Ok, so someone comes up to you and asks you these seemingly simple questions: "So what do you do? What are you?" Oh boy! You think about it for a bit. Software Engineer? Well, you're a programmer and you write business apps, but you've also played with assembly and know what O-notation is... so not quite. Computer Scientist? Well, you also know a lot about computer networks, and you've modded your computer on multiple occasions (you've used a soldering iron)... so not quite. You also know your way around a Linux box. So what the heck do you call yourself, without being self-limiting or bombastic about it? I want to reply, "Well, I'm a hacker" - because the term is somewhat all encompassing (and the term "geek" makes me think of someone with no life outside of computers). But isn't it kind of pompous to claim that you're a "hacker?" Is it a term you should self-apply? What do you guys think?<p>"Now, 'Dude', there's a name no man would self-apply where I come from. But then there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense..."
Now that this subject is open, let me say it: I don't think the term hacker really reflects the concept of Hacker News. Startups are focused on entrepreneurship and revenue, there is a hacker side to it but the hacker aspect is not the central point. If there would be a real hacker news, building exceptional or interesting technology would be more of a central point than entrepreneurship. E.g. Grand Challenge, or some new technology that would change the way internet works.
I don't think I'd ever use that term. To someone who doesn't know what it is, it sounds shady. To someone who does know, it's overly vague. It's like saying "I'm a businessman."
Fair: Answer with a noun, "I am a computer programmer."<p>Good: Answer with a verb, "I program computers."<p>Better: Answer with a verb for myself and a noun for the result, "I program web applications."<p>Even Better: Answer with a verb for myself, a noun for the result, and another noun for my customer, "I program web applications for doctors."<p>Best: Answer with a verb for myself, a noun for the result, another noun for my customer, and another noun to describe my customers' benefits, "I program web applications that help doctors give better care to their patients."
I used to spend a lot of time figuring out which way I would describe what I did to people who weren't in the industry.<p>Now I just say that I'm in software, and it turns out that's enough 95% of the time.
How many regular HN readers think of themselves foremost as computer programmers (by whatever name)?<p>The responses posted here so far make it sound like the solid majority. Yet there must be more people on here who, like me, just happen to do a lot of programming in the course of pursuing other goals.<p>In short, I tend to tell people "I do xxx, which involves writing a lot of code" (rather than saying "I'm a programmer"). For this reason, I often find the self-representation here a bit strange. I tend to think of programming as just a tool to get work done, rather than the work in of itself. A lot of HN comments read to me as if a carpenter described his job as "swinging a hammer."
My title is "User Interface Engineer". I tell people "I'm a Professional Nerd for (X)".<p>It shows that I have a sense of humor about my job (a job that to many people is inscrutable).<p>Many people in our own field don't know the difference between a web designer/developer/programmer/UI/UX/DBA, and I figure that I'll take a crack at whatever needs to get done, so why be limited to a label?<p>I feel like hacker has too many negative connotations outside our tiny community that 'gets it', especially since I live in DC, which is more traditional about this stuff.
I would say it depends on the person your talking to. To most people, a "hacker" is a "cracker". A geek, loves card games and anime. A nerd loves thick books. But a programmer? They do magical things to computers, something people acceptedly don't understand, and theres no hard stereotypes regarding.<p>You certainly don't want to have to describe yourself too much. The more you try to describe, the less credibility you'll have. In my opinion, <i>programmer</i> is wonderfully enchanting to people who are not versed in... hacker lingo.
I do sometimes tell people that I am a hacker.
But I make sure that the people do know or understand that I am refering to the original meaning of the word; and that I am a good guy. For me, boiling an egg in a coffee machine is hacking. I do a lot of security work, but I tell the people that even if I would have nothing to do with security, I still could be a hacker.<p>About self-applying, imo this is ok if you can tell me about your last hack when I ask you about it.<p>..."Obviously you’re not a golfer."
I usually just tell normal people that I work with computers or that I keep bad guys out of bank accounts. It's a word that one can use in self-reference, but only once you've been accepted by other hackers as being one.<p>It doesn't apply only to the word "hacker", though. Many labels don't mean much until you've really earned it and been validated by peers.
The problem with calling yourself a hacker is that inevitably non-hackers don't understand what you mean. Then you have to explain yourself, and you end up seeming more interested in how you are labeled than what you do.<p>That or you end up sounding like Lex from Jurassic Park who "prefer(s) to be called a hacker".
Depending on the person asking and whether or not I'm in a conversing mood, I'd use either 'programmer' or "I do computer stuff" while making that vague and silly typing-on-keyboard gesture with my hand.
I call myself a <i>computer programmer</i> because I program computers. Administration, Theory, Hardware, Engineering, those I consider supporting skills, not the main attraction.
The real meaning of the word "hacker" has been lost forever (even in technical circles) so, no, I don't call myself an "hacker".<p>If I know the audience will understand it properly, I'll call myself a "geek". Otherwise, I'll just call myself a "computer systems administrator".
dude just say this: "i am a programmer and i write business apps, but i've also played with assembly and know what O-notation is. I also know a lot about computer networks, and i've modded my computer on multiple occasions (I used a soldering iron)."