrack that still slaps. To the keyboards that clicked like machine guns. To the film that made hacking look like a cross between a nightclub and a spiritual awakening. But most of all:

Here’s to the idea that the ones who understand the system best are often the ones who protect it.

Hack the Planet, my friends. Thirty years on, the message still holds.

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Hackers – 40 Years on and still Relevant!

Wayne Pendragon Owens — Thu, 08 Jan 2026 10:37:29 +0000

The Hacker Manifesto

by
+++The Mentor+++
Written January 8, 1986

Another one got caught today, it’s all over the papers. “Teenager Arrested in Computer Crime Scandal”, “Hacker Arrested after Bank Tampering”…

Damn kids. They’re all alike.

But did you, in your three-piece psychology and 1950’s technobrain, ever take a look behind the eyes of the hacker? Did you ever wonder what made him tick, what forces shaped him, what may have molded him?

I am a hacker, enter my world…

Mine is a world that begins with school… I’m smarter than most of the other kids, this crap they teach us bores me…

Damn underachiever. They’re all alike.

I’m in junior high or high school. I’ve listened to teachers explain for the fifteenth time how to reduce a fraction. I understand it. “No, Ms. Smith, I didn’t show my work. I did it in my head…”

Damn kid. Probably copied it. They’re all alike.

I made a discovery today. I found a computer. Wait a second, this is cool. It does what I want it to. If it makes a mistake, it’s because I screwed it up. Not because it doesn’t like me… Or feels threatened by me.. Or thinks I’m a smart ass.. Or doesn’t like teaching and shouldn’t be here…

Damn kid. All he does is play games. They’re all alike.

And then it happened… a door opened to a world… rushing through the phone line like heroin through an addict’s veins, an electronic pulse is sent out, a refuge from the day-to-day incompetencies is sought… a board is found. “This is it… this is where I belong…” I know everyone here… even if I’ve never met them, never talked to them, may never hear from them again… I know you all…

Damn kid. Tying up the phone line again. They’re all alike…

You bet your ass we’re all alike… we’ve been spoon-fed baby food at school when we hungered for steak… the bits of meat that you did let slip through were pre-chewed and tasteless. We’ve been dominated by sadists, or ignored by the apathetic. The few that had something to teach found us willing pupils, but those few are like drops of water in the desert.

This is our world now… the world of the electron and the switch, the beauty of the baud. We make use of a service already existing without paying for what could be dirt-cheap if it wasn’t run by profiteering gluttons, and you call us criminals. We explore… and you call us criminals. We seek after knowledge… and you call us criminals. We exist without skin color, without nationality, without religious bias… and you call us criminals. You build atomic bombs, you wage wars, you murder, cheat, and lie to us and try to make us believe it’s for our own good, yet we’re the criminals.

Yes, I am a criminal. My crime is that of curiosity. My crime is that of judging people by what they say and think, not what they look like. My crime is that of outsmarting you, something that you will never forgive me for.

I am a hacker, and this is my manifesto. You may stop this individual, but you can’t stop us all… after all, we’re all alike.

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40 Years on and still Relevant!

Wayne Pendragon Owens — Thu, 08 Jan 2026 08:54:23 +0000

The Hacker Manifesto

by
+++The Mentor+++
Written January 8, 1986

Another one got caught today, it’s all over the papers. “Teenager Arrested in Computer Crime Scandal”, “Hacker Arrested after Bank Tampering”…

Damn kids. They’re all alike.

I am a hacker, enter my world…

Mine is a world that begins with school… I’m smarter than most of the other kids, this crap they teach us bores me…

Damn underachiever. They’re all alike.

Damn kid. Probably copied it. They’re all alike.

Damn kid. All he does is play games. They’re all alike.

Damn kid. Tying up the phone line again. They’re all alike…

I am a hacker, and this is my manifesto. You may stop this individual, but you can’t stop us all… after all, we’re all alike.

