Encryption Matters, Part I

kuro5hin writes, "Kuro5hin.org is running a series of articles introducing cryptography to the non-expert. The first, Encryption Matters, Part I provides an overview of basic crypto concepts: what cryptography is, and the different ways crypto is useful. It also discusses some basic algorithms, and how they may be broken. Future articles will discuss public key cryptography, and provide a tutorial on PGP/GPG for the beginner. "