The New "TAP"
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by Emmanuel Goldstein

Ever since we began printing 2600, people have been asking us whatever became
of TAP, the telephone/anarchy newletter founded by the Yippies in 1971.  After
five years, we finally seem to have convinced people that TAP is defunct and
that we had nothing at all to do with them.  Now it appears another chapter in
the saga is unfolding.

Since TAP stopped publishing in 1984, there have been at least a dozen attempts
to take over or restart the former Yippie publication.  Now, out of Kentucky,
an organization has emerged that calls itself TAP and has actually put out and
issue.  They claim to have a new staff and a new lease of life.  It's up to the
hackers of the world to decide whether this is really TAP reborn or just
another oppertunistic attempt to cash in on the name.

A glance at the first issue reveals a format practically identical to the old
magazine.  Two sheets of paper (unattached) with the old TAP logo, a couple of
news clippings, a brief explanation on how to make an unstable explosive in
three steps (for the "home anarchist"), and an article explaining Bitnet.  The
article takes up about half the issue.

Yes, it looks like the old TAP.  And it even reads like the old TAP.  But a lot
has happened since TAP last came out.  Can this new newsletter simply pick up
where the old one left off?  We'll know soon enough.

Cheshire Catalyst, the old TAP's last editor, says he would have preferred it
had TAP been allowed to rest in peace.  He complained of a lack of imagination
in the new TAP, particularly in the way they use the old logos.  "It's time to
move on and do something different." he said.

Other hackers say that Cheshire has no exclusive right to TAP and that anybody
can start it up again if they want to. That's just the way it is with a
newletter like TAP.

But had the publishers simply chosen a new name, a lot of the doubts being
expressed in the hacker community simply wouldn't be there.  Considering that
nobody involved in the new TAP appears to have been involved in the old TAP,
are they justified in using the same name?  What about those people who lost
money to the old TAP?  They're likely to pin the responsibilty for this on the
people of the new TAP.  By taking on the name of TAP, the publishers may
actually be putting their newsletter at a disadvantage.

There's plenty of room in the hacker community for innovative newsletters and
magazines.  An electronic hacker newsletter called Phrack is one that built a
strong following by doing something different; collecting hacker files and
articles and distributing them in a "package" to bulletin boards all over the
world.  One of their regular articles, Phrack World News, is a must-read for
many hackers.

The best publications are the ones that tread on new ground and make, not take,
a name for themselves.  We hope to see the new TAP succeed for being new and
different.

At press time, there was one issue of the new TAP know as #92.  However, the
old TAP also had an issue #92 which was its last and was not widely
distributed.  To get a sample of the new TAP, just send them a 25 cent stamp.
Their address is TAP, PO Box 20264, Louisville, KY 40220.