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Never send a boy to do a woman’s job

Wayne Pendragon Owens — Tue, 10 Oct 2023 09:47:46 +0000

Today is “Ada Lovelace Day“.

It is an international day of blogging (videologging, podcasting, comic drawing etc.!) to draw attention to the achievements of women in technology and science.

Women’s contributions often go unacknowledged, their innovations seldom mentioned, their faces rarely recognised. We want you to tell the world about these unsung heroines, whatever they do.

I decided to take part in helping to promote the achievements of women in fields they do not normally get the credit the deserve in. Deciding to take part was easy, its the actual doing something about it that’s hard. I have spent the last four hours trying to decide who to write about.

Its easy to say “I was not influenced or inspired by particular woman to the point I can post about it“, Yet the more I consider it, the more stupid that statement is. Part of my job entails writing Programs, Scripts, etc. And The first computer Programmer was a lady, and a Lady lady at that. Lady Ada Lovelace (Who today’s named after.)

So who to pick? I then considered maybe using a Character from TV/Film that’s a role model showing you can be cool, feminine, and geeky. Only I could not decide on one of them, either. I have decided to face the fact that I’m useless.

So Instead I will just Raise a pint, and tip my hat to a lost community. “Female Hackers”

Raven Alder, a network administrator at Maryland-based company Intermedia, was utterly boggled by an unexpected question at a hacker convention where she’d just presented a paper. “A reporter asked me how it felt to be the world’s first female hacker,” she recalled. “What the hell?” she spluttered in response. She knew of many other women hackers at the conference, and she was certainly not the first. But the reporter’s question revealed the dilemma facing most women hackers today.

EvilGrrl, a member of the notorious GhettoHackers crew (who won Capture the Flag three years running at Defcon), has noticed this “not existing” problem too. “At conferences, lots of people assume I’m somebody’s girlfriend,” she said, laughing. “I usually just reply that I’m a GhettoHacker and no, I’m not a girlfriend.”

So lets all the Men take a step back, and take today to acknowledge our Female counterparts.

Any in the North Wales area let me know, I’ll get you a pint (or drink of choice)

NOTE: The Title of the Post is a quote from the Character “Acid Burn” from the film Hackers. I’ve never really considered it before, But she really is a poor example of Women in Technology. Looking back on the film, she was the only female in the hacking community shown. I believe in the clips at the end, where the worlds hackers unite, there’s possibly a female hacker shown. Amongst the main group and extended community she is the only one, The other female characters are mothers, or Bimbos. So I appologise, its just that I like the Character, Like the Quote, and Like the Young Angelina Jolie.

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Hackers – 30 Years on and still Relevant!

Wayne Pendragon Owens — Fri, 08 Jan 2016 11:26:10 +0000

The Hacker Manifesto

by
+++The Mentor+++
Written January 8, 1986

Another one got caught today, it’s all over the papers. “Teenager Arrested in Computer Crime Scandal”, “Hacker Arrested after Bank Tampering”…

Damn kids. They’re all alike.

I am a hacker, enter my world…

Mine is a world that begins with school… I’m smarter than most of the other kids, this crap they teach us bores me…

Damn underachiever. They’re all alike.

Damn kid. Probably copied it. They’re all alike.

Damn kid. All he does is play games. They’re all alike.

Damn kid. Tying up the phone line again. They’re all alike…

I am a hacker, and this is my manifesto. You may stop this individual, but you can’t stop us all… after all, we’re all alike.

The post Hackers – 30 Years on and still Relevant! appeared first on Wayne Pendragon Owens.

30 Years on and still Relevant!

Wayne Pendragon Owens — Fri, 08 Jan 2016 09:23:42 +0000

The Hacker Manifesto

by
+++The Mentor+++
Written January 8, 1986

Another one got caught today, it’s all over the papers. “Teenager Arrested in Computer Crime Scandal”, “Hacker Arrested after Bank Tampering”…

Damn kids. They’re all alike.

