VINCI (filipe@vxcrna.cern.ch) wrote: : In article <1993May12.193454.29823@hal.com>, bobp@hal.com (Bob Pendleton) writes... : >From article <1993May7.235404.22590@pony.Ingres.COM>, by mwmeyer@Ingres.COM (Mike (wading through the muck and) Meyer): : >> In article <1993May7.165432.16935@hal.com> bobp@hal.com (Bob Pendleton) writes: : >>    This is getting pretty silly. First off, "Hacker" is an obsolete term. : >>    Doesn't matter what it used to mean, today it means "thief." : >>  : >> It only means "thief" if you want it to mean that.  To me, it means  :   [Lots of context wickedly omitted by myself :-) ] : >  : >Anyway, if I say "Joe is a hacker" to most english speaking people who : >know the word they'll probably think he is either a poor golfer or a : >bad carpenter. But there are very very few people who will think he is : >a good and clever programmer. :-) : >  : >If you chose to call yourself by a term that means "thief" don't be : >surprised when people think you are a thief. Even if you don't agree : >with that definition of the word. :       ^^^  ^^^^^^^^^^  :  [....] The narrower view that a hacker, when :  associated with the computing environment, is a dishonest :  expert is not so widespread, I'm my opinion, at least with the :  people involved with the field. IMHO the wider meaning is not :  obsolete at all, no matter how much the lay press would like it to :  be!  [....]  :  Therefore I conclude that if you call yourself a hacker, and somebody :  perceives you as a thief, then this person belongs to a very very :  small group that has some computer knowledge, but not enough to know :  the wider (and original) meaning of the word.  [....]  Unfortunately, the general public has a very narrow view of the deep, dark recesses of the art of computing.  What little they do see is from the view given to them by the media.  From what I have seen from the media, 'hacker' is not a proper way by which to refer to a respected person.  I, on the other hand, know what 'hacker' means from those who consider themselves such.  Following is the definition from "Jargon File 2.9.10". (This is also known as the "Hackers Dictionary".)  The definitions are arranged in order of decreasing frequency of usage:     :hacker: [originally, someone who makes furniture with an axe] n.      1. A person who enjoys exploring the details of programmable      systems and how to stretch their capabilities, as opposed to most      users, who prefer to learn only the minimum necessary.  2. One who      programs enthusiastically (even obsessively) or who enjoys      programming rather than just theorizing about programming.  3. A      person capable of appreciating {hack value}.  4. A person who is      good at programming quickly.  5. An expert at a particular program,      or one who frequently does work using it or on it; as in 'a UNIX      hacker'.  (Definitions 1 through 5 are correlated, and people who      fit them congregate.)  6. An expert or enthusiast of any kind.  One      might be an astronomy hacker, for example.  7. One who enjoys the      intellectual challenge of creatively overcoming or circumventing      limitations.  8. [deprecated] A malicious meddler who tries to      discover sensitive information by poking around.  Hence 'password      hacker', 'network hacker'.  See {cracker}.       The term 'hacker' also tends to connote membership in the global      community defined by the net (see {network, the} and      {Internet address}).  It also implies that the person described      is seen to subscribe to some version of the hacker ehic (see      {hacker ethic, the}).       It is better to be described as a hacker by others than to describe      oneself that way.  Hackers consider themselves something of an      elite (a meritocracy based on ability), though one to which new      members are gladly welcome.  There is thus a certain ego      satisfaction to be had in identifying yourself as a hacker (but if      you claim to be one and are not, you'll quickly be labeled      {bogus}).  See also {wannabee}.     :hacker ethic, the: n.  1. The belief that information-sharing      is a powerful positive good, and that it is an ethical duty of      hackers to share their expertise by writing free software and      facilitating access to information and to computing resources      wherever possible.  2. The belief that system-cracking for fun      and exploration is ethically OK as long as the cracker commits      no theft, vandalism, or breach of confidentiality.       Both of these normative ethical principles are widely, but by no      means universally) accepted among hackers. Most hackers subscribe      to the hacker ethic in sense 1, and many act on it by writing and      giving away free software.  A few go further and assert that      *all* information should be free and *any* proprietary      control of it is bad; this is the philosophy behind the {GNU}      project.       Sense 2 is more controversial: some people consider the act of      cracking itself to be unethical, like breaking and entering.      But this principle at least moderates the behavior of people who      see themselves as `benign' crackers (see also {samurai}).  On      this view, it is one of the highest forms of hackerly courtesy      to (a) break into a system, and then (b) explain to the sysop,      preferably by email from a {superuser} account, exactly how it      was done and how the hole can be plugged --- acting as an      unpaid (an unsolicited) {tiger team}.       The most reliable manifestation of either version of the hacker      ethic is that almost all hackers are actively willing to share      technical tricks, software, and (where possible) computing      resources with other hackers.  Huge cooperative networks such as      {USENET}, {Fidonet} and Internet (see {Internet address})      can function without central control because of this trait; they      both rely on and reinforce a sense of community that may be      hackerdom's most valuable intangible asset.  :  Finally, a true hacker does not name himself/herself one, for this is :  a title that is bestowed by the befuddled sysadmins and users at large. : To me, a sign of a truly great hacker is to be introduced to someone who : says "Nahh, I just know a thing or two, people always exagerate..." :-)  Note that the above definition does not preclude a hacker from describing limself (meaning: himself/herself) one, but simply says that it is better not to do so.  There are many who do not know the meaning of 'hacker'.  So, in order to defend the true meaning of the word, it is sometimes necessary to borrow on the reputation of a known (respected) hacker around the workplace.  (This means that 'hacker' is defined in terms of some well-known and respected person.)  Sometimes, there may only be one such person.  : >No matter what Mr. Dumpty says, language doesn't work that way. :  Actually it does, you just have to get adequate press coverage... :-)  Language works anyway that we want it to work.  The purpose of language is to communicate.  To oversimplify: As long as communication is taking place, then language is working.