"Hackers" Really are Anti-Social Geeks 133
deflect
sent us a National Post Story
that has a psychological profile of "Hackers". Lots of
terms flipped around and lots of blatant stereotypes- although
most of them are fair (umm, of course we spend most of
our time behind computers- very few people get to be hackers
by hanging out in a dojo).
Dojos and hackers (Score:1)
Reporters: Money-hungry journalists (Score:1)
The average "reporter" is a middle class white man between the ages of 25 to 43. They do not have any respect for classes of people, places, or things. Its been proven that reporters only think of themselves. Reporters have a hard time researching facts. Reporters make money by telling half-truths and lies.
"They have no respect. No respect at all.", my mom says. "They couldn't report the truth if they had too", a government employee states.
Tony Jamada, a researcher from Stanford says "Reporters some times make up news and present it as fact". Mr. Jamada has created a profile of journalists who's hobby was to deliberately report false statements as fact. But he stresses they are just one type of reporter.
Others include:
- "Cameramen," who disseminate reporting methods but don't necessarily do it themselves.
- "Weathermen," who's job it is to put people in danger. They report falsehoods about whether it is raining, sunny, or if its 95 degrees when they report 72.
- "Cyber-reporters," those that try to reach a mass audience. They do this for political aims.
So sad :( (Score:1)
Here's some info based on my relations with this guy. According to my degree-les psychological analysis, he's an attention-seeking self-promoting money-hungry paranoia-inducing righteous dude who lacks any sort of serious computer knowledge. He's been reported to say that named does the same thing as gated. If you ever had to deal with him as a cop here (and I'm sorry if you did) you'll know that he's a lot more into scaring the shit out of everyone involved than finding facts. This just goes along with the whole self-promotion paranoia-spreading thing. Also, when they say he was once the "head of the computer crime unit" here in Winnipeg, they REALLY mean to say "he WAS the computer crime unit, cuz all the other cops were too clued out." I've got plenty more stories, but that'd be getting off topic
As for his profile, let's analyze the situation a little bit. You're not gonna find football jocks hangin out with bookworms. Likewise, you're not gonna find bookworms hanging out with drug dealers. All people tend to stay within their chosen social groups, more or less. This applies to "hackers" (whatever he means by that). If our (their?) main interests lie in the land of computers and related issues, why should we (they?) step outside their chosen lifestyle, become someone else, just to be considered "normal?" If you ask me, doing THAT is fucked. Mr.Rogers should stop judging one group of people from merely his own perspective (his own social circle). Earlier in this post, I mentioned he lacks technical knowledge. The simple reason for this is that he's pretty much a jock. He doesn't mix and mingle with the "hackers." It's time to grow a little bit, Mr.Rogers. I and my friends have very active social lives. We have girlfriends, host parties, take camping trips, and do all sorts of "normal" things. All it took was finding peeople who like to share your lifestyle. I repeat, isn't this the case for ANY social group? Hackers merely have a harder time since there's so few of them. Instead of putting them down for their lack of social lives, you should be praising them for their strong will in pursuing what they love. They do not yield to the common social forces. They don't give up on who they are. In the end, I like to think that they do end up finding each other and creating some life-long friendships. As this whole internet thing becomes more popular (smile) the cases of antisocial hackers should steadily decline.
So, Mr.Rogers, please stop picking on hundreds of thousands of people just cuz they don't match your lifestyle or any lifestyle which has existed for a long time and is well-documented. Don't hate the new. I realize it makes you lots of money, but I just thought it was important to let you know that you are wrong.
Now, for those fans of Mr.Rogers who would like to communicate with him, here's some ways you can do that! mkr@escape.ca. http://www.escape.ca/~mkr/ . umroger6@cc.umanitoba.ca . Have a nice day, and thanks for reading my ramblings
My response to the National Post... (Score:1)
--
After reading your recent article "Computer hackers really are anti-social geeks: psychologist," I conducted a study of my own. The results...