I am a hacker, enter my world…

Mine is a world that begins with school… I’m smarter than most of the other kids, this crap they teach us bores me…

Damn underachiever. They’re all alike.

Damn kid. Probably copied it. They’re all alike.

Damn kid. All he does is play games. They’re all alike.

Damn kid. Tying up the phone line again. They’re all alike…

I am a hacker, and this is my manifesto. You may stop this individual, but you can’t stop us all… after all, we’re all alike.

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Inmates Assemble

Wayne Pendragon Owens — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 12:18:00 +0000

Last night some of the Inmates at the asylum staged an escape, we went over the tunnel and through the wire before making a mad run through torrential rain into England for FREEEEEEEDOM and the Avengers movie. The escapees consisted of, DemonPengu, YoYoMan, Myself and a Hobbit. Why “and a Hobbit?” well I think all good stories should begin with …. and a Hobbit.

Now there may or may not have been an incident with the cinemas WiFi connection, and very poor security *cough* (default password) *cough* But that’s a different story for another time. So Drinks, Popcorn, Chocolate & tickets were collected, and our team of escapees sat down ready to watch the film. And what a film!!!!

What can I say about this film?

Seriously! What can I say, This film is a sequel not only to IronMan I & II but also The Hulk, Thor & Captain America. We are talking five MASSIVE action films all with their own main character, and these five sequels combined into one uber-film. And this is not to mention the other Main (But no individual films yet) characters of Hawk-eye, Black Widow, & Nick Fury.

As you would expect of this film, the action, effects, and heroness* are out of this world (And not just because there was an Alien Army, and two demi-gods involved). All in all, it was everything you would expect in an Action Film!

What you may not expect, and I know I for one did not expect it as the pure comedy gold this film contains. Its rare to hear an entire audience pissing themselves laughing in an action film, and during this film, the audience laughed a LOT!. I have actually been to comedy films where the laughter was not as loud and honest as it was in this film.

So we have, Heroes, Villains, Action, Effects, Comedy, Fantasy Characters, Monsters, Space Army, Spy’s, Soldiers, Secret Organisations, Futuristic exo-armour, Gods, Heartbreak & romance. I was going to say all they were missing was a funny CGI/Animated talking pet until I remembered the Hulk. This film really does have everything!!!

Put simply. The four of us left the cinema after the film, stood outside and seriously considered going back in to see the next showing. And at least two of the Inmates did re-watch it the following night (i.e. tonight). I think that’s testament to its awesomeness all by itself.

*Its a real word. I made it up and decided it is real!

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News of the World Phone Hacking Scandal

Wayne Pendragon Owens — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 10:12:16 +0000

Unless you have been living in a small cave half way up an inhospitable mounting for the last month you would have heard of the News of the World (NotW) Phone Hacking Scandal. It’s especially bad if you live in the UK.

If you are that cave dwelling hermit let me say “How the frak are you reading this post? Did you follow the article on reading blogs on kindles? How have you got internet access? inquiring minds want to know!” *relax* I mean to say, that this scandal is about slime masquerading as reporters who accessed a vast (possible 4,000) number of people’s (Celebrity’s, Sports Stars, Politicians, Victims of Crime) answer phone messages. Now there was such an amount of this going on that the paper has closed down after 168 years in print.

I have no intention of writing about the incident itself, or any of the fallout, or anything directly in relation to this case. That has been covered in depth all over the Internet & Surviving media. What I would like to address is the term thrown about “Phone Hacking Scandal“. Why must everyone insist on calling it Hacking?

*NOTE: Phone Hacking is referred to as Phreaking

Nowhere in any of the reports is any activity mentioned that even faintly falls into the category of “Hacking” under any definition. Even if you take the original definition of Hacking, as in using some piece of technology or item in a way that was different to the intended use. Or knowing or wanting to learn about the inner working of different things, you still can not fit the term “Hacker” or “Hacking” to what the NotW reporters actually did.

