In terms of work I’ve always had a Bad Attitude in that I won’t work anywhere which requires me to work strict hours or follow a dress code. I don’t know if that’s an Asperger’s thing or not, I think it’s just being reasonable.

About Bram Cohen

Bram Cohen is an American computer programmer, best known as the author of the peer-to-peerBitTorrent protocol in 2001, as well as the first file sharing program to use the protocol, also known as BitTorrent. He is also the co-founder of CodeCon and organizer of the San Francisco Bay Area P2P-hackers meeting, was the co-author of Codeville and creator of the Chia cryptocurrency which implements the proof of space-time consensus algorithm.

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More quotes from Bram Cohen

I am a technological activist. I have a political agenda. I am in favor of basic human rights: to free speech, to use any information and technology, to purchase and use recreational drugs, to enjoy and purchase so-called ‘vices’, to be free of intruders, and to privacy.

Bram Cohen

American programmer, creator of BitTorrent protocol

You get so tired of having your work die. I just wanted to make something that people would actually use.

Bram Cohen

American programmer, creator of BitTorrent protocol

It’s always hard to predict what’s coming up next. My main guess is that content creators will increasingly start using BitTorrent to distribute their own work directly.

Bram Cohen

American programmer, creator of BitTorrent protocol

The next release of mainline is going to have a lot of the advanced features people want, by the way.

Bram Cohen

American programmer, creator of BitTorrent protocol

My father taught me Basic and rudimentary C, I learned everything else on my own, including studying computational complexity on my own. That’s more a function of my age than anything else though – back when I was in school there were hardly any programming classes.

Bram Cohen

American programmer, creator of BitTorrent protocol

The mark of a mature programmer is willingness to throw out code you spent time on when you realize it’s pointless.

Bram Cohen

American programmer, creator of BitTorrent protocol

With BitTorrent, the cat’s out of the bag.

Bram Cohen

American programmer, creator of BitTorrent protocol

I can come off as pretty arrogant, but it’s because I know I’m right. I’m very, very good at writing protocols. I’ve accomplished more working on my own than I ever did as part of a team.

Bram Cohen

American programmer, creator of BitTorrent protocol

When I put my mind to it I can be a megalomaniac.

Bram Cohen

American programmer, creator of BitTorrent protocol

My favorite language for maintainability is Python. It has simple, clean syntax, object encapsulation, good library support, and optional named parameters.

Bram Cohen

American programmer, creator of BitTorrent protocol

Despite my emphasis on technology, I do not view laws as inherently evil. My goals are political ones, even if my techniques are not. The only way to fundamentally succeed is by changing existing laws. If I rejected all help from the political arena I would inevitably fail.

Bram Cohen

American programmer, creator of BitTorrent protocol

Give and ye shall receive.

Bram Cohen

American programmer, creator of BitTorrent protocol

In terms of work I’ve always had a Bad Attitude in that I won’t work anywhere which requires me to work strict hours or follow a dress code. I don’t know if that’s an Asperger’s thing or not, I think it’s just being reasonable.

Bram Cohen

American programmer, creator of BitTorrent protocol