hackers and crackers

[evanso]

explain the differences between a hacker and a cracker.

[andy-hughes]

A hacker is someone who 'hacks' into computer systems - they find their way through security systems, passwords, firewalls and so on. Usually it's geeky guys doing it to prove they can.

A cracker is someone who, having broken into a compuet system, sabotages it in some way. Often done in indsutrial espionage.

[fo3nix]

andy's answer is the answer that the media gives.

the real answer is very different. a "hack" is one of two things:

1) a really cool bit of code that does something neat or simple. say 3 lines of code that replaces 10 lines, but exploiting some under-used syntax of the programming language. "that's a really neat hack."

2) a quick and dirty bit of code or solution to a problem that's really ugly (in a programming kind of way), that you aren't really very proud of, but just works and gets the job done. "i had to use an ugly hack to get it working."

A hacker (the ones who know what the term actually means, not the idiots that call themselves hackers when they try and use Windows tools and things they've found on the net to break into their school's computer), is someone who trys to do (1), and plays about with code and "hacks things together", to play around with new things.

programmers can be compared to artists, if you like. a hacker is like the sketcher that plays about sketching stuff, before ending up with something beautiful (hopefully).

a cracker is someone who breaks into computers, or breaks copy protection in some software, or something of that nature.

The context of which type of "hacker" is being referred to (my definition or andy's) can be determined by whom it is that is speaking about said "hackers."