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> It seems that on here, the nucleus of hackers has remained more or less constant since 2010, while all other demographics flooded in. I think this also descr
by rlpb 3y ago
> It seems that on here, the nucleus of hackers has remained more or less constant since 2010, while all other demographics flooded in.
I think this also describes those working on software in general. Everyone uses the same interesting-to-hackers low level parts of the stack. But the nature of software is that _use_ scales infinitely, so roughly the same small quantity of developers are needed the same as was needed in the 90s.
But technology use has exploded, so there's huge demand for developers working higher up in the stack, because the need for domain specific apps has exploded and that part doesn't scale. So the 90s hackers continue but are now dwarfed by app developers and web developers are many orders of magnitude more numerous.
Unfortunately because software is a commodity the use of the low level parts of the stack doesn't translate to money for the hackers working on them. Because just as it's a niche interest for developers in that area, so it's a niche business case to make money out of working in that area.
- JohnFen 3y agoBeing a hacker has nothing to do with how far up the stack you operate. It even has nothing to do with software or computers specifically. Traditionally, being a hacker is being a person who is very interested in learning how things work, and how to use those things in new ways. Historically, proper hackers have focused on things ranging from model railroads to pay phones to bureaucratic systems, to computers and more. The most common early sign that a child is a hacker is when the child takes apart every machine they can lay their hands on.
- rlpb 3y ago> Traditionally, being a hacker is being a person who is very interested in learning how things work... I am aware, and I agree. > Being a hacker has nothing to do with how far up the stack you operate. I disagree. The workings further down the stack are interesting only to hackers, and those paid to work in that area. I think that's quite different from the reasons for interest further up the stack.
- jasonm23 3y agoI think you may have missed the point, and I apologise, if I didn't infer your thought as it was intended. At any level of the stack, the hacker mindset of "learning how things work...(and utilizing that knowledge)" is generally applicable. It's arguable that while, say, Steve Jobs wasn't a technically adept hacker, he was a business, product and people/behavior hacker.