126 DEAR HACKER
126 DEAR HACKER
We consider that an example of fair use and we’ve never tried to deny anyone the right to use our stuff. At the same time, when studios sue us and then ask to use our stuff in one of their films, it gets a little annoying.
Dear 2600: Is there any reason why it’s Fall of year 0 on page 33 of issue 17:3 but
not on any of the other pages? How come this page gets to be special and display “Fall 0” while the rest show “Fall 2000”? Is page 33 an outcast or just being defiant?
Anyway, do you use automatically generated footers on each page like MS Word creates or do you type each footer by hand? Just wondering. Well, it’s an awesome mag so however you’re creating your footers, keep up the good work.
Paper
Like we’ve said—repeatedly—we’ve been working on getting the Y2K kinks out of our systems. We’re making available substitute footers for page 33 that can be pasted over the noncompliant ones until we complete repairs. Watch for details.
Dear 2600: Our systems were hacked today by www.2600.com , or so the email
said. I got an email with the subject “US PRESIDENT AND FBI SECRETS” and an attachment. As soon as I clicked on the attach- ment, my Outlook went on a rampage, emailing everyone in my email system with this attachment, and some with jibberish words. I have to say, it made me laugh but then about two hours later, it wasn’t as funny because I couldn’t get any work done. All in all, you guys are funny, but at the same time you suck.
Agentskye101
It’s truly stunning how many people believe that just because somebody put our web address in an email that we have anything to do with it. We’ve gotten all kinds
THE CHALLENGES OF LIFE AS A HACKER
of threats because of this and we’ll continue to ignore each and every one of them. In the meantime, we suggest you stop using programs like Microsoft’s Outlook as that seems to be the common factor in all of the problems people have been experiencing.
Dear 2600:
I have an interesting story that everyone who enjoys privacy should read. I am a student at Northeastern University in Boston. Today
I was visited by two policemen who wanted to talk to me about the content of websites that I was viewing. They claimed that certain materials and or sites are flagged and that they know every website I have been to. When I asked what specific sites were “flagged” they said
I was being “evasive.” When I asked if they will keep harassing me if I kept going to these sites they said “maybe.” I still have yet to know the URL of a single “flagged site.” I am wondering if this is true or not.
I hate to think that my college tuition and money paid for Internet service is used to pay some person to spy on us. What should I do?
Nate The first thing to do is find out just who these clowns are who visited you. What
kind of “police” were they? Campus, city, state, federal? Or were they even cops at all? Once you have that established, demand to know what specifically they want and don’t be afraid to raise a stink about this. Being a college student, you also have the advantage of possibly being around people who still believe in free- dom of speech. Use that idealism to the fullest and don’t be afraid to get others involved. Be prepared for any site that you may have visited to be made public— they may also try to make stuff up which is why keeping logs is a good idea. This kind of thing happens far too often and it’s only by loudly challenging these people that anything will change.