Changing meaning of term "hacker"
David Levine
houxa!9212osd, reporter Bob De Sando of the Asbury Park (NJ) Press was
quoted as saying:
A 'hacker' is a person who uses a personal home computer to
decipher the access codes of another, usually for the 'fun'
of the challenge. Once the code is broken, a hacker can
gain access to confidential information and even alter the
computer's programming.
HOLY COW!!
Mr. De Sando's definition is the first real evidence I've seen of a
trend which bothers me no end: the use of 'hacker' to refer to computer
break-in artists. This casts a severe shadow on those of us who are
hackers (in the older sense of the term: people who enjoy fooling
around with computers) and have used the term to refer to ourselves in
the past.
What can we do to prevent our friends and neighbors from treating us
with suspicion, now that they know what hackers 'really' are? Is there
any way to fight this abuse of one of our most treasured buzzwords?
Could we perhaps invent a new word for these petty computer criminals,
or a new word for true hackers?
(I think that any discussion on this issue belongs in net.nlang, not
net.misc, but I'm posting to net.misc because that's where I saw the
original article.)
-- David D. Levine (...decvax!tektronix!tekecs!davidl) [UUCP]
(...tekecs!davidl.tektronix@rand-relay) [ARPA]
mau...@ncsu.uucp
It is clear that we must rally now to fight the pernicious myth
that a hacker is a criminal. I propose a massive letter-writing
campaign directed at the media, pointing out to them the true
meaning of the word "hack". I suggest that someone on an ARPAnet
machine post a copy of the jargon dictionary definition of hack
and hacker (or the whole dictionary), and that every red-blooded
netuser run off a copy on your best printer and mail it to your
favorite news magazine, network, TV station, or local paper, along
with a letter stating that if they misuse the word again, you'll
switch to a competitor.
Not only will this get the media's attention, but it will probably
also generate lots of publicity for usenet ("Tonight on PM Magazine
we'll meet some computer programmers that send offensive jokes
around the world electronically...").
Jon Mauney
mcnc!ncsu!mauney
336...@houxm.uucp
Mr. De Sando's definition is the first real evidence I've seen of a
trend which bothers me no end: the use of 'hacker' to refer to computer
break-in artists. This casts a severe shadow on those of us who are
hackers (in the older sense of the term: people who enjoy fooling
around with computers) and have used the term to refer to ourselves in
the past.
You have got to be kidding. The older meaning of the word
is cab driver, it has absolutely, positively nothing to do
with people who use computers. The English language has suffered
enough with incorrect usage of words. If you don't know what
the meanings of the word hacker are then use your dictionary.
Don't make up your own definitions. How would you like it if
I decided that the word dipstick now refers to all computer
programmers? Stop using the word hacker for your own purposes.
Please! Out of respect for the English language. Thank you.
Gene Foster
houxm!3363ewf
Mark Brader
David Levine complains about the use of "hacker" to refer to computer break-in
artists. This usage was repeated in Newsweek's cover story on the topic a
couple of weeks ago, and the fact that I'm usually a rabid Newsweek fan
just makes it seem all the worse to me.
Incidentally, at the University of Waterloo, the term was "hack", not
"hacker". One spoke of "UNIX hacks", "TSS hacks", and so on (naturally
the sets intersected). This made sense to me because there are other
professions where one speaks of "hacks", being people who are too immersed
in the profession to have a, um, fully rounded world view. (For instance,
politics and business.) Are there other places where there are "hacks"
instead of "hackers"? Are there places where both terms are used?
Followups to this paragraph to net.nlang only, not net.misc, please.
Or mail to me, as appropriate.
Mark Brader, NTT Systems Inc., Toronto, Canada
decvax!utzoo!dciem!ntt
r...@hound.uucp
issue Webster's Collegiate I find.
vb 1) to cut with repeated irregular or repeated blows.
2) to clear by cutting away vegetation.
