He almost definitely tortured and killed his neighbor. He never stood trial because he fled the country and has been running since.
He isn't tech's Hunter S. Thompson, he was a lunatic who hurt people. Even if you don't believe he (or his bodyguard) killed the neighbor, there's countless other stories where he hurt people (including his crypto scams).
While I'm gonna miss the times my friends and I have spent laughing at what a chaotic and ridiculous life that man lived, through all of his antics, he really didn't contribute anything except tax fraud to the world. McAfee antivirus is a plague, and according to the man himself not really his legacy. His death is still awful.
But I agree, he shouldn't receive a black bar or anything.
Well, he came from the computer industry, and like him or not he was a colorful character. I thought he was pretty amusing until he (apparently) decided to deal with a problem neighbor by having him killed. He does exemplify some of the old 'wild west' internet spirit, in ways.
What exactly were those? It sounds like he founded a company that made an eponymous antivirus program that eventually got a lot of name recognition. At least according to Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antivirus_software#1980%E2%80%...), it doesn't look like he even invented antivirus software or anything.
Re:
by anm89 on Wednesday June 23, 2021 @07:52PM
(#27612116)
For no other reason than he is part of the story of the tech community and has a fascinating history I voted yes. My expectation is that the broader community wouldn't want to associate with it and say no.
I'm not massively into the whole black bar thing (though I don't in any way object to it) but, because he is part of the story of tech (certainly in the 80s and 90s), and out of a sense of consistency if nothing else, since HN has shown a bar for others it should probably also do so for John McAfee. I therefore also voted yes.
(Like you, I also suspect the wider community will say no. Be that as it may, history resists rewrites.)
I don't think HN (or any other site) should ever do this for any person. It's fine if an organization wants to mourn one of its own (like Apple honoring Jobs). Beyond that, it's hollow virtue signalling at best, and often political or otherwise controversial. In the case of McAfee, his positive impact on anything is minimal and questionable, and in all likelihood he was an unrepentant murderer. What's to honor?
McAfee’s story seems worth recording, and that story can’t be reduced to semiotic gestures without losing fidelity about the complications and contradictions in it.
He isn't tech's Hunter S. Thompson, he was a lunatic who hurt people. Even if you don't believe he (or his bodyguard) killed the neighbor, there's countless other stories where he hurt people (including his crypto scams).
But I agree, he shouldn't receive a black bar or anything.
So why is HN (a technology forum) discussing him then? So he didn't contribute anything to technology?
What exactly were those? It sounds like he founded a company that made an eponymous antivirus program that eventually got a lot of name recognition. At least according to Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antivirus_software#1980%E2%80%...), it doesn't look like he even invented antivirus software or anything.
(Like you, I also suspect the wider community will say no. Be that as it may, history resists rewrites.)