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Summary: Definitely a must-read for anyone in computer security!!!
Review: Well written, well laid out, and by far, a definite read for anyone persuing computer security work. Stoll's book completely changed my pattern of thought regarding computer security. What is most frightening about this book is the "what if" factor. What if he never noticed what was going on...?
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Summary: Holds up on a second read!
Review: I was pleased to see this book is still in print. Having read it when it first came out, I recalled that it was not only entertaining, but also it served as a delightful intro to the world of Unix administration. Years later I'm reading it for a second time with the thought of assigning this to high school technology students. It's a fast read, gripping and well paced. It's on my reading list for the fall. The kids will love it.
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Summary: Awesome Very Well written!
Review: This book is very well written. This cliff guy is very interesting himself. One of those looney, geek characters. The story itself is well structured. I didnt lose interest at any point. The book also has references to Robert Morris (both Jr and Sr) which i found quite interesting. Unlike Shimomura's Takedown, the author comes across as a nice down to earth guy, downplaying his technical ability and is really funny at times (like trying to microwave his sneakers against his girlfriends advice!) I have read this book three times and I never got bored at any time. This is the ultimate craker story (and true to boot).
I will go back to this book any day. santy
Rating:
Summary: great book
Review: I first read this book several years ago (before the internet was even a word) and fell in love with it. I recently re-read the book and thought it was just as good today as it was then. In fact, I think it is even more relevant today because now everyone owns a computer that can be hacked into, not just universities and governments. It was a well-written, fast paced detective novel that happens to be true. I especially loved the fact that the FBI thought hacking wasn't a crime for several years. Everyone who owns a computer should read this book. Everyone who likes detective stories should read this book.
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Summary: College Review: SWEET!
Review: I actually was required to read this book in a 400 level MIS class, and it is the first and only required computer novel that I didn't fall asleep to. I got so into this book, that every time Cliff's beeper goes of, signaling that the hacker has signed on, even i get an adrenalin rush as he runs down the hall to his terminal to get the live action. i couldn't put it down, i even recommend it to my mom, who is semi-computer literate, but loves the idea of the movie "hackers" lol. ENJOY!
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Summary: Reads Like a Spy Novel
Review: This book seemed to be a wake-up call to the Unix community when it was written. Unix the university friendly system was made for sharing of information and was built virtually without security. In this true tale, Cliff Stohl a University Professor happens upon a hacker in his system by pure chance (by investigating a bill that was off by a few cents). Rather than shut the hacker down Cliff decided to monitor everything the hacker does. What occurs becomes a game of cat and mouse with Stohl being sucked into the computer security field where he sets up a false environment to lure his hacker and then monitors his goings-on. Cliff was a real "Californian" that liked to bicycle to work. He would be doing things like riding a bike when his alarm would go off signaling the hacker was on his system. Cliff would then rush to his office to see what the hacker was doing. Some of the techniques employed involve one of the earliest versions of a "password cracker." Cliff goes from one police agency to another (from the FBI to the NSA), with evidence of the various computers the hacker is going into. Each one tells him it is great what he is doing but they have no jurisdiction to do anything. It is a wonder that the hacker is ever caught in the end. A little outdated by today's standards but still a very entertaining read!
Rating: 
Summary: Cuckoo's Egg-cellent
Review: Truth is often stranger than fiction, though it isn't always as interesting. THE CUCKOO'S EGG is the exception, giving us a tale just as exciting as any best-selling, fictional thriller and yet is entirely factual. Who would have guessed that such an exhilarating adventure could be totally enclosed in the not-entirely-sexy world of computer networks and security? THE CUCKOO'S EGG is a fascinating story that began with a minor discrepancy on a small computer network in Berkeley and ended in an international sting operation. Cliff Stoll was the astronomer-turned-programmer who was on the trail of the mysterious hacker, and he tells the story quite well. This is a suspense filled tale of tracking this burglar to his lair, of frustrating red herrings and of maddening bureaucracy that stands in the scientist's way. There are one or two places that don't flow quite as smoothly as they would have had the author been a professional writer and not an astronomer/computer-engineer. He also tends to be a bit repetitive in his discussions and his repeating of his philosophies. But, as I mentioned, this is from a scientist, not an English major, and his style does have a charm of its own. It helps the story feel more like something that's happening to just an average kind of guy, which is a great aid to heightening tension, and also helps carry the computer-illiterate reader. Despite having to convey some relatively difficult concepts, Stoll does an excellent job at explaining networks, operating systems, programming logic and other computer activities with a minimum of confusion. And while the average reader is gaining insight into the world of computer, the advanced, 21st Century computer operator may find something to feel nostalgic about in this story of late-80's computer networks. I can easily recommend this book to anyone regardless of his or her prior knowledge of computers. While on the surface this is a story about breaking into electronic equipment, the appealing aspects of the story lie in the mystery itself, not necessarily in the tools of the trade. What this all boils down to is a good old-fashioned game of cops-and-robbers, when computer networks and Internet security were still only in their infancy.
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Summary: Nice book for really speaking hacking
Review: This is a right book to know about what a hacker really is and forget about the stuff they show us in the movies.
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Summary: Appropriately named
Review: I saw the TV program on this story before reading the book. Coming from a UNIX background it was fun to see a system I recognized. It could have been titled "The story of Ping" oops that title has been taken. I remember being billed for time on the computer and could only gain access at 2 AM. Many of these skills are now lost to people that do not have a shell account. I especially like how they kept the intruder on the line ling enough to track. The hunt was intriguing and it makes you wonder what is happening today. While this book deals with such things as passwords, the many new avenues created on today's Internet may afford for a newer mystery. Until then this is the classic.
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Summary: Reads like a spy novel, but all true!
Review: This really is the forerunner of all the computer espionage books and is absolutely great. For those of us who were power users & sys admins at the time, we vividly remember the mistakes he recounts in light of our naivete. It's a quick read ...
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