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> if you're not you say "This is way more work than its worth." Because what the hacker mentality gets reinforcement from, is overcoming the 'impossible' (or si
by chavesn 12y ago
> if you're not you say "This is way more work than its worth." Because what the hacker mentality gets reinforcement from, is overcoming the 'impossible' (or simply the 'you can't do this') not the actual puzzle assembly.
Hmm, up until this, I thought I was a hacker. When I see a problem worth solving, I'll dig in and try different tools that I've never tried before and figure out a way to make it happen. I really resonate with what you said about not being deterred by the problem seeming extremely difficult or having no obvious solutions.
But I actively try not to work on things that are "more work than they are worth". Seeming "impossible" is not enough to me to make it worth. It has to actually provide some benefit.
This is not to say I don't still get carried away and attempt something which really ends up not being worth the time...
- ChuckMcM 12y agoFair enough, I see it as something of a spectrum. From full on OCD[1] on one end where once engaged a puzzle must be finished, drifting off toward zero (not sure how to compute the shape of that curve though). For the OCD person it is a compulsion, for someone just to the right of that, it is entertainment, further right its part of the job, and furthest right it is 'a waste of time and I won't do it.' I completely agree with your point "When I see a problem worth solving,..." the only debate is computing the value. My original point is that as it takes less and less external motivation to engage someone on solving a puzzle/problem they exhibit more and more tendencies of what I associate with the moniker 'hacker.' [1] Obsessive Compulsive Disorder