8 ms·

I don't think we can ever salvage the old meaning of the word. Hacker mostly means "computer criminal" now. That is literally what official dictionaries define

I don't think we can ever salvage the old meaning of the word. Hacker mostly means "computer criminal" now. That is literally what official dictionaries define it as: "a person who hacks into a computer system" [1]. But that's just the mainstream. We know what hackers really are, because we are hackers. It's like a password. If you know what hacker really means, you probably are one. [1] http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hacker http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hacker

unimpressive 12y ago
The "Computer Expert" definition is in fact one of the definitions listed on that page. It is rightly not at the top because it is not the most common usage. 3 : an expert at programming and solving problems with a computer
mbubb 12y ago
I know it is a bit silly but I feel compelled at times to respond to and correct news headlines like "Hackers Steal Bank Passwords". Conflating hacking with criminal activity is another example of the depressing Prohibitionism which is such a drain on the American psyche and which props up organized crime and the militarization of everyday life. There was a PBS kids show my kids watched a few years back: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyberchase http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyberchase Stupid as hell and despite the fact that it received science education grants - had nothing to do with science. There was a character called the Hacker who was like a Gargamel-ish character. My boys eventually asked me why I didn't like the show and I had a parenting moment where I explained to them what a hacker was - I used examples like Leonardo da Vinci who did things that were considered illegal to advance science (human disection, etc). More recently we had the opportunity to go tot HOPE X in NYC. They learned lockpicking and soldering and checked out the exhibits and books. And we had the 'lockpicking is ok if the lock is yours' talk... It is not that hard to make the distinction - I wish it were more prevalent.

unimpressive 12y ago

The "Computer Expert" definition is in fact one of the definitions listed on that page. It is rightly not at the top because it is not the most common usage. 3 : an expert at programming and solving problems with a computer

mbubb 12y ago

I know it is a bit silly but I feel compelled at times to respond to and correct news headlines like "Hackers Steal Bank Passwords". Conflating hacking with criminal activity is another example of the depressing Prohibitionism which is such a drain on the American psyche and which props up organized crime and the militarization of everyday life. There was a PBS kids show my kids watched a few years back: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyberchase http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyberchase Stupid as hell and despite the fact that it received science education grants - had nothing to do with science. There was a character called the Hacker who was like a Gargamel-ish character. My boys eventually asked me why I didn't like the show and I had a parenting moment where I explained to them what a hacker was - I used examples like Leonardo da Vinci who did things that were considered illegal to advance science (human disection, etc). More recently we had the opportunity to go tot HOPE X in NYC. They learned lockpicking and soldering and checked out the exhibits and books. And we had the 'lockpicking is ok if the lock is yours' talk... It is not that hard to make the distinction - I wish it were more prevalent.