4 ms·

Cool, but its not really hacking if you just use an sdk to write code for a platform.

_joel 3y ago
I think you misunderstand the origin of hacking. It's not about breaking into systems, that's cracking. Using an SDK to program a watch is definitely hacking on the watch. The media are generally to blame for this miscategorisation.
- vbezhenar 3y ago
  Using an SDK to program a watch is... programming a watch? Otherwise every iOS developer is iPhone hacker? I'm not an English native speaker, however to me "hack" means something not standard. Not necessary cracking, of course, but just using SDK to write some software does not sound like something very "hacky". Those watches were explicitly designed to be extendable.
  - GuB-42 3y ago
    The "hacky" part is that he didn't use the official "Windows XP-era wizard" development environment. Instead, he works under Linux with standard Makefiles, using wine and calling the compiler directly.
  - _joel 3y ago
    Yet here we are on a site called "Hacker News" with the current top story being about a consensus algorithm with a load of implementations and real world usage, libraries in multiple languages. The original term comes, afaik, from journalists who would hack on typewriters, hence hacks.. it's another evolution, but I'm not great with etymology.
    - OhMeadhbh 3y ago
      Well. It also purports to be a tech site when it's really a finance site.
  - OhMeadhbh 3y ago
    It's okay. I'm a native english speaker and the word "hack" sometimes confuses me too. There are at least three meanings I can think of: 1. From the MIT Model Railroad Club. This is the "good" definition of hacking. A "hack" is a clever manipulation of an existing system to exceed it's design specs or make it do something radically different from what it was originally intended to do. Example: "Did you see that radical hack Bob pulled, using a the I/O port on a Commodore 64 to drive the model railroad track switcher? That was amazing!" 2. From the news media in the 80s and 90s. To break into a computer system. Example: "Wiley hackers broke into government computers and stole your Social Security, Drivers License and Credit Card numbers. But the good news is you get free credit monitoring services for the next year." 3. From ????. To jury-rig a system out of parts you wouldn't expect would work together, but it does. Example: "Did you see that radical hack Bob pulled, using a cardboard toilet paper roll to emulate a PDP-11? That was amazing!"
    - II2II 3y ago
      The words hack and hacker have been co-opted by so many people and for so many purposes that it is does not have any coherent definition, at least in the realm of technology. To add examples to your list: hacker seems to refer to people who do not code professionally or who subscribe to a more results oriented (rather than methodological) programming style; while a hack can refer to "amateur" (meaning low quality) code or a writer who pumps out low quality work (professionally). These words seem to have more to do with social status within a particular group than anything else.
- saagarjha 3y ago
  One would think the author of the post would be very familiar with both uses.
- smcameron 3y ago
  When it comes to (mechanical) watches in particular, hacking has another meaning: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hack_watch https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hack_watch

I think you misunderstand the origin of hacking. It's not about breaking into systems, that's cracking. Using an SDK to program a watch is definitely hacking on the watch. The media are generally to blame for this miscategorisation.

vbezhenar 3y ago
Using an SDK to program a watch is... programming a watch? Otherwise every iOS developer is iPhone hacker? I'm not an English native speaker, however to me "hack" means something not standard. Not necessary cracking, of course, but just using SDK to write some software does not sound like something very "hacky". Those watches were explicitly designed to be extendable.
- GuB-42 3y ago
  The "hacky" part is that he didn't use the official "Windows XP-era wizard" development environment. Instead, he works under Linux with standard Makefiles, using wine and calling the compiler directly.
- _joel 3y ago
  Yet here we are on a site called "Hacker News" with the current top story being about a consensus algorithm with a load of implementations and real world usage, libraries in multiple languages. The original term comes, afaik, from journalists who would hack on typewriters, hence hacks.. it's another evolution, but I'm not great with etymology.
  - OhMeadhbh 3y ago
    Well. It also purports to be a tech site when it's really a finance site.
- OhMeadhbh 3y ago
  It's okay. I'm a native english speaker and the word "hack" sometimes confuses me too. There are at least three meanings I can think of: 1. From the MIT Model Railroad Club. This is the "good" definition of hacking. A "hack" is a clever manipulation of an existing system to exceed it's design specs or make it do something radically different from what it was originally intended to do. Example: "Did you see that radical hack Bob pulled, using a the I/O port on a Commodore 64 to drive the model railroad track switcher? That was amazing!" 2. From the news media in the 80s and 90s. To break into a computer system. Example: "Wiley hackers broke into government computers and stole your Social Security, Drivers License and Credit Card numbers. But the good news is you get free credit monitoring services for the next year." 3. From ????. To jury-rig a system out of parts you wouldn't expect would work together, but it does. Example: "Did you see that radical hack Bob pulled, using a cardboard toilet paper roll to emulate a PDP-11? That was amazing!"
  - II2II 3y ago
    The words hack and hacker have been co-opted by so many people and for so many purposes that it is does not have any coherent definition, at least in the realm of technology. To add examples to your list: hacker seems to refer to people who do not code professionally or who subscribe to a more results oriented (rather than methodological) programming style; while a hack can refer to "amateur" (meaning low quality) code or a writer who pumps out low quality work (professionally). These words seem to have more to do with social status within a particular group than anything else.
saagarjha 3y ago
One would think the author of the post would be very familiar with both uses.
smcameron 3y ago
When it comes to (mechanical) watches in particular, hacking has another meaning: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hack_watch https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hack_watch