Rating: 
Summary: Amazing
Review: Truly one of the most addictive books ever for anyone interested in computers or network security. I couldn't put it down until I was finished. I highly recommend it!
Rating:
Summary: FANTASTIC BOOK!
Review: Cliff's unpretentious writing style, and the way he unveils the story keeping you interested is just awesome. I bought this book while flying from Columbia, SC to Oklahoma City, OK and couldn't stop reading the whole trip and while waiting for the connections. When I saw the book at the store I thought that this was just another cheesy computer storytelling book like Takedown.How mistaken was I! The minute I started reading the book Cliff got me interested in the drama. I am not versed in UNIX or a computer wizard but the way everything was explained--To the point and in plain English--made it easy to understand the whole affair. Regarding the above, I have not seen such a proper command of the English language! Cliff writes concisely yet elegantly and respects the reader by avoiding unnecessary detail and repetition. Cliff doesn't leave anything unexplained and closes the story superbly... Thanks for a good book Cliff... You made my flight very pleasant.
Rating:
Summary: Almost took a day off work...I couldn t put it down
Review: I am known for droping a book after a few pages if it doesn t hook me right away. No risk with this one. The best thing about it is that it s a true story. A must read for anybody who uses a computer.
Rating:
Summary: Ahhhh....Nothing Like a Good Computer Book....
Review: I will start by comparing The Cuckoo's Egg to a somewhat popular underground book, the Anarchist's CookBook. They both provide easily follow-able instructions on how to do illegal things. Stoll, the author, states this in the beginning, and in a very, very intelligent manner. Telling precisely how Hunter (the main hacker in this book...a very real and existant one, also) managed to gain access into the Berkeley computer labs, as well as many government/military computer labs is almost like putting a map in front of someone and saying "you can hack too, by following these instructions!" To many people, this book would just be a felony waiting to happen (however, I'm not how accurate I am in saying that so many years have passed that there has been some sort of patching of the multiple security holes exploited by Hunter...as I'm sure there are ones of the like that are existant). The information in this book also arms you with the knowledge to understand exactly WHY and HOW a hacker would get into your system. As well as what to watch out for. I'm pretty much too young to recall any of this story in the news, but I'm sure that it was one hell of a news story when it broke into the public. There is an edgey feel to this book that I couldn't find in any other book on computer security. Hackers are somewhat (okay, very well!) portrayed in this book...however, I'm not too keen on the idea of hackers working for cocaine and money...I'm sure this strained USSR-USA relations after the story broke. Stoll, however, does an excellent job in maintaining a personal, and informative, narrative of the happenings when there was a seventy five cent computing error at Berkeley that resulted in the uncovering of a whole international crime ring.
Rating:
Summary: A mystery in a high-tech novel. Well writen.
Review: I normaly think 5 star ratings are abused on Amazon. Not in this case. A well writen, to the point novel by Clifford Stoll, The Cookoo's Egg is something I couldn't put down untill I finished. The basic idea is a scientist turn system administrator (without skills) tracks a hacker through a maze of systems. Basicly, I found it to be as interesting as a murder mystery, as fun as a sci-fi, as humorous as a comedy, and a whole bunch more. A must own. Unix/Linux users might find some interesting points in this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Fascinating book for people interested in computer networks
Review: This is an exciting and gripping story of a system administrator's life. One day, he discovers a hacker who is constantly breaking in into computer systems. When he begins to chase the hacker, he eventually finds out that it's not just some youth having fun reading other people's files. And you are going to hold your breath while following the administrator's every move. The book's well written and funny. Its philosophy is somewhat anarchist, as is usual for computer freaks, and pretty ironical towards the US government institutions. I'm glad to say that the hero, looking like just another leftist jerk in the beginning, goes through a significant attitude change when he realizes that there are countries much more evil than the United States of America.
Rating: 
Summary: cuckoo's egg
Review: I am trying to find some answers for the following questions. Before I review I just want to clear up the answers of the following questions. 1) What are the most important events in the book? 2) How does the book end? 3)Who solved the mystery? 4)What interesting things about network security would I find in this book? 5)Beside Cliff Stoll who are the important characters in the book? 6)What is the main organizations in the book? 7)What would have to be done differently to mitigate the risk of the security events that occurred in the book?
Rating:
Summary: A spy story set in the time of early Internet
Review: During his first week as a system administrator at Lawrence Berkeley Laboratories, Cliff Stoll noticed a mismatch of $0.75 in the total sum produced by two different programs used for system accounting. Within a day or two, he discovered that the system he is in charge of has been broken into. Most people would at that point shut the security hole, thus perhaps throwing away excellent material for a book. Dr. Stoll instead decided to track down the intruder, a quest that occupied most of his time for several months. His chase brought him in contact with several three-letter agencies, as well as celebrities Luis Alvarez and Bob Morris Sr. Dr. Stall put considerable efforts to make descriptions of technical details as non-technical as possible. Still, enough details are preserved to bring fond memories to all those still remembering the BSD and System V Unices, VMS and early Internet. More amazing for me, however, was his deep and profound trust in the government agencies. In short, all of them wanted him to continue the chase while refused to help him in any way; requested information from him and at the same time giving no valuable information in return. As a topping, after Markus Hess -- the cracker Stoll has been chasing for month -- was arrested, FBI refused to release any information to Dr. Stoll and requested him to keep quiet, while at the same time leaked the story to a German magazine. Still, the whole episode seem to strengthen his belief in the government agencies, even more so when he discovers that the intruder is from abroad. Now if this is not patriotism, I do not know what it is. All in all, the book reads as a very readable spy chase -- and a true one. Dr. Stoll writes well enough to succesfully convince even a non-American reader that he was doing the right thing and Hess was not. Well, almost.
Rating:
Summary: Riveting, Relevant Now, Deep Insights
Review: This is an absolutely riveting story of how a brilliant physicist, assigned as an initiation rite to track down the reason for a 75 cent error in the computer accounts of the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, ultimately identified and nailed an East German electronic espionage specialist. In passing, he outlines with great preciseness the insecurity of the entire U.S. government, military, law enforcement, business, and academic electronic communications and computing network, and reveals the total fragmentation as well as the general ignorance of almost all of the US and international organizations associated with these networks.
Rating:
Summary: mostly interesting
Review: when i started reading this book i couldn't put it down. for the first half it was fast paced, and then it slowed down to a trickle. for the most part stoll provides an accurate portrayal of his attempt at tracking "the hacker", and is consistent in writing style, although unsophisticated. he shines in writing about student life, dealing with fbi, cia, and other organizations, and trying to explain the intricacies of unix in layman terms. he fails in moving the story forward to keep up with the pace he set initially. overall an impressionable first effort.
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