From: James A. Donald <jamesd@echeque.com> To: Adam Back <adam@cypherspace.org> Cc: cypherpunks@cpunks.org Sent: Tuesday, January 7, 2014 11:10 PM Subject: Re: hacker != cracker (Re: Swartz, Weev & radical libertarian lexicon) On 2014-01-08 07:20, Adam Back wrote:
Hacker in the sense of cracker was a later and much hated co-option and perversion of the term. I expect that's what Rysiek was reacting to partly.
The term hacker first appears 1975 - 1985, shortly after the start of the information epoch, the age of information starting by convention 1972 January first.
The term was originally an epithet, but not for criminal behavior: http://books.google.com/books?id=vpGNJfMmFswC&pg=PA32
At that time, 1980, a hacker was someone who programs for entertainment - badly.
See http://tmrc.mit.edu/hackers-ref.html Tech Model Railroad Club Jim Bell ================quote follows=================== We at TMRC use the term "hacker" only in its original meaning, someone who applies ingenuity to create a clever result, called a "hack". The essence of a "hack" is that it is done quickly, and is usually inelegant. It accomplishes the desired goal without changing the design of the system it is embedded in. Despite often being at odds with the design of the larger system, a hack is generally quite clever and effective. This original benevolent meaning stands in stark contrast to the later and more commonly used meaning of a "hacker", typically as a person who breaks into computer networks in order to steal or vandalize. Here at TMRC, where the words "hack" and "hacker" originated and have been used proudly since the late 1950s, we resent the misapplication of the word to mean the committing of illegal acts. People who do those things are better described by expressions such as "thieves", "password crackers". or "computer vandals". They are certainly not true hackers, as they do not understand the hacker ethic. Also see the definition of "hacker" in the on-line version of the New Hacker's Dictionary. Reference info related to TMRC This section lists books and other major publications that reference TMRC. The Tech Model Railroad Club is featured as the first chapter of Hackers, by Steven Levy (New York: Anchor Press/Doubleday, 1984). It is credited as one (possibly the primary) source of the Hacker Culture the book describes. Several entries in The New Hacker's Dictionary, (Second Edition, edited by Eric S. Raymond (MIT Press, 1993); ISBN 0-262-68079-3) are derived from Abridged Dictionary of the TMRC Language. There is also an online version of the book's content. The cover article in Railroad Model Craftsman, July 1986 was a preview of the club for the 1986 NMRA convention held in Boston. A converted copy of the text we submitted is available online. ________________________________ Tech Model Railroad Club of MIT Room N52-118 265 Massachusetts Avenue Cambridge, MA 02139 +1 617 253-3269 x3-3269 (on campus) Email: tmrc-web@mit.edu Generated Wed 08 Jan 2014 02:28:19 AM EST in 0.0 secs