Learn English – Has “hacker” definitely gained a negative connotation

connotationpejorative-languagesemantic-shiftword-usage

The American Heritage Dictionary defines a hacker as:

  • One who is proficient at using or programming a computer; a computer buff.
  • One who uses programming skills to gain illegal access to a computer network or file.

I was surprised to find a neutral/positive definition which, as the word history shows below, was the original connotation of the term.

Word History:

  • Computer programmers started using the word hacker in the 1960s as a positive term for a person of skillful programming ability. The usage probably derives from hack meaning "to chop," or from hacker, "an amateurish player, as at golf." As time went on, hacker became less positive, however. Already in the 1960s, engineering students at such universities as Cal Tech used the related noun hack to mean "an ingenious prank." Among the pranks that some computer programmers would engage in, of course, were break-ins into other computer systems. As such break-ins attracted national attention, the media seized upon the word hacker as the label for the perpetrators—a usage that many programmers object to because they know it used to be a term of praise.

Questions:

Has "hacker" still a neutral/positive meaning or has it definitely gained a negative reputation?

When did this semantic change happen?

What terms are commonly used instead of "hacker" with a positive connotation?

Best Answer

Has "hacker" still a neutral/positive meaning or has it definitely gained a negative reputation?

Among the general public, hacker still has a negative connotation. With the exception of "life hacks", a fairly new phenomenon, the most usual use of the work hacker in media is related people who commit crimes by computers or other advanced electronic devices.

When did this semantic change happen?

This happened because of years (decades) of media coverage. From my understanding, it started mostly in the late 70's or early 80's, and has persisted to the current day. Since the media considers anyone that's extremely skilled with computers a hacker, and most of what they report are crimes, the negative connotation was bound to happen sooner or later.

What terms are commonly used instead of "hacker" with a positive connotation?

Among ethical hackers, hacker is the preferred term, while they use negative terms for other types of "wannabees", such as "script kiddies", "crackers" (people that crack a system for malicious intent), and so on. Real hackers are offended when you include criminals in the same group as them, the same as you'd be offended if you were accused of something you didn't do. Here's the Jargon File's definition of a hacker (which is the hacker's definition of a hacker):

hacker: n. [originally, someone who makes furniture with an axe]

  1. A person who enjoys exploring the details of programmable systems and how to stretch their capabilities, as opposed to most users, who prefer to learn only the minimum necessary. RFC1392, the Internet Users' Glossary, usefully amplifies this as: A person who delights in having an intimate understanding of the internal workings of a system, computers and computer networks in particular.

  2. One who programs enthusiastically (even obsessively) or who enjoys programming rather than just theorizing about programming.

  3. A person capable of appreciating hack value.

  4. A person who is good at programming quickly.

  5. An expert at a particular program, or one who frequently does work using it or on it; as in ‘a Unix hacker’. (Definitions 1 through 5 are correlated, and people who fit them congregate.)

  6. An expert or enthusiast of any kind. One might be an astronomy hacker, for example.

  7. One who enjoys the intellectual challenge of creatively overcoming or circumventing limitations.

  8. [deprecated] A malicious meddler who tries to discover sensitive information by poking around. Hence password hacker, network hacker. The correct term for this sense is cracker.

The term ‘hacker’ also tends to connote membership in the global community defined by the net (see the network. For discussion of some of the basics of this culture, see the How To Become A Hacker FAQ. It also implies that the person described is seen to subscribe to some version of the hacker ethic (see hacker ethic).

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 meritocracy based on ability), though one to which new members are gladly welcome. There is thus a certain ego satisfaction to be had in identifying yourself as a hacker (but if you claim to be one and are not, you'll quickly be labeled bogus). See also geek, wannabee.

This term seems to have been first adopted as a badge in the 1960s by the hacker culture surrounding TMRC and the MIT AI Lab. We have a report that it was used in a sense close to this entry's by teenage radio hams and electronics tinkerers in the mid-1950s.

While you can use terms like "white hat" or "ethical hacker" as a positive connotation to "outsiders," the truth is that "ethical hacker" is considered redundant, since hackers are, by the subculture's definition, ethical, and most hackers (probably) wouldn't be caught wearing a white hat, unless they really felt the need for irony.

When you're speaking about criminals, try to avoid the term "hacker," because they're not part of that global community/subculture-- there are more appropriate terms for them, even if you might have to explain what you're talking about. The correct term to use when speaking about the global community of skilled computer enthusiasts is "hacker."

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