What they did was to access peoples voicemail’s. Yes this is wrong, its an intrusion of privacy, it’s probably illegal as “unauthorised to personal communication” but it is not Hacking. They phoned up the voicemail number, and using the Victims phone number, and the generic default pin number accessed they voice mail system in the way it was intended to, in the way we all access it, they just did it without the Victims permission.

Surely it should be called “illegal phone tapping” or “illegal access to mail” or by whatever legal term it is for the crime they committed. The media like using the term Hacker to scare the public about these faceless super-criminals with secret abilities that let them to do almost anything. I think its time to stop the mass-hysteria and excessive incorrect use of this term.

We do not call someone who sticks a plaster on a small graze a Doctor, We do not call the small child playing with a plastic gun in the street a terrorist, and we should not call someone who phones up a publicised phone number and follows the instructions the recorded message tells them a Hacker.

Come on Media People, Your reputation is tarnished over this NotW incident, don’t make it worse by not doing your homework, and just falling into your old scaremongering ways.

A few words about the misappropriation of the term “Hacker“.

To quote Randal from Clerks. “I’m taking it back”

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Hackers – Subscribe to Blogs/News Sites on the Kindle for FREE

Wayne Pendragon Owens — Mon, 30 May 2011 12:56:08 +0000

Another example of how you can get more out of your devices with just a little bit of sideways thinking. (AKA Hacking)

I love nothing more than finding new ways to use Technology, Or Ways to use it in a different manner to that which it was intended. I also like finding legal ways of doing things for free, that would normally cost money.

So what was the first thing I did when I got our hands on one of Amazons Kindles? I decided it would be nice if we could read my favorite Blogs & News sites directly off the Kindle in weekly digests. Unfortunately Amazon charges for this service, Which is OK I guess since some of the money can go to the Bloggers who write the sites.

No I do not want to cost fellow Bloggers Money, BUT if you think about it, you can use the Kindle’s web browser to read free Blogs for Free, so If you could get it sent directly to your device for free, its only really saving you time.

So heres the procedure I followed to get Weekly Digests of my Favorite blogs sent directly to the Kindle. (NOTE: If you really enjoy someone’s Blog consider supporting it with some comments, or some other way to show your thanks)

1: Download & Install Calibre – EBook Manager (Free Software)

2: Click on “Fetch News” -> “Add Custom news source”

3: Give your list a title “Recipe Title“, Set “Oldest Article” to be “7 Days”. Then using the “Feed Title” “Feed URL” box’s at the bottom keep “Add Feed” until you have all your Blogs added.

4: Hit “Add/Update Recipe” to save your list.

Your custom feed list is now saved, You just need to assign a time to auto download it to Calibre (You need to leave the software running on your Computer for the auto download to work)

5: Hit “Fetch News” and look in the “Custom” header in the list.

6: Pick “Days of Week” and a Day to suit yourself, then pick a Download Time, Make sure “Schedule for Download” is checked, and hist Save.

Thats all you need to do to get Calibre to download a “book” made up of your favorite blogs/news feeds. You may want to have a look at the other newsfeeds Calibre has listed as standard.

Now there is just one small thing left to do to get your downloads sent directly to your Kindle (Providing you have WiFi or 3g Turned on)

7: “Preferences” -> “Sharing Books by Email” Make sure you add your free kindle email address there *****@free.kindle.com. and Make sure “Auto Send” is checked.

8: “Preferences” -> “Behavior” Make sure “Automatically send Downloaded news to ebook reader” is checked.

Now when Calibre downloads your custom newsfeed, it will auto convert them into an epub format and email them directly to your Kindle. So they popup ready for you to read.

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Subscribe to Blogs/News Sites on the Kindle for FREE

Wayne Pendragon Owens — Mon, 30 May 2011 12:56:06 +0000