Brian Harvey
University of California, Berkeley
In one sense it's silly to argue about the ``true'' meaning
of a word. A word means whatever people use it to mean. I am not the Academie
Française; I can't force Newsweek to use the word ``hacker'' according to my
official definition.
Still, understanding the etymological history of the word
``hacker'' may help in understanding the current social situation.
The concept of hacking entered the computer culture at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the 1960s. Popular opinion at MIT
posited that there are two kinds of students, tools and hackers. A ``tool'' is
someone who attends class regularly, is always to be found in the library when
no class is meeting, and gets straight As. A ``hacker'' is the opposite:
someone who never goes to class, who in fact sleeps all day, and who spends the
night pursuing recreational activities rather than studying. There was thought
to be no middle ground.
What does this have to do with computers? Originally,
nothing. But there are standards for success as a hacker, just as grades form a
standard for success as a tool. The true hacker can't just sit around all
night; he must pursue some hobby with dedication and flair. It can be
telephones, or railroads (model, real, or both), or science fiction fandom, or
ham radio, or broadcast radio. It can be more than one of these. Or it can be
computers. [In 1986, the word ``hacker'' is generally used among MIT students
to refer not to computer hackers but to building hackers, people who explore
roofs and tunnels where they're not supposed to be.]
A ``computer hacker,'' then, is someone who lives and
breathes computers, who knows all about computers, who can get a computer to do
anything. Equally important, though, is the hacker's attitude. Computer
programming must be a hobby, something done for fun, not out of a sense of duty
or for the money. (It's okay to make money, but that can't be the reason for
hacking.)
A hacker is an aesthete.
There are specialties within computer hacking. An algorithm
hacker knows all about the best algorithm for any problem. A system hacker
knows about designing and maintaining operating systems. And a ``password
hacker'' knows how to find out someone else's password. That's what Newsweek
should be calling them.
Someone who sets out to crack the security of a system for
financial gain is not a hacker at all. It's not that a hacker can't be a thief,
but a hacker can't be a professional thief. A hacker must be fundamentally an
amateur, even though hackers can get paid for their expertise. A password
hacker whose primary interest is in learning how the system works doesn't
therefore necessarily refrain from stealing information or services, but
someone whose primary interest is in stealing isn't a hacker. It's a matter of
emphasis.
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
