Rating: 
Summary: Is she really serious? God we hope not.
Review: After finally bringing myself to read this garbage, I can't believe someone would pay $30 for this book. Your money would be better spent buying the Garfinkel/Spafford UNIX Security book from O'Reilly or Maximum Security even with all it's flaws. We're all praying Carolyn get's a clue sometime in the near future, but don't support her by wasting your money on this book. Real hacking is the intimate knowledge of technology and how to understand and manipulate it. All you'll get from this box is how to change your Win95 background.
Rating: 
Summary: The Best Hacker Book Around
Review: Others say it's to easy, but that's because they don't know what a hacker is. They want to break the law, and end up in jail, but this book is great for those "white hat" hackers, the ones who want to go out there and stop Spam, and keep the malacious ones from destroying the internet.
Rating:
Summary: This book disgraces the trees used for it's paper.
Review: I've never read something that was such a blatant attempt to capitalize off of an esoteric topic. Under the guise of a "hacker manual", this book will teach you nothing; except that your money would have been better thrown in the street. Don't support egotistical crackfiends."Rt66 vice president Mark Schmitz took the initiative to donate equipment, the use of a T1, and the expertise of Rt66's computer security gurus." -- Security gurus that do not understand the value of backups.
Rating: 
Summary: Just the begining
Review: After having read this book from cover to cover I can honestlysay that I didn't learn anything from it that I didn't know before.Also all the information in this book, about, what she calls, "hacking" is extremly vague as to how it might be applied to serious hacking, and is pretty useless except for those barebone begininers out there. In my personal opinion save your self some money, you can read it on-line or save the files and print them out. I guarentee that it'll be cheaper than then the $30 they want from you here. (Buy a real book Internet Besieged)
Rating:
Summary: A waste of time, money and paper
Review: The book is a waste of time to read to even brouse though andhas nothing to do with Hacking or any related art. The Author appearsto have no concept of computer science or a basic understanding of security in todays world. One chapter talks to turning you windows 95 system into a hacker box, but all the chapter talked about was applying stickers to your notbook computer and changing the background image to look more Gen-X. This book is content free and has nothing to do with computer security or the any of its related fields.
Rating:
Summary: "The Inept Paranoiac" might be a better title.
Review: I did manage to finish the entire book, but only because it's such a good example of what technical writing should never be. Meinel's prose is abysmal; sentence fragments, logical inconsistencies, and typos (an average of one per page) abound. The content is even worse, if such a thing is possible: she never defines "hacking," but prefers instead to use the term to describe anything from a passing familiarity with graphics to using "finger" on an email account. Fully half the book is devoted to either a great deal of trivial information regarding Windows 95 graphics or paranoid and immature rantings about "elite super-duper hackers" (p. 15) who she feels despise her. The latter makes Meinel appear painfully immature and insecure; it's difficult to take anything she says seriously after reading statements such as "This newbie note is my flame against those flamers to whom I am sooooo superior" (p. 67). The remainder appears to be aimed at inept--or perhaps retarded--thirteen- year-olds, as chapter sections like "How to Break into Absolutely any School Computer" indicate. Overall, reading "The Happy Hacker" is genuinely painful for anyone with the vaguest familiarity with either hackers or the English language. A guide to hacking for newbies would be a wonderful thing indeed, but this book ain't it. Avoid at all costs, unless you're a consummate masochist.
Rating:
Summary: Great for AOL warriors - lame for anyone else....
Review: As someone who unwhittingling contributed to this book, let me be the first to say it's a hoax. Meinel is doing nothing other then plagerising other peoples hard work and misfortunes for her own benifits. Although newbies to the Internet who have just watched the movie "Hackers" might think it's the best book sence the Bible. If anything it would be a book just to say you own and to talk to others about, but as far as any real usefull information you can really use? Not going to find it here. This book is filled with a few neet tips and tricks for windows95 but nothing of any real value. It said you will be an expert in securing your systems and other things after reading this book? It's a book of stories of other peoples adventures and risks, and some smoke and mirrors. Nothing about network security, in laymans terms, like promised. If you did figure out how to do anything, and did become a hacker, then watch out because she will just narc you off to the FBI so she can write another book about how some kid who read her book went bad and got busted (belive me I know)...It's not worth the money. Get a real book on Unix or Windows 95 and save some time and money.
