Eric Raymond does an excellent job of explaining vocabulary starting with a definition of “hacker”. I, probably like many computer users, had come to think of a hacker as someone who utilizes a computer giftedness to hurt others and who is bent on destruction. Or a hacker may be someone who uses a computer to create fear and mayhem just because he can do so. That is far from the original meaning of the word. Originally a hacker was an enthusiast, artist, tinkerer, problem solver, and expert. The early hackers were individuals who had a gift for computers and used that gift/skill to increase and improve what computers could do and to benefit other users. 

The title of the book still intrigued me and I finally discovered the reason for the title in the second essay/chapter. But then the more that I read, the more that I thought it would be best to leave you curious about the name of this book. Some more intrigue occurs when the author discusses evolutionary handicap theory or why peacocks have feathers and stags have horns. Is your curiosity peaked? Well, it should be. This book is fascinating reading for the person with an interest in computers and a must read for computer geeks.

Each chapter starts with a short synopsis or abstract of the chapter’s contents. This enables you, the reader, to decide whether to read the chapters one after the other or to skip around and read the chapters in the order of most benefit and interest to you. I found myself skipping around. 

This second edition which was published in February of 2001 is a revision of the first book by the same name published in 1999. Actually, Eric Raymond states that the book has been under continuous revision since the initial first edition. Eric Raymond believes, and this is said without arrogance, that he is a good enough writer to make technical information lively and interesting to non-technical readers. In addition to this belief, Raymond clearly states within the essays that a reader may “feel free to skip this if you’re not a geek”. For these reasons, Raymond’s book is informative and interesting to read. In the computer world where changes occur so rapidly, even if the reader never does anything with open-source software, this book will enable the reader to stay abreast of what is going on in the open-source movement. This book also provides a good historical perspective of the open-source movement.

I recommend this book to anyone who wants to keep up with the rapidly changing technological world and especially to those who are interested and involved in Linux. A visit to the O’Reilly website gives you the opportunity to learn more about the author, read an interview with the author, and even read one of the chapters from the book.

The Cathedral and the Bazaar, ISBN 0-596-00108-8 (paperback) by Eric S. Raymond lists for $16.95. The hardback edition, ISBN 0-596-00131-2, lists for $24.95. It is readily available at the O’Reilly Web site. I also checked the ISBN number with bookpricer and found this book listed at 23 different bookstores worldwide. US bookstores have it listed from as low as $10.85 to $16.95 and I did see one listing for $17.95. As with most books, Barnes and Noble as well as Borders will probably order this book for you without obligation to purchase.