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'''Elonka Dunin''' is a game developer and amateur ]. She is an expert on the famous '']'' sculpture/cipher at the ]'s headquarters. '''Elonka Dunin''' is an ] ], ], and amateur ] who is an expert on the '']'' sculpture/cipher at the ]'s headquarters.


== Career information == == Biography ==
Dunin was born in ] on ], ], the oldest of two children to ], a ]-American ] and ], a ]-American ] and cultural ] at ].
⚫ Dunin is currently working at ] Corporation in game development.


Dunin's interest in computers started as a child when her father took her to his office at the Space Systems Division of ] in the early 1960s. There Dunin played with large mainframe computers such as the ] and ]. She learned her first programming language, ], while still in elementary school. She studied Astronomy at ], and then joined the ], where she worked as an ] technician at ] in the United Kingdom, and ] in California, maintaining ] cargo planes, and ] and ] reconnaissance aircraft. After the USAF, she traveled the world working at a variety of jobs, ranging from a ] in ] to an ] in ].
She wrote .


In 1989, while working as a temporary legal secretary in ], Dunin got involved with the growing ] culture, and this overlapped into the early ] games such as ] on ] and ]' ] on ]. In 1990, she moved to ] and began working for Simutronics.
⚫ She is also a founding member of the ]'s ] ].


Dunin speaks several languages, and has traveled to every continent including ], which she visited in 1999 with an expedition organized by Dr. ] of the ].
== Biographical information ==
Born in ] on December 29th, 1958, Dunin studied Astronomy at ] (UCLA), and then joined the ]. She was stationed at ] in the United Kingdom, and ] in California, where she worked on the ] and ] reconnaissance aircraft.


== Game developer ==
Dunin speaks several languages, and has traveled to every continent including ].
⚫ Since 1990, Dunin has worked at ] in ], in game development.
In 1993, their game ''CyberStrike'' won the first ever "Online Game of the Year" award from '']'' magazine, and contracts soon followed with ], ] and ]. In 1997, Simutronics launched its own website, .


She was the product manager for '']'', executive producer for the ] and ]-based multiplayer game ''Alliance of Heroes'', and worked on the development of most of Simutronics' other products, including '']'', '']'', '']'', and the upcoming '']''. Her current title is "General Manager of Online Community."
She is great-great-grandniece of Saint ].


⚫ She is also a founding member of the ]'s ] ], and senior editor of some of their annual White Papers on various aspects of the online game industry.
== Cryptographic accomplishments ==

* In 2000, Dunin was awarded a prize for being the first person to crack the ] v3.0 Code, a code puzzle created by the hacker group se2600. She has also solved the PhreakNIC5 Code, the @LANta.con2 Code, and other convention ciphers.
== Cryptographer ==
* Dunin has taught US government agents about ]. In 2002 she was invited to speak at CIA Headquarters.

* Dunin is co-founder and senior moderator of the ], a collection of several hundred cryptographers and other interested hobbyists who are attempting to crack part 4 of the code on the ''Kryptos'' sculpture at CIA Headquarters.
Dunin began achieving public recognition for her cryptography hobby in 2000, when she was awarded a prize for cracking the ] v3.0 Code, designed by ]. In 2001, she assisted with the ] by teaching government agents about ] and what types of codes that ] might be using. In 2002, she was invited to speak at ] headquarters. During this visit she began a closer study of the Agency's '']'' sculpture. She started a small personal website with her notes, and early in 2003 published a new type of solution technique for part 3 that supplied a possible "pencil and paper" method for solving it -- all previous published solutions had involved complicated mathematical formulae. Dunin also began to build a website compiling all of the works of the ''Kryptos'' sculptor, ]. Also in 2003, Dunin organized an effort to solve the code on a ''Kryptos'' sister sculpture, the '']'', which succeeded in October 2003 after the cryptographic portion was cracked by Frank Corr of North Carolina.
* In 2003, she led the international team that cracked the related ] '']'' Cipher.

* She maintains websites on Kryptos , and the World's Most Famous Unsolved Codes .
These events, plus hints referring to ''Kryptos'' on the bookjacket of ]'s 2003 bestseller '']'', steadily increased the visibility of Dunin's growing website, which became the most-used source for information about the CIA sculpture, even more popular than the CIA's own website.

In late 2003, Dunin published a webpage entitled "Elonka's list of Famous Unsolved Codes and Ciphers", which ranked the most famous ciphers in the world such as the ], the ], the ], ], and others.

