Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin
Joseph Menn on the Cult of the Dead Cow (decipher.sc)
42 points by whiteyford on June 4, 2019 | hide | past | favorite | 15 comments


Space Rogue also posted a book review. https://www.spacerogue.net/wordpress/?p=723 TL;DR "Great story, but not a history book."


Beto O'Rourke was in the Cult of the Dead Cow! This is the biggest reveal in the history of HN, or SlashDot, or maybe since Phrack.


I agree, it is very interesting. Here's a longer article about it from a couple months back.

https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-poli...


That was already revealed several months ago


   _   _
  ((___))
  [ x x ]
   \   /
   (' ')
    (U)


Argh, I hate to be "that guy" but when there's such an obvious typo in the first paragraph it really cheapens the appeal of reading the rest of the text.

If they haven't even proof-read the thing before publishing then I'm going to (likely incorrectly) assume that attention to detail has been overlooked in other areas too.


Founders at Work, the book, is a horrible example of that: it starts with the plainly false assertion that a sprinter is fastest leaving the blocks.

I sighed in frustration that I'd wasted money on it, then couldn't read further, too skeptical of the quality of what would follow.


The book is just a bunch of interviews with founders. The vast majority of content is not from the author - so perhaps it’s worth another look.


Its an audio transcript of the interview. You can listen to it on the podcast which is probably better (but it seems I cant - hn hug of death maybe)


I understand your position, but I think 'L0pht' is how they actually spelt it, instead of 'Lopht'. </s?>


This is correct.


> mebers


Are you reading the text for its grammar & spelling? Just read around it, it's an interesting read!


It's not that simple. My own personal history has shown me time and again that sloppy writing is usually unintelligent writing. The odd typo is worth overlooking, but poor grammar and spelling are reliable red flags.

In this case, it's a transcript, so the typo is a red herring. I didn't know it was a transcript when I started reading, though. Like the parent commenter, I stopped reading there.

When I've just opened a bunch of tabs off the HN front page, everything's got a paragraph to catch my interest before I move on.


It's mostly an ad for his book, and all his former books. He doesn't give away any story or chapter, just some already known names. Not very interesting at all. Beto's story from a few months ago was much more interesting.




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: