Hacker

A hacker is a person who enjoys exploring the details of programmable systems and how to stretch their capabilities, as opposed to most users, who tend to prefer learning only the minimum necessary.

Definitions

 * One who programs enthusiastically (even obsessively) or who enjoys programming rather than just theorizing about programming.
 * A person capable of appreciating.
 * A person who is good at programming quickly.
 * An expert at a particular program, or one who frequently does work using it or on it; as in "a Unix hacker". (some definitions are correlated, and people who fit them tend to congregate)
 * An expert or enthusiast of any kind. One might be an astronomy hacker, for example.
 * One who enjoys the intellectual challenge of creatively overcoming or circumventing limitations.
 * (Deprecated) A malicious meddler who tries to discover sensitive information by poking around. Hence "password hacker", "network hacker". The correct term is.
 * (, rare) A programmer who does not understand proper programming techniques and principles and doesn't have a degree. Someone who just bangs on the keyboard until something happens. For example, "This program is nothing but . It must have been written by a hacker".

It is better to be described as a hacker by others than to describe oneself that way. Hackers consider themselves something of an elite (a based on ability), though one to which new members are gladly welcome. Thus while it is gratifying to be called a hacker, false claimants to the title are quickly labelled as "bogus" or a "".

The term "hacker" also tends to connote membership in the global community defined by the Internet. It also implies that the person described is seen to subscribe to some version of the.

Articles

 * Can Macs be hacked? by Karen Haslam at Macworld (2021-02-19)