3) to manage successfully.
n 1) a horse let out for common hire.
3) one who forfeits individual freedom of action or professional
integrity in exchange for wages ...
vt 1) to make trite and commonplace by frequent and indiscriminate use.
***Every one of these offers a plausible justification for the present
day "insiders" use of the term*** ...that is, if you want to be
etymological about it. However, one of the glories of the language and
our present age is the freedom to innovate. This is especially true
of technical jargon, and I believe the term "hacker" is about as
jargonish as you can get. As I understand it (admittedly imperfectly),
the term is complimentary when used by one who *is* a hacker and
uncomplimentary when used by one who *is not*. In any event, the usage by the
Asbury Park Press was typically uninformed and wrong. Someone should
inform *them* of their error instead of all this breast beating. But
this is more fun.
Tim Maroney
It's obvious that we need some name for those who break the
security of computer systems, to fight the pernicious media which are
trying to defame the noble word "hacker", meaning one who is spends a
lot of time programming. It is worthy of note that the set of hackers
is pretty much of a superset of the former crowd.
We need this to be a word which is usable by those in the media,
that is, three or fewer syllables. "Security breaker" is right out.
The word must also be sufficiently distinctive to have that "appeal"
that is so important to commercial television. Maybe we should just
call them "thieves", but it just ain't snazzy, nor does it distinguish
them from normal thieves.
I am too busy to coordinate the responses, so either post them to
the net or volunteer to coordinate it yourself. Here are a few to get
started:
breakers
chipsuckers
compirates
file-riflers
crackers
___________
Tim Maroney
duke!unc!tim (USENET)
tim.unc@udel-relay (ARPA)
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Laura Creighton
not. And calling them hackers is not new either. My grandfather was a
'hardware hacker' when hardware hackers built radios in their workrooms
and used them to talk to others who also built radios in their workrooms.
i think i have more in common with them than i do with the cab drivers.
laura creighton
utcsstat!laura
CSvax:Pucc-H:Pucc-I:ags@pur-ee.uucp
more precise in your use of language, Mr. Foster.
Not long ago (I believe it was in Psychology Today), there appeared an
article called "The Hacker Papers", which contained some interesting
insights on the people who call themselves hackers. It was widely
discussed on the net. I believe our current usage of the word "hacker"
derives from the older meaning:
"An inept person who constructs furniture with an axe."
Thus, "hacker" once applied only to inept or clumsy programmers. More
recently, many programmers have adopted the label with pride.
Dave Seaman
pur-ee!Pucc-I:ags
Matthew R. Orel
In Tuesday's New York Times, there is a rather interesting definition
of "hack." For anybody who is interested, the article appears on page C4
of the September 13 issues, and is written by Erik Sandberg-Diment.
To summarize, the author notes that hack has several meanings, among them
being a type of foul in basketball, and that all of these meanings have
negative connotations. "soleave it to compueterese," he continues, "to
invert the emotions and raise the term 'hacker' to a pedestal of the highest
acclaim." Hackers are also capable of "intense bursts of program writing
called 'hack attacks...'" The author also notes that Harper & Row is planning
to release a book called "The Hacker's Dictionary" sometime this year...
Maybe they'll have to change the title in N.J.
-- Matt Orel
decvax!yale-comix!orel
d...@hou5e.uucp
carefully logged into this unix system, I'll be able to show them a
real, honest-to-goodness "Hacker's License"!
It was issued to me by the great state of Maryland, a few years ago,
when I took a part time job driving a Yellow Cab.
-Dave Levenson
-ATT-ISL, Holmdel
Stanley Shebs
stan the l.h.
utah-cs!shebs
Laura Pearlman
so far, as well as one more: "a hack" was what most people would call "a
college prank", "to hack" meant to perpetrate a hack, and "a hacker" was one
who hacked. "I was out hacking all night" was a very ambiguous statement.
-- Laura Pearlman
...decvax!trw-unix!pearlman