[neilv]

Computer programming back then was a great way for a kid to escape to a middle class livelihood, just based on getting machine access somehow, and what they could learn on their own.

(It seemed to change, after the dotcom boom, when the jobs turned into a lot more money that attracted a lot more people, and class barriers were erected to many of the better jobs. There's still a chance for upward mobility, despite artificial class barriers, but people will tend to burn their energy mimicking the shibboleths and practicing for the hazing rituals, rather than on things that would attract and teach them. Which brings us back to this application domain, of helping companies to hire people who would be great software developers.)

[elptacek]

I may or may not have picked the locks to my middle school's computer room and I definitely didn't hide in there when I was supposed to be in class.