|
Cryptonomicon is an interesting story about cryptography which spans
the ages; from the World War II era to common day. It explores the details
of Information Flow as well as explaining some of the basic concepts of
modern-day cryptography without the reader realizing this until it is too late
for them to stop tasting the forbidden fruit of the knowledge. ;)
The stories of two generations are linked by family ties. On one hand
you've the grandson of a leader of the digital computer movement and
Information Flow technology; versus the Son and grand-daughter of a hard
marine originally stationed in the Pacific theatre at the start of World War
II. The granddaughter and grandson of these two people end up linking the
three stories together, although there was some tie together between the
two World War II stories of the Cryptographer and the Marine.
I'd rate this book as a very good addition to any code lover's
books. I'd also suggest it for those that are interested in learning more
about cryptography on modern day machines. While it doesn't give too many
details related to the "how", it does give good background knowledge as to
the origins of some ideas as well as giving one a decent idea of what
strong cryptography in the modern day can be used for. Frank suggested
this book to me knowing that I had an interest in cryptography and good stories.
|