"The hacker mind-set is not confined to this software-hacker culture. There are people who apply the hacker attitude to other things, like electronics or music — actually, you can find it at the highest levels of any science or art. Software hackers recognize these kindred spirits elsewhere and may call them ‘hackers’ too — and some claim that the hacker nature is really independent of the particular medium the hacker works in."
I hate when a specific question is asked and tersely dismissed with only an abstract quote from an unrelated source that doesn't really apply. It's a trend I have noticed online, and it's such an empty, rude answering style. (I am similarly annoyed by answering a question with a quote from the documentation and nothing else; it smacks of "RTFM", and although sometimes necessary, the attitude is overused.)
esr's definition of hacking doesn't really apply to what is considered on-topic for Hacker News. So, allow me to quote the Hacker News guidelines[1], specifically:
> If they'd cover it on TV news, it's probably off-topic.
I happen to agree, and I think fighting for this piece to be applicable on Hacker News is a waste of time. The trolls slugging on diego for asking the question are worse, because they skipped the guidelines in two respects (the other imploring us to remain civil).
Specifically:
"The hacker mind-set is not confined to this software-hacker culture. There are people who apply the hacker attitude to other things, like electronics or music — actually, you can find it at the highest levels of any science or art. Software hackers recognize these kindred spirits elsewhere and may call them ‘hackers’ too — and some claim that the hacker nature is really independent of the particular medium the hacker works in."