Rating:
Summary: I laughed, I cried, I blew milk from my nose with amazement
Review: You called it guys. I'm writing a hacking book of my own and this is one of the best. From someone whom has followed the hardcore book industry for a while, this delightful, humor filled romp through hackerdom is among the best...
Rating: 
Summary: Wow! People reviewing my book before they have even read it!
Review: The Happy Hacker book has only just arrived from theprinter. As of today (4/13/98) the folks who have"reviewed" it on this Web site haven't read it yet. Hmmm... Why buy the Happy Hacker book? In case you aren't just totally awed by it being written by yours truly, Carolyn Meinel (shock, shock!), here are some other reasons to get it. The Happy Hacker book is much more than just reprints of my Guides to (mostly) Harmless Hacking that you can find on countless hacker Web pages. They have been expanded, improved, and totally new material added. This book was made possible in part by the work of the hundreds of hackers who have contributed their knowledge to the Happy Hacker email list. Special thanks go to the technical editors of this book: John D. Robinson, Roger A. Prata, Daniel Gilkerson, Damian Bates, and Mark Schmitz. They worked long hours to make sure the Happy Hacker book would be both easy to understand and accurate. We also thank Mark Ludwig, who owns this book's publisher, American Eagle. Ludwig distinguished himself by being courageous enough to put out a book that editors at three major publishers had at one time begged me to give to them. But in each case upper management had a fainting spell. A hacker how-to book? Eek! We also have relied on those who have volunteered their services to keep us on the Internet, despite incessant attacks by those computer criminals who don't want you to learn what is in this book. Our knights in shining armor have included Tobin Fricke, Patrick Rutledge, Carl Muhlenweg, and Gerard Cochrane, Jr. Most importantly, we owe thanks to the staff of Rt66 Internet, the largest and oldest Internet service provider in New Mexico. It is not only hosting our Web site, but also working around the clock keeping our Hacker Wargame running. In particular, Rt66 vice president Mark Schmitz took the initiative to donate equipment, the use of a T1, and the expertise of Rt66's computer security gurus. In fact, Schmitz personally built the Happy Hacker Web server and built and designed its custom firewall. Despite our logs showing attacks from thousands of hackers, not one has managed to break into it yet. (Of course, there is no such thing as perfect security, so we won't be shocked if someone does eventually get in.) What are people saying about the Happy Hacker book? "Carolyn has a delightful wit and engaging style... We even picked up a few hints to help us secure our systems." -- Mark Schmitz, Vice President, Rt66 Internet. "We should be thankful that Carolyn has a good heart, or we'd be in a lot more trouble than we are." -- Larry Lasker, writer, producer of the movies Sneakers and War Games. "Now you can join the ranks of hackerdom and learn how to use your computer the way it was meant to be used! Do things you never dreamed possible with the Internet ... break into computers ... track down bad guys ... and have a fun time without getting into trouble with the law. Pull up your chair, turn on your computer, and crack this book!" -- Mark Ludwig, PhD., author of "The Little Black Book of Computer Viruses." "This book will show you how to become a super hacker, yet not have the FBI or the Secret Service knocking on your door. But your neighbors sure will!" -- Ian A. Murphy (Captain Zap), first person ever arrested for computer hacking, now President, IAM Secure Data Systems, Inc.
Rating:
Summary: I love this book....but don't go too far...
Review: This book I would say is the most comprehensive and friendly guide to computer hacking. I wouldn't recommend people who are too curious or immatured to read this because that would only make Earth a more chaos place. The only thing I can say after all, all those compliments that I have in mind, is this book is worth reading.
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