What Is John Draper?

John Draper, or Captain Crunch as he's known in the phone phreaking community, is a very famous programmer and phone phreaker. Draper first became a proficient phone phreaker, earning his Captain Crunch moniker from using a Cap'n Crunch Bosun whistle to fool the phone systems. He later built blue boxes to mimic the tones used by phone systems. An article about his activities brought him to the attention of Steve Wozniak and, eventually, Steve Jobs. Draper also did programming work for Apple, including writing the first-word processor for the Apple II, the EasyWriter. If you're wondering where Silicon Valley's programmers and entrepreneurs get their ideas, look no further than Stewart "Captain Crunch" A. Draper. Draper began his career as a pirate radio enthusiast but soon moved on to phreaking and computers. He also spent some time in jail—but he doesn't regret it. He says that if it hadn't been for that time in prison, he wouldn't have been able to start his own company, which ultimately became one of Silicon Valley's most successful ventures. It's no secret that the Homebrew Computer Club was a hotbed of tech innovation. Founded by Steve Wozniak, it was where he met Steve Jobs and formed Apple Computer. It also gave birth to many other legendary Silicon Valley entrepreneurs. Did you know that one of those entrepreneurs was Michael Draper? Michael Draper was a member of the Homebrew Computer Club when it was still in its early days—and even though he wasn't directly involved with Apple's formation, he certainly helped set the stage for its success. Today, Draper remains engaged in the industry as an entrepreneur and programmer. His company makes software for people who want to build their websites—which is pretty much everyone nowadays!