Interview
Handle / Last scene group you were active in: N.O.M.A.D of Fairlight
See "How did you get into the scene and what groups have you been a member of?" for other aliases.
How did you come up with your alias ?
Contrary to popular belief, it was not from the Ocean game of the same title. I just liked the NOMAD name, but it looked a little boring and unoriginal so the .'s were added.
City / Country:
Birmingham, United Kingdom.
Born year:
Late 1960's.
What was your first computer, and when did you get it?
ZX81 in 1981/1982.
How did you get into the scene and what groups have you been a member of ?
I bought the Amiga in 1988/89 and went to buy my first game - Starglider.
In the shop i met a person who sold me 5-6 pirated games for the same price as Starglider. This introduced me to the Amiga scene. My scene activity really started with demos, trainers and finally cracks for Slipstream(i was a founder member) and then continued with Scoopex (when i first used the N.O.M.A.D handle), Genesis, Angels:Defjam, Crystal, Quartex, Nemesis, Ministry(under the alias UK-Division) and finally Fairlight. I also did a few 'guest' cracks for other groups :-)
What was the proudest moment in your career ?
I have many, however the first time i was voted #1 cracker in the world was a choker. I never understood why, there were many crackers out there that were not only better than me, but deserved the title much more. The voting continued and i never left the top 5 when i was active in the scene. I thank you all.
For what specific reason(s) do you think that you are remembered ?
For caring about the scene and the people involved in it, and of course my cracks, trainers. Also the very first A1200 crack and numerous fixes to enable older classic titles such as SWIV to run on A1200's.
What would you like to be remembered for ?
See last question.
What made you stop the scene activity ? (and do you remember when?)
Realising that the scene was turning into one big business and was taking over my life - 5 years is a long time. After a few false starts i finally quit the scene in September 1994 and went back to University.
Thinking back on the good old days, is there anything you regret?
Never cracking a Readysoft game in time to be released :-( and never really having the chance to personally say goodbye to all the people that i 'met' on the journey.
What was your favorite
GAME(S)
Kick Off
Speedball II
Syndicate
Dune II
DEMO(S)
Northstar - Demo I, II, III
Mental Hangover - Scoopex
Wild Copper Demo
Fairlight Demo's
and all the classics that i have forgotten.
PROGRAMMER(S) (OR PROGRAMMING TEAM(S))
Scoopex
Phenomena
Anarchy UK
Melon Design
Kefrens
Fairlight
and all that i have forgotten.
CRACKER(S) (OR CRACKING GROUP(S))
Ringo Starr
Phil Douglas
Ralf
Rob(Quartex)
Weetabix
Eurosoft
Gaston
Mr.E
The Surge
I.B.M
Renegade
and all crackers - past, future and present.
COMPOSER(S)
4-Mat
DRINK ?
Alcohol: Guinness.
Hungover or just washed-out: HotLava Java (Coffee).
All other times, erhum, Tea. Hey i am English ;-)
What are you doing nowadays ?
A Doctor of Philosophy(PhD) in Artificial Intelligence and its use in the Agent paradigm.
What are you doing on your spare time?
I do not really have much spare time, however when i do you can usually find me at the University Bar or on Quake II deathmatch server near you :-)
Is there anything you'd like to say to the public (read: admires)
It was a time for dreams, now just memories.
To all the groups that i was a cracker for and a proud member of Fairlight, Ministry, Nemesis, Quartex, Crystal, Angels:Defjam, Genesis, Scoopex, Slipstream) - I will always remember.
To all the friends and people that i worked and conversed with - RESPECT, i thank you for your loyalty and friendship.
What is the meaning of life?
Friendship, respect for the world, learn, adapt and survive - life is a journey, not a destination.