[Noisebridge-discuss] What is the true hacker ethic?

[jim]

   for me, 
* a "hacker" applies an unconstrained and artful 
approach to problem solving; 
* a "cracker" is a hacker who breaks into systems; 
* an "employee" in a technical field may be a 
hacker at heart and to some degree in action, but 
is constrained in what to accomplish and how; 
* a "slave" is more constrained than an employee. 

   the "contributor ethic" description below is 
highly appealing, though idealistic and in that 
way should be eternally suspect. 

   as to promotion, discard discussion of bad 
guys and be active in being and supporting the 
"contributor ethic". tie in with the various 
"open" efforts such as open source, linux and 
freeBSD, the OLPC XO effort. 
   education of children, especially female
children, in "third world" countries seems our 
only hope for the planet. that effort depends 
on open communications. reach out to support 
such efforts. build hacker spaces and their 
interconnections. teach calculus and geometry 
and essential deconstruction skills to 
five-year olds. write software that does so. 


On Sat, 2009-06-13 at 21:06 -0700, Geoff Schmidt wrote:
> Hacker culture has spread far and wide. Today I was thinking about the  
> hacker ethic: the idea or value that unifies hacker culture. It  
> occurred to me that different people see the hacker ethic in different  
> ways.
> 
> ** "Outsider" version of the hacker ethic **
> 
> We will do whatever is necessary to do to (metaphorically) break into  
> the citadel where the information is kept. We will grab whatever we  
> can and flee back to the tribe. There we will celebrate a successful  
> heist from the Man. Sometimes we get plans for a self-reproducing  
> plasma cutter.. sometimes we get obsolete Bell System technical  
> manuals of no objective value whatsoever. Either way the raid was  
> important and we celebrate it and add another story to our growing  
> historical tradition.
> 
> We are like a Matrix-style resistance movement struggling to survive  
> on the fringe of society against the growing power of the Machine. For  
> the future of mankind, we have to defend the tribe and our traditions.
> 
> ** "Contributor" version of the hacker ethic **
> 
> It is really great to completely figure something out. And if we are  
> curious and focused, we should be able to completely figure anything  
> out, on our own initiative and under our own power. Based on the  
> things we figure out, we can make real contributions to the human  
> race: things that move the world forward. And because our allegiance  
> is to understanding and truth, we will be ruthlessly self-critical of  
> our abilities and contributions. To stay objective and avoid jealousy,  
> we'll have to base our self-esteem on our shared commitment to truth  
> rather than on our personal accomplishments.
> 
> Instead of seeing ourselves as Prometheus, we see ourselves as the gods.
> 
> --
> 
> Now, here's what I think: the Outsider hacking ethic is a fun game  
> when you're 16, but it's total bullshit when you're 21. We should  
> strive to be Contributors, and where we find Outsiders, we should  
> change their minds. And we will change their minds by helping them  
> have faith in their abilities, and by holding them to higher  
> expectations.
> 
> If you agree with me, what do you think we can do to encourage the  
> Contributor ethic in the broader DIY/underground community?
> 
> geoff
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