In January 2005, a high-profile article appeared in ] about ], and more major media attention followed, including segments by ], ], UK's ], France's ], and many others. As of February 2006, Dunin's websites have had hundreds of thousands of visitors, and nearly 1.5 million page views.

In mid-2005, Dunin was approached by the British publisher ] about compiling ''The Mammoth Book of Secret Code Puzzles'', which is due for release in both the United States (with publisher ]) and United Kingdom April 2006.

== Public speaker ==
Dunin is a member of the IGDA and the ]. Along with speaking to government agencies such as the ], ], and ], Dunin is a frequent speaker on cryptography and online games at conferences such as ], ], ], and the ], and has twice been a co-host on the ] webcast.


== Bibliography == == Bibliography ==
* ''The Mammoth Book of Secret Codes and Cryptograms'', US ISBN 0786717262, is scheduled for release in April 2006. * Dunin's book, ''The Mammoth Book of Secret Codes and Cryptograms'', US ISBN 0786717262, is scheduled for release in April 2006.
* The anticipated UK title of the book is: ''The Mammoth Book of Secret Code Puzzles'', UK ISBN 1845293258 ** The anticipated UK title of the book is: ''The Mammoth Book of Secret Code Puzzles'', UK ISBN 1845293258
* (editor) IGDA Online Games White Paper, 2002
* Dunin, Elonka (ed.). . (PDF)
* (editor) IGDA Online Games White Paper, 2003.
* (senior editor) IGDA Web & Downloadable Games White Paper, Web & Downloadable Games, 2004
* (senior editor) IGDA Persistent Worlds White Paper, 2004

=== Contributor/Consultant ===
Dunin is quoted or thanked for contributions in:
* ], ''Community Building on the Web : Secret Strategies for Successful Online Communities'', 2000, Peachpit Press. ISBN 0201874849
* ], ''Character Development and Storytelling for Games (Game Development Series)'', 2004, Course Technology PTR. ISBN 1592003532

=== Major websites ===
Selected websites which Dunin created and maintains:
*
*
*
*
*
*
*

== Trivia ==
Dunin has several notable relatives, including:
* 19th century
** Saint ] (great-great-granduncle)
** ] (great-great-granduncle), Polish-German botanist
** ] (great-great-grandmother), Polish playwright, contemporary of ]
* early 20th century
** ] (great-grandfather), Polish vice-Minister of Finance
** ] (great-grandfather), Polish ]
** ] (great-uncle), ] author and politician
* modern
** ] (father), ] who helped launch the world's first ] ]
** ] (mother), full ] at UCLA, researcher, author and ]
** ] (cousin), ]
** ] (cousin), ]-winning author of '']''


== References == == References ==
* , May 2002
* ''Cleveland Free Times'', January 9, 2002,
* '']'', June 19, 2002 http://www.riverfronttimes.com/issues/2002-06-19/news.html
* '']'', January 26, 2005. * '']'', January 26, 2005.
* , January 2003
* '']'', October 8, 2003, . * '']'', October 8, 2003, .
* '']'', October 10, 2003,
* ''Woman's World'' magazine, March 16, 2004, * ''Woman's World'' magazine, March 16, 2004,
* ], June 19, 2005,
* UK's '']'', June 11, 2005
* (French) '']'', June 28, 2005
*


== External links == == External links ==

Revision as of 05:15, 19 February 2006

File:Elonka.jpg
Elonka Dunin

Elonka Dunin is an American game developer, writer, and amateur cryptographer who is an expert on the Kryptos sculpture/cipher at the CIA's headquarters.

Biography

Dunin was born in Santa Monica, California on December 29, 1958, the oldest of two children to Stanley Dunin, a Polish-American mathematician and Elsie Ivancich, a Croatian-American dancer and cultural ethnologist at UCLA.

Dunin's interest in computers started as a child when her father took her to his office at the Space Systems Division of Hughes Aircraft in the early 1960s. There Dunin played with large mainframe computers such as the IBM 360 and IBM 370. She learned her first programming language, Fortran, while still in elementary school. She studied Astronomy at UCLA, and then joined the United States Air Force, where she worked as an avionics technician at RAF Mildenhall in the United Kingdom, and Beale Air Force Base in California, maintaining C-135 cargo planes, and SR-71 and U-2 reconnaissance aircraft. After the USAF, she traveled the world working at a variety of jobs, ranging from a computer programmer in Colorado to an English teacher in Rio de Janeiro.

