From: paalde@stud.cs.uit.no (The Last Viking)
Subject: The Cracker...
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 1994 11:57:52 GMT
Email: paalde@stud.cs.uit.no

--

Written by Paal D. Ekran, Tromsoe 10. April 1993.

The events and characters described in this story are fictitious. Any
similarity to actual events or persons, living or dead, is unintentional
and purely coincidental.

this one is for the time that once could be...

--

                            THE CRACKER, v 1.01.

There was a tight smell in the room, as if the window never had been opened.
The dim light struggled its way through the air. Outside it was getting
bright, but the heavy curtains closed all the light on the outside.
Kit was sitting in the middle of the room, a tape with Tangerine Dream was
running in the background. It had been another all nighter. Kit's tired eyes
reflected the light from the monitor.
Kit had been a computer freak ever since the early 80'ties. It started with
an innocent VIC-20 computer, then he got interested in programming, first by
typing small routines from computer magazines, then he had learned some
basic commands and he started to write his own programs. Later he developed
into a real computer wizard, skipped most of the so called normal youth, he
couldn't remember the last party he was on. Guess you could call him anti-
social but he knew what he was doing, he wanted to control his own world,
the world of the computer, and on the computer he really was in charge. Now
he earned his living by cracking software for a friend who sold the software
to kids who didn't have money to buy the originals, this friend also
supplied him with the latest warez. Kim bailed out of school early, could
not cope with it, as the computer took most of his time. This computer
thing was all that he knew, and he didn't have to know other things either,
he managed to take care of himself.
Kit looked at the half full bottle of cola that was standing on his speaker,
grabbed it and took a mouthful, placed the bottle back on the speaker. Then
he got up, went to a sink and washed his face. Looking in the mirror, he
felt unbelievable tired, but he had to crack this software fast before
someone else did it. There was always this time pressure, he was sick and
tired of it.
He got back to his chair, sat down and continued. After some minutes he
needed another disc, he looked in the disc box, but he didn't find any disc
he could use. "Damn" he whispered. Looked at the watch, 9:15 AM, could need
a walk, he thought. He got up from the chair, stretched his arms up in the
air, got his coat, took yet another zip of cola, then left the room.
The street was cold, the sun hadn't started to boil the city yet, that was
fine with him because he hated the sun anyway. He stretched the collar on
his coat, and started to walk to a local book store.
After a while he stopped by a street corner, there was a couple on the other
side of the street. Seemed as if they were getting some early air this
Sunday morning. They had a dog following their steps, and some baby
screaming in a baby carriage. The other side of the street seemed be much
brighter, he thought. Yet, he continued his walk on the same side.
He came to the bookstore, it was an old one but they had cheap discs, he
knew the owner and got the disc from retail price, that was enough for him.
He hurried into the store, got a pack of discs, paid the man then left.
Some kids were playing on the other side of the street. Happy without any
worries. He looked at them, remembering his own youth, he didn't have much
friend back then, he remembered that he used to play with a girl. Later she
moved. He hadn't heard from her ever since. Then some later he got his first
computer from his father, and a new life started.
He continued his walk, met some youth. He could feel their eyes starring at
him as he walked past them. One of the females in the crows laughed a bit.
He hated young female laughing, because he felt unsure what they were
laughing about. He folded up the collar on his jacket again and kept
walking.
He followed a wooden fence until he came to a construction area. The sun
shone through a hole in the fence. He stopped by the hole and stuck his head
in it. On the other side there were some many people, machines were working
and people shuffling dirt around. By the hole he found a flower, a Dande-
lion. He stretched out, grabbed it and took it back with him to the other
side. There he just stood, starring at the flower. The yellow petal, the
green stalk with its leaves, the beauty of nature, the scent of life. Now
he realized what he'd  missed, what life he could have had. Then, after a
while he fell a tear. Still gazing at the flower he threw away the discs,
then he went home to destroy some computer equipment.

--
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 .                      					    Information
Pal Ditlefsen Ekran  aka 1127 Gandalf (ESD Amiga)		     Wants to
Virtual address: paalde@stud.cs.uit.no.                               Be free.
In real life: Soppsvingen 24, 9100 KVALOYA, NORWAY
Still listning to Electric Music, Prodigy, Ministry, Front242 and Biosphere.
                             My viril Norwegian hunk of burning love - Barbara

The opinions above belongs to me, only me, me, me, me, me, MEEEE !
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