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thisisstephenbetts's review
3.0
I often find that I don't enjoy Top Shelf books as much as I would like to, so I'm pleased to find this book is very enjoyable. It's a fictionalised story of one of the early hackers, who mostly scammed large telecom companies.
The book wasn't perfect. The story is told in tiny little chapters, which didn't really work for me. Perhaps because of that, it skates over much of the detail of the hacks, which is a little unsatisfactory. I think a little more explanation of the details, and a little more delving into the psyche of the hacker, would have made the book a lot more compelling.
I also had no idea of how much of the story was true, or even vaguely realistic. Once I had finished the book, I found that it was based on the lives of 2 or 3 real-life hackers. I think it would have been better to put in a bit of this background, maybe just as an appendix at the back. Finally, the ending seemed a little overly dramatic too. Overall, though, this is a good comic - interesting story, nicely told.
The book wasn't perfect. The story is told in tiny little chapters, which didn't really work for me. Perhaps because of that, it skates over much of the detail of the hacks, which is a little unsatisfactory. I think a little more explanation of the details, and a little more delving into the psyche of the hacker, would have made the book a lot more compelling.
I also had no idea of how much of the story was true, or even vaguely realistic. Once I had finished the book, I found that it was based on the lives of 2 or 3 real-life hackers. I think it would have been better to put in a bit of this background, maybe just as an appendix at the back. Finally, the ending seemed a little overly dramatic too. Overall, though, this is a good comic - interesting story, nicely told.
richbarrett's review against another edition
4.0
A fictionalization of the early days of hackers such as Kevin Mitnick and Kevin Poulsen done in a great looking underground comix style. This first volume dramatizes stuff like Blue Boxes, the 2600 phone frequency and "social engineering." Really interesting stuff especially when you read the footnotes.
karliclover's review
3.0
This book was...a lot different than I thought it was going to be. I'm not sure how I feel about it. It had some interesting moments, but I don't feel like it really said much of anything. Also, a lot of slurs are used.
exile's review
5.0
"Free Kevin" was one of the seminal moments of the computer security history which exposed the flaws in the legal system's understanding of technology and its interaction with undesired behavior. The laws being written, the damages being claimed, and the insecure proprietary systems which haven't been fixed in the decades of Kevin's story are all still there. Cyber warfare and cyber security are in the news today, and computers are everywhere, but the infrastructure is still as flawed as it was when the Morris worm ploughed through the nascent internet.
Kevin, Weev, Aaron Swartz, Chelsea Manning, Edward Snowden. Their names are added to a long list of martyrs in the internet age. and this book chronicles one in the brightest light possible.
Kevin, Weev, Aaron Swartz, Chelsea Manning, Edward Snowden. Their names are added to a long list of martyrs in the internet age. and this book chronicles one in the brightest light possible.
the_yellow_dart's review
4.0
Wizzywig: Portrait of a Serial Hacker
by Ed Piskor
10 Words: One mans entertainment is crossing lines that aren't exactly illegal...
Wizzywig is a Graphic Novel that follows the life of Keven Phenicle, a really smart kid that goes from hacking phones to phone companies and computers. Keven is a smart kid who likes to sort out puzzles, this leads to him learning to look at the world in a way that everything is a type of puzzle, and he has the idea that if the actions you are taking benefit more people than it harms that its not bad. This way of seeing the world leads to him selling bootlegged computer games (which accidentally infects computers with a virus he didn't intend to create) and hacking the phone company so that there clocks are inverse (and saving people money for calling during peak hours). He exists at a time where his actions with computers and phones are unexpected, new and no one has a way of defending or expecting the actions he takes. He's not doing anything that is really illegal because no one knows what he is doing... or how.
This means that the law is not ready for him when he does get caught, and he gets trapped behind everyones angar and expatiations of repayment. He also gets stuck not being able to find a place in the world that will take advantage of the way he thinks or his abilities.
Was (is ) Keven a real person? Thats what this book had me thinking the whole time I read it. I think (from reading the afterword) that the events and actions he took are based on the feats of a bunch of different hackers combined into one fictional man. Though in a way it feels like they all fit, like the story is very much possible... though I am not impressed with the idea a man could be locked up in prison for 5 years without his trial... thats scary to me.