In 1989, while working as a temporary legal secretary in Los Angeles, Dunin got involved with the growing BBS culture, and this overlapped into the early multiplayer games such as British Legends on CompuServe and Simutronics' GemStone II on GEnie. In 1990, she moved to St. Louis and began working for Simutronics.

Dunin speaks several languages, and has traveled to every continent including Antarctica, which she visited in 1999 with an expedition organized by Dr. Louis Friedman of the Planetary Society.

Game developer

Since 1990, Dunin has worked at Simutronics in St. Louis, Missouri, in game development. In 1993, their game CyberStrike won the first ever "Online Game of the Year" award from Computer Gaming World magazine, and contracts soon followed with America Online, Prodigy and CompuServe. In 1997, Simutronics launched its own website, play.net.

She was the product manager for GemStone III, executive producer for the Hercules and Xena-based multiplayer game Alliance of Heroes, and worked on the development of most of Simutronics' other products, including CyberStrike, Modus Operandi, DragonRealms, and the upcoming Hero's Journey. Her current title is "General Manager of Online Community."

She is also a founding member of the International Game Developers Association's Online Games SIG, and senior editor of some of their annual White Papers on various aspects of the online game industry.

Cryptographer

Dunin began achieving public recognition for her cryptography hobby in 2000, when she was awarded a prize for cracking the PhreakNIC v3.0 Code, designed by se2600. In 2001, she assisted with the war on terrorism by teaching government agents about steganography and what types of codes that Al Qaeda might be using. In 2002, she was invited to speak at CIA headquarters. During this visit she began a closer study of the Agency's Kryptos sculpture. She started a small personal website with her notes, and early in 2003 published a new type of solution technique for part 3 that supplied a possible "pencil and paper" method for solving it -- all previous published solutions had involved complicated mathematical formulae. Dunin also began to build a website compiling all of the works of the Kryptos sculptor, James Sanborn. Also in 2003, Dunin organized an effort to solve the code on a Kryptos sister sculpture, the Cyrillic Projector, which succeeded in October 2003 after the cryptographic portion was cracked by Frank Corr of North Carolina.

These events, plus hints referring to Kryptos on the bookjacket of Dan Brown's 2003 bestseller The Da Vinci Code, steadily increased the visibility of Dunin's growing website, which became the most-used source for information about the CIA sculpture, even more popular than the CIA's own website.

In late 2003, Dunin published a webpage entitled "Elonka's list of Famous Unsolved Codes and Ciphers", which ranked the most famous ciphers in the world such as the Beale Ciphers, the Voynich Manuscript, the Dorabella Cipher, Kryptos, and others.

In January 2005, a high-profile article appeared in Wired about Kryptos, and more major media attention followed, including segments by CNN, NPR, UK's The Guardian, France's Liberation, and many others. As of February 2006, Dunin's websites have had hundreds of thousands of visitors, and nearly 1.5 million page views.

In mid-2005, Dunin was approached by the British publisher Constable & Robinson about compiling The Mammoth Book of Secret Code Puzzles, which is due for release in both the United States (with publisher Carrol & Graf) and United Kingdom April 2006.

Public speaker

Dunin is a member of the IGDA and the Planetary Society. Along with speaking to government agencies such as the FBI, CIA, and NSA, Dunin is a frequent speaker on cryptography and online games at conferences such as Dragon*Con, PhreakNIC, Def Con, and the International Game Developers Conference, and has twice been a co-host on the Binary Revolution webcast.

Bibliography

  • Dunin's book, The Mammoth Book of Secret Codes and Cryptograms, US ISBN 0786717262, is scheduled for release in April 2006.
    • The anticipated UK title of the book is: The Mammoth Book of Secret Code Puzzles, UK ISBN 1845293258
  • (editor) IGDA Online Games White Paper, 2002 PDF
  • (editor) IGDA Online Games White Paper, 2003. PDF
  • (senior editor) IGDA Web & Downloadable Games White Paper, Web & Downloadable Games, 2004 PDF
  • (senior editor) IGDA Persistent Worlds White Paper, 2004 PDF

Contributor/Consultant

Dunin is quoted or thanked for contributions in:

  • Amy Jo Kim, Community Building on the Web : Secret Strategies for Successful Online Communities, 2000, Peachpit Press. ISBN 0201874849
  • Lee Sheldon, Character Development and Storytelling for Games (Game Development Series), 2004, Course Technology PTR. ISBN 1592003532

Major websites

Selected websites which Dunin created and maintains:

Trivia

Dunin has several notable relatives, including:

References

External links

Categories: