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“People think hacker means a criminal,” said Devon Jones, a 33-year-old member of the collective who was slumped on a ratty couch drinking a beer. “Well, we wan
by bprater 18y ago
“People think hacker means a criminal,” said Devon Jones, a 33-year-old member of the collective who was slumped on a ratty couch drinking a beer. “Well, we want our word back.”
Me too!
- andreyf 18y agoI haven't met a person who thought hacker meant criminal in 5 years now...
- dmix 18y agoReally? I still frequently find myself explaining to people what a web application is.
- deleted 18y ago[deleted]
- dmoney 18y agoIn person, I think I've only heard it used in the criminal sense. Even among programmers.
- andreyf 18y agoI guess that means I'm hanging around the right people...
- netcan 18y agoHere you go: http://news.google.com/news?q=hacker&ie=utf-8&oe=UTF-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&sa=N&tab=wn&oi=property_suggestions&resnum=0&ct=property-revision&cd=5 http://news.google.com/news?q=hacker&ie=utf-8&oe=UTF... Looks about 50/50
- andreyf 18y agoSorry, I should have been more precise - sure, everyone uses the word "hacker" with criminal intension sometimes, but people know there are other meanings, also.
- gruseom 18y agoI like the positive usage as well. Too bad the historical evidence is actually that it's not the original meaning. I still hear "hacker" used a lot in a third sense, too, meaning "bad programmer" - not a criminal, just someone who does a hack job. Perhaps this meaning goes back to "hack" as applied to writers (churning out slop for money). That usage goes back to hackney carriages and hired horses. Edit: dictionary.com (yes, I'm ashamed) has only the positive meaning for hack: 7. Computers. to devise or modify (a computer program), usually skillfully. ... and gives the positive meaning priority for hacker: 3. Computer Slang. a. a computer enthusiast. b. a microcomputer user who attempts to gain unauthorized access to proprietary computer systems. Those are pretty cool signs.