Eric Steven Raymond is the granddaddy of today’s hackers, a man who revels in living the life in all its geeky glory. According to him, "The world is full of fascinating problems waiting to be solved."
Annoyed by the fact that most people misuse the term "hacker," he wrote The Hacker’s Dictionary and How to Be a Hacker. (Raymond says the basic difference is that "hackers build things, crackers break them.")
Not only is he respected for his astounding skills as a programmer, but Raymond is also valued as a fierce defender of the Open Source Movement, which is based on the premise that programmers should be able to read and modify all software source codes. In this IT paradise, programmers would be able to improve software and fix any potentially lethal bugs.
Steve Wozniak would be a god. Bill Gates would be the serpent.
In addition to programming, Raymond is also a fan of libertarianism, neo-paganism and the right to bear arms.