International Network of Crackers
Encyclopedia
International Network of Crackers (INC) was one of the premier cracking
/releasing warez
groups for the IBM PC during the late 1980s and early 1990s.
The formation of INC was the result of the merger of several cracking groups, including Union, based out of Texas
, and the Miami Cracking Machine (MCM), based out of Florida
. The founder of MCM, who went under the pseudonym
Line Noise, continued to manage INC until 1992. Following his departure from the group, Cool Hand and The Cracksmith took over. There were a few years in which the group seemed dominant over the "warez" scene. It was not until internal conflicts and lack of interest by upper management entered the picture that things began to decline. When Cool Hand and The Cracksmith disappeared, the remaining members were unable to hold things together.
The real identities of the key members have never been fully uncovered, but it has been reported that the founding members, Line Noise (Neil), The Cracksmith (Drew), and Cool Hand (Joe) have left the scene. Releases from INC aggressively declined and people within the scene generally had felt that INC lost its edge. During a one year period, they went from being the top gaming software release group to barely memorable. Some of the best games of the 80s and 90s were released by INC during a period of stiff competition with groups like FLT
, THG
, and Razor 1911
. By early 1994, INC had completely disappeared from the warez scene.
Among their biggest rivals and competitors during the group's existence were The Humble Guys
. During a period in which most groups were using any and all means possible (including credit card fraud, lies and anything else) to beat them, INC always maintained its moral high ground. The worst INC ever did was to "leak" a new game to The Humble Guys so they could steal the credit. While unknown to THG - the game was infected with a trojan that searched for a modem then dialed 9-1-1. Several of The Humble Guys members were visited by the police before they discovered they had been fooled.
.
Software cracking
Software cracking is the modification of software to remove or disable features which are considered undesirable by the person cracking the software, usually related to protection methods: copy protection, trial/demo version, serial number, hardware key, date checks, CD check or software annoyances...
/releasing warez
Warez
Warez refers primarily to copyrighted works distributed without fees or royalties, and may be traded, in general violation of copyright law. The term generally refers to unauthorized releases by organized groups, as opposed to file sharing between friends or large groups of people with similar...
groups for the IBM PC during the late 1980s and early 1990s.
The formation of INC was the result of the merger of several cracking groups, including Union, based out of Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, and the Miami Cracking Machine (MCM), based out of Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. The founder of MCM, who went under the pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
Line Noise, continued to manage INC until 1992. Following his departure from the group, Cool Hand and The Cracksmith took over. There were a few years in which the group seemed dominant over the "warez" scene. It was not until internal conflicts and lack of interest by upper management entered the picture that things began to decline. When Cool Hand and The Cracksmith disappeared, the remaining members were unable to hold things together.
The real identities of the key members have never been fully uncovered, but it has been reported that the founding members, Line Noise (Neil), The Cracksmith (Drew), and Cool Hand (Joe) have left the scene. Releases from INC aggressively declined and people within the scene generally had felt that INC lost its edge. During a one year period, they went from being the top gaming software release group to barely memorable. Some of the best games of the 80s and 90s were released by INC during a period of stiff competition with groups like FLT
Fairlight (group)
Fairlight is a warez and demo group initially involved in the Commodore demoscene, and in cracking to illegally release games for free, since 1987. In addition to the C64, Fairlight has also migrated towards the Amiga, Super Nintendo and later the PC...
, THG
The Humble Guys
The Humble Guys were a cracking group for the IBM PC during the late 1980s founded by two friends known by the pseudonyms Candyman and Fabulous Furlough. The group was also noticed in the demoscene for some of their cracktros....
, and Razor 1911
Razor 1911
Razor 1911 is a warez and demo group.-History:The group was originally founded as Razor 2992 by Doctor No, Insane TTM and Sector9 in Norway in October 1985 as a Commodore 64 software cracking group...
. By early 1994, INC had completely disappeared from the warez scene.
Among their biggest rivals and competitors during the group's existence were The Humble Guys
The Humble Guys
The Humble Guys were a cracking group for the IBM PC during the late 1980s founded by two friends known by the pseudonyms Candyman and Fabulous Furlough. The group was also noticed in the demoscene for some of their cracktros....
. During a period in which most groups were using any and all means possible (including credit card fraud, lies and anything else) to beat them, INC always maintained its moral high ground. The worst INC ever did was to "leak" a new game to The Humble Guys so they could steal the credit. While unknown to THG - the game was infected with a trojan that searched for a modem then dialed 9-1-1. Several of The Humble Guys members were visited by the police before they discovered they had been fooled.
External links
- Collection of textfiles from INC archived at textfiles.comTextfiles.comtextfiles.com is a web site run by Jason Scott dedicated to preserving the digital documents that contain the history of the BBS world and various subcultures. The site categorises and stores thousands of ASCII files. It focuses on text files from the 1980s, but also contains some older files and...
. - Interview with Cool Hand, vice-president of INC. — Originally published in APT magazine (Advanced Pirate Technology).
- Interview with Bar Manager, INC Member/Packager. — Originally published in APT.
- Interview with Lestat, INC Member. — Originally published in APT.
- List of INC BBS Sites circa 1991.
- INC Member list including real names and phone numbers circa 1990.
- INC Courier list including real names and phone numbers circa 1990.
- INC courier manifesto written by Phantom, the INC "courier coordinator".
- International Network of Crackers file and information repository on Defacto2
.