Hacker- Aspirant?

[0.Dark.Thought]

Hey Guys. When People Ask me why i'm always on the computer or on here they often throw in "Are You A HACKER?". Most of them don't even know what a hacker is but i prefer to say i aspire to be a hacker. ( I also use this in my keystone class under my interests and hobbies)

Is that Proper? I know that the Hacker-How-To on catb.org states i shouldn't refer to myself as a hacker untill somone else established in the hackerdom does.

Just Curious.

Also What do you say when people ask you if you're a hacker? Do you give them a lecture about a hacker isn' what they think or do you just say "Yeah" even if they think they can come to you to F-UP Somone's PC? What should i say?

[canine]

Hey Guys. When People Ask me why i'm always on the computer or on here they often throw in "Are You A HACKER?". Most of them don't even know what a hacker is but i prefer to say i aspire to be a hacker. ( I also use this in my keystone class under my interests and hobbies)

Is that Proper? I know that the Hacker-How-To on catb.org states i shouldn't refer to myself as a hacker untill somone else established in the hackerdom does.

Just Curious.

Also What do you say when people ask you if you're a hacker? Do you give them a lecture about a hacker isn' what they think or do you just say "Yeah" even if they think they can come to you to F-UP Somone's PC? What should i say?

Yeah, that's a tricky situation.

I find that lecturing people, at least in real life, is pointless because most people are irredeemably stupid and can't process what you say. On the internet, however, text just sits there, so it's much more accessible.

In person, I call myself a computer nerd or a programmer or something in that line. This cements the idea in their mind that I create, instead of the common archetype of the destructive `hacker'. Online, I do put forward the idea that hackers built the internet and continue to do so.

In the same manner that I refer to what most call `linux' by its proper name, GNU/Linux, but in person I'll usually go the easier route and just say `Linux'.

It's a shame that I have to do this, but, as noted earlier, people are exceedingly stupid.