I think the author's intended use of the word 'hack' is less about veering off the beaten path to get it to do something unexpected, but more inline with 'life

I think the author's intended use of the word 'hack' is less about veering off the beaten path to get it to do something unexpected, but more inline with 'life hack' or 'cool things to try'. The intended audience for a post like that might be the less-technical crowd.