An amateur is not a person that has no knowledge. An amateur is a person who pursues an activity independently of their source of income. It's kind of amusing

An amateur is not a person that has no knowledge. An amateur is a person who pursues an activity independently of their source of income. It's kind of amusing that general understanding of the term has flipped in this way - basically it implies that if you're not doing something under a capitalistic structure, you're probably doing something wrong. A bunch of software that you use on your computer on an everyday basis was produced by amateurs. Hobbyist might be a better term. I have a degree in Physics. I'm not even an amateur physicist - I don't really do anything in the field at all, my time is spent moving pixels about on screens. :P