Hacking Sponsored By Loki

In an interesting announcement, Loki Entertainment and Activision have announced an upcoming event called Loki Hack 1999. Scheduled to take place at the Cobb Galleria Centre in Atlanta on Oct. 11-13 in conjunction with the Atlanta Linux Showcase, up to 30 skilled programmers will be given 48 hours to alter the code for the Linux version of Activision's Civilization: Call to Power.

The coders will be left in a secure area to make changes to the game's source code, and Loki will make those programmers' hacking efforts available as downloads after the event. Winners will be announced at the Linux showcase, where one programmer will walk away with a dual-processor Linux workstation.

"We are blessed with the most technically literate customer base of any game publisher," said Scott Draeker, Loki president and founder. "We'd be fools not to offer these users a chance to improve our source code."

Linux programmers with appropriate skills can sign up for the contest via Loki's web site.