This is an interesting story and a well made graphic novel. If you like graphic novels its definitely a good one to read, especially since this book can currently (June 3 and the next 8 days) be bought in the Pay as You Want section of the current Humble eBook Bundle. If you like reading e-books I suggest you check it out, its a great way of getting books.
by Ed Piskor
10 Words: One mans entertainment is crossing lines that aren't exactly illegal...
Wizzywig is a Graphic Novel that follows the life of Keven Phenicle, a really smart kid that goes from hacking phones to phone companies and computers. Keven is a smart kid who likes to sort out puzzles, this leads to him learning to look at the world in a way that everything is a type of puzzle, and he has the idea that if the actions you are taking benefit more people than it harms that its not bad. This way of seeing the world leads to him selling bootlegged computer games (which accidentally infects computers with a virus he didn't intend to create) and hacking the phone company so that there clocks are inverse (and saving people money for calling during peak hours). He exists at a time where his actions with computers and phones are unexpected, new and no one has a way of defending or expecting the actions he takes. He's not doing anything that is really illegal because no one knows what he is doing... or how.
This means that the law is not ready for him when he does get caught, and he gets trapped behind everyones angar and expatiations of repayment. He also gets stuck not being able to find a place in the world that will take advantage of the way he thinks or his abilities.
Was (is ) Keven a real person? Thats what this book had me thinking the whole time I read it. I think (from reading the afterword) that the events and actions he took are based on the feats of a bunch of different hackers combined into one fictional man. Though in a way it feels like they all fit, like the story is very much possible... though I am not impressed with the idea a man could be locked up in prison for 5 years without his trial... thats scary to me.
This is an interesting story and a well made graphic novel. If you like graphic novels its definitely a good one to read, especially since this book can currently (June 3 and the next 8 days) be bought in the Pay as You Want section of the current Humble eBook Bundle. If you like reading e-books I suggest you check it out, its a great way of getting books.
bengriffin's review
5.0
I love the presentation of the book, I love Piskor's style and how much energy and expression he gets into each panel, and I love the unusual choice of subject matter and how compelling the story is despite lacking particularly likeable characters. I would probably prefer it if it was done more in a documentary style, a la Hip Hop Family Tree, rather than a fictionalised mash-up of different people, but it was still fascinating, and I look forward to further representations of any other sub-cultures and scenes he sets his pen to.
saidtheraina's review
4.0
Presents a composite character who fictionally pulled off the most innovative hacking of his age. Walks us through early phone-system hacking methodologies, as well as early Bulletin Board System legends.
Which is all very interesting, but to me, what stands out about this book is the HOW, more than the WHAT.
The Outside: The cover is fully saturated color, mimicking an old-fashioned computer on the front and a computer manual on the spine. I'm sure if I was more versed in computers, I'd tell you the exact make/model and manual.
The Inside: Piskor presents this story in short (like, one page, front and back), black and white, snippets, varying the perspective and presentation a lot. Most pages have six, regularly sized, panels. There are sections from the perspectives of:
- childhood classmates
- a fairly omniscient narrator
- a radio dj on his show (who happens to be a friend of the main character)
- his grandmother
- television news
- random people on the street
What comes through is a curious, intelligent person who's fairly unaligned, morally. From the very beginning, Piskor foreshadows how far this story is going to go, so there is a sense of suspense as we see the character's early years. Through his story, we are forced to reflect upon what we think about stretching the boundaries of technology, "victimless" crimes, online culture, the nature of fugitives, prison politics, and more. Piskor's style is accessible, but not necessarily sympathetic to the characters. The main character (and ONLY the main character, if memory serves) has [b:Little Orphan Annie|547430|Little Orphan Annie 1935|Harold Gray|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1175704468s/547430.jpg|534694] eyes, which adds a shade of everyman-ness to the way the reader perceives him.
This is a book which surprised me. It is far more than one expects. Highly recommended to anyone even vaguely interested.
Which is all very interesting, but to me, what stands out about this book is the HOW, more than the WHAT.
The Outside: The cover is fully saturated color, mimicking an old-fashioned computer on the front and a computer manual on the spine. I'm sure if I was more versed in computers, I'd tell you the exact make/model and manual.
The Inside: Piskor presents this story in short (like, one page, front and back), black and white, snippets, varying the perspective and presentation a lot. Most pages have six, regularly sized, panels. There are sections from the perspectives of:
- childhood classmates
- a fairly omniscient narrator
- a radio dj on his show (who happens to be a friend of the main character)
- his grandmother
- television news
- random people on the street
What comes through is a curious, intelligent person who's fairly unaligned, morally. From the very beginning, Piskor foreshadows how far this story is going to go, so there is a sense of suspense as we see the character's early years. Through his story, we are forced to reflect upon what we think about stretching the boundaries of technology, "victimless" crimes, online culture, the nature of fugitives, prison politics, and more. Piskor's style is accessible, but not necessarily sympathetic to the characters. The main character (and ONLY the main character, if memory serves) has [b:Little Orphan Annie|547430|Little Orphan Annie 1935|Harold Gray|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1175704468s/547430.jpg|534694] eyes, which adds a shade of everyman-ness to the way the reader perceives him.
This is a book which surprised me. It is far more than one expects. Highly recommended to anyone even vaguely interested.