It may be a stereotype to describe psychologists as useless bafoons, but it is an accurate one -- at least for the best-known type of psychologist, says a University of Helsinki psychologist.
The average "psychologist" is a white, middle-class male, aged 36 to 52, who lacks usefull skills and comes from a dysfunctional family, says Pascual Pilato, who is studying psychologists for his graduate thesis.
"They usually have a weak grasp of reality. They tend to be the delusional," the former Seattle beverage distributor says. "They feel a lot more comfortable writing useless papers about topics they don't understand than in face-to-face interaction.
ugh..yuck...horrible article (Score:1)
I despise reading articles like that.
I always have that small inkling that maybe someday, somebody will get a clue.
guess ill have to keep hoping.
Hackers vs. Crackers (Score:1)
Loners by choice, not incompetance (Score:1)
Anyone who claims to have "figured people out long ago" (and given the average age of hackers, when would that be, at age five?) and rejects 95% of the people around him/her as uninteresting and not worthy of their attention is:
1) Arrogant (and hopefully will grow out of it),
2) Deluded,
and
3) *By definition*, socially inept.
Hey now! (Score:1)
But did this alleged training teach you to have the cojones to get a real life? Or do you still spend all day locked in your bedroom playing on the computer, playing dungeons and dragons on a friday night, and downloading megs of porno?
Re:Hackers vs. Crackers (Score:1)
In concept that sounds like a good idea, but if we all just say sod it and go with the flow, we would be losing the essence of the "spirit" of hard core computer users.
IMHO it would be more easy to leave our thoughts on the forums that most large media groups have.
It is only because the mainstream of society are uneducated in IT and think that most computer users are:
1: Gamers
2: Work users
and anyone else is a geek who has no life or an evil person who breaks into other persons computers and steals info/£££ or pirates large amount of software. IMHO people need to find out that the sterotype is incorrect.
Admiral Vlad (alias Dave McCreadie)
Hah. (Score:1)
Second, This man is quite obviously failing his courses if hes done this little research anyway.
Also, The man is an ex-cop, and we all know that cops do very well with avoiding stereotypes, don't we?
In addition, If all hackers come from broken homes, why can't we classify all criminals, or athletes before they become so? This stereotype is older than the World, anyone with a grain of intellect can see thru it like Glass.
-Shanoyu
Bull$hit! (Score:1)
cracked (Score:3)
- he's a nut. Do any of you remember the controversy over the paper he originally wrote? I remember a slashdot article linking to it - it was ridiculous. It said that crackers were sexually abused people from broken homes... huh? When I was younger (around 12/13 years old) I dabbled in that stuff, but it was because it was interesting, not because I was abused...
- He's doing a grad student, and was a former cop. A little biased.
also (Score:3)
Hey now! (Score:1)
Martial arts teaches alot of discipline which is also fundamental to hacking.
Ever notice how a disproportionate segment of the computing population can neutralize an armed asailant with their bare hands?
Dojos and hackers - Favourite Marial Anyone? (Score:1)
Iaido next!
hackers are anti-social (Score:1)
Yea I guess I'll try to walk around all day trying to be HIP and BEAUTIFUL. Maybe I'll try to screw an intern or make fun of someone because their different.
Maybe I'll cheat on my wife, and on my taxes and drive a LEXUS. I'll buy some MSFT and care more about the DOW then ZOSOVO. Then I'll be normal!
The day I realized I wasn't like everyone else was the day I started being me! I can do UGLY and WEIRD better than anyone, so why not go for it?
Generalization ain't all that bad (Score:1)
"Hi, my name's Tim. And do you have a name?"
"Yes, I am Steve. I go to school."
"Oh, so what do you do at school? Do you learn?"
"Indeed. I learn lots of things. In course 1, I learn this. In course 2, I learn this..."yadda yadda yadda.
So as you can see, some conversations can get quite lengthy (and boring) by not generalizing.