What is "hacker"

hacker \hack"er\ (h[a^]k"[~e]r), n. One who, or that which, hacks. Specifically: A cutting instrument for making notches; esp., one used for notching pine trees in collecting turpentine; a hack.

"a chopper, cutter," perhaps also "one who makes hacking tools," early 13c. (as a surname), agent noun from hack (v.1). Meaning "one who gains unauthorized access to computer records" is attested by 1983, agent noun from hack (v.2). Said to be from slightly earlier tech slang sense of "one who works like a hack at writing and experimenting with software, one who enjoys computer programming for its own sake," 1976, reputedly a usage that evolved at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (however an MIT student from the late 1960s recalls hack (n.) being used then and there in the general sense of "creative prank," which clouds its sense connection with the "writing for hire" word, and there may be a source or an influence here in hack (v.1)).\n

n. 1 Something that hacks; a tool or device for hacking. 2 Someone who hacks. 3 # Particularly, one who cuts with rough or heavy blows. 4 # Particularly, one who kicks wildly or roughly. 5 # Particularly, one who is consistent and focuses on accomplishing a task or several tasks. 6 (context computing English) One who is expert at programming and solving problems with a computer. 7 (context computing English) one who uses a computer to gain unauthorized access to data, or to carry out malicious attacks. 8 (context computing English) a computer security professional 9 (context US English) one who is inexperienced or unskilled at a particular activity, especially a sport such as golf or tennis. 10 (context US English) one who operates a taxicab

1. n. someone who plays golf poorly

2. a programmer who breaks into computer systems in order to steal or change or destroy information as a form of cyber-terrorism [syn: cyber-terrorist, cyberpunk]

3. a programmer for whom computing is its own reward; may enjoy the challenge of breaking into other computers but does no harm; "true hackers subscribe to a code of ethics and look down upon crackers"

4. one who works hard at boring tasks [syn: hack, drudge]

In computing, a hacker is any highly skilled computer expert. Depending on the field of computing it has slightly different meanings, and in some contexts has controversial moral and ethical connotations. In its original sense, the term refers to a person in any one of the communities and hacker subcultures:

• Hacker culture, an idea derived from a community of enthusiast computer programmers and systems designers, in the 1960s around the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's (MIT's) Tech Model Railroad Club (TMRC) and MIT Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. The hobbyist home computing community, focusing on hardware in the late 1970s (e.g. the Homebrew Computer Club) and on software ( video games, software cracking, the demoscene) in the 1980s/1990s. Later, this would go on to encompass many new definitions such as art, and Life hacking.
• Hacker (computer security). People involved with circumvention of computer security. This primarily concerns unauthorized remote computer break-ins via communication networks such as the Internet ( Black hats), but also includes those who debug or fix security problems ( White hats), and the morally ambiguous Grey hats.

Hacker is a card game (not a trading card game) made by Steve Jackson Games (SJG). Published in 1992, the players impersonate hackers fighting for the control of computer networks. It is based primarily on interlocking access to different computer systems in the web. Players are not set directly towards each other, and several players can share access to a system. It is superficially similar (modulo terminology) to the game Illuminati. Hacker is currently out of print.

Hacker (game) may refer to:

• Hacker (video game), 1985 computer game by Activision
• Hacker (card game), 1992 Steve Jackson Games release

Hacker is a 1985 computer game by Activision. It was designed by Steve Cartwright, produced by Brad Fregger and was released for the Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Atari XL/XE, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Macintosh, MS-DOS, MSX and ZX Spectrum. The game was released two years after the release of the film WarGames, when computer hacking and computer security were in the limelight.

A hacker is a highly skilled computer expert, including:

• Security hacker, someone who seeks and exploits weaknesses in a computer system or computer network
• Hacker culture, a subculture focusing on intellectual and creative aspects of hacking

Hacker is a surname. Notable people with the name include:

• Alan Hacker (1938–2012), English clarinetist
• Alf Hacker (1912–1970), Australian rules footballer
• Andrew Hacker (born 1929), American political scientist
• Arthur Hacker (1858–1919), British artist
• Benjamin Thurman Hacker (1935–2003), U.S. Naval officer
• Dan Hacker (born 1982), American ice hockey center
• David Hacker (born 1964), British field hockey player
• Eric Hacker (born 1983), American baseball pitcher
• Francis Hacker (died 1660), fought for Parliament during the English Civil War
• George Hacker, American lawyer and alcohol advocate
• George Hacker (bishop) (born 1928), Suffragan Bishop of Penrith
• Hans Hacker (1910–1994), ceramic decal designer and painter
• Hilary Baumann Hacker (1913–1990), American Roman Catholic bishop
• Jack Hacker (1914–1984), Australian rules footballer
• Jacob Hacker (born 1971), American political scientist
• Jeremiah Hacker (1801–1895), American reformer and journalist
• Jörg Hacker (born 1952), German microbiologist
• Katharina Hacker (born 1967), German author
• Katharina Häcker (born 1986), German competitive figure skater
• Katrina Hacker (born 1990), American figure skater
• Marcel Hacker (born 1977), German rower
• Marilyn Hacker (born 1942), American poet, critic, and reviewer
• Peter Hacker (born 1939), British philosopher
• Peter Hacker (born 1952), English cricketer
• Rich Hacker (born 1947), American baseball player, base coach and scout
• Rose Hacker (1906–2008), British socialist, writer, sex educator and campaigner for social justice
• Rüdiger Hacker (born 1941), German actor, radio play narrator and director
• Sally Hacker (1936–1988), American feminist sociologist
• Severin Hacker (born 1984), Swiss computer scientist, co-founder and CTO of Duolingo
• Stamford Hacker (1876–1925), English cricketer
• Warren Hacker (1924–2002), American baseball pitcher