Root Without Responsibility

The Bastard Wreaks Terrible Revenge

The Bastard Operator is back from a “fact-finding tour” of the United States… and finds the office exactly as he left it: full of incompetent users, clueless management, and people who really shouldn’t be touching network equipment.

Birth of the Bastard Operator From Hell

Ever wonder what the person controlling your server really thinks of you? In this episode, we dive into the "gluten-free, high-fibre" archives of the Bastard Operator from Hell (BOFH). Born in the late 1980s at the University of Waikato, the BOFH was a "Technical-SuperHero" with all the power and none of the responsibility. From rants written on a 23K "Trash-80" to a global cult following on Usenet and The Register, we explore how Simon Travaglia turned IT boredom into a cynical digital legacy. Discover why "I'm just an operator" became the most dangerous phrase in tech, and how one man from Hautapu, New Zealand, managed to terrify "lusers" for decades. Listen now to see if your disk quota is safe. 💾🚫