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"Skills reflected ... port scanning other systems ... unlock APIs ... maliciously install on other systems ..." They should have named it CrackWars... Hacking

by Luyt 17y ago

"Skills reflected ... port scanning other systems ... unlock APIs ... maliciously install on other systems ..." They should have named it CrackWars... Hacking is not about breaking into computer systems, unless you're ignorant about the true meaning of the word.

BenjaminCoe 17y ago
I think, being a fictional role-playing game, Hack Wars is about hacking in more the "Hack The Gibson" sort of way, than the "learn about how things work" sort of way. The Blog post itself, however, is discussing this game in terms of the learning experience involved (for better or for worse) in cobbling the game together.
- diN0bot 17y ago
  does anyone outside of hacker news think of "hacking" as "learn about how things work"? i always thought pg made this up. whenever i talk to people outside of hacker news i say "maker" instead of hacker. rambling: i like to think i've found the awesomeness that is hacker news (and ycombinator) despite poor naming choices. the 'y' in ycombinator combined with photos of men and combined with the classical hacker culture really lowered my expectations for this community....then i discovered it was totally different. ps - even knowing lambda calculus and fixed point calculations, i still half thought the choice of 'y' was ostentatiously male. on the other hand, it wouldn't be the first time i had a skewed perspective of language and culture.
  - BenjaminCoe 17y ago
    Fairly worthwhile documentary discussing the etymology of the term Hacker: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5464925144369700635# http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5464925144369700635#
  - Luyt 17y ago
    http://catb.org/~esr/faqs/hacker-howto.html#what_is http://catb.org/~esr/faqs/hacker-howto.html#what_is is a good read about 'hackers' in the true, original meaning of the word.
ambulatorybird 17y ago
"HackWars" is probably a better name for the purposes of marketing. "CrackWars" sounds like a game about drug enforcement.
dasil003 17y ago
I'm not sure how old you are, but I'll assume that if you listen to me I can save you 50 years of repeatedly shoving your brain through a meat grinder. Hacking is not about breaking into computer systems Everyone at HN already knows this and has heard it repeated ad nauseam. No one else cares, and your attempts to correct them will do little beyond branding you as an angry nerd. If you must persist in your sisyphean effort, at least realize that you are doomed to failure. Language is shaped by common usage, not edict.

by Luyt 17y ago

BenjaminCoe 17y ago

I think, being a fictional role-playing game, Hack Wars is about hacking in more the "Hack The Gibson" sort of way, than the "learn about how things work" sort of way. The Blog post itself, however, is discussing this game in terms of the learning experience involved (for better or for worse) in cobbling the game together.

diN0bot 17y ago
does anyone outside of hacker news think of "hacking" as "learn about how things work"? i always thought pg made this up. whenever i talk to people outside of hacker news i say "maker" instead of hacker. rambling: i like to think i've found the awesomeness that is hacker news (and ycombinator) despite poor naming choices. the 'y' in ycombinator combined with photos of men and combined with the classical hacker culture really lowered my expectations for this community....then i discovered it was totally different. ps - even knowing lambda calculus and fixed point calculations, i still half thought the choice of 'y' was ostentatiously male. on the other hand, it wouldn't be the first time i had a skewed perspective of language and culture.
- BenjaminCoe 17y ago
  Fairly worthwhile documentary discussing the etymology of the term Hacker: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5464925144369700635# http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5464925144369700635#
- Luyt 17y ago
  http://catb.org/~esr/faqs/hacker-howto.html#what_is http://catb.org/~esr/faqs/hacker-howto.html#what_is is a good read about 'hackers' in the true, original meaning of the word.

ambulatorybird 17y ago

"HackWars" is probably a better name for the purposes of marketing. "CrackWars" sounds like a game about drug enforcement.

dasil003 17y ago

I'm not sure how old you are, but I'll assume that if you listen to me I can save you 50 years of repeatedly shoving your brain through a meat grinder. Hacking is not about breaking into computer systems Everyone at HN already knows this and has heard it repeated ad nauseam. No one else cares, and your attempts to correct them will do little beyond branding you as an angry nerd. If you must persist in your sisyphean effort, at least realize that you are doomed to failure. Language is shaped by common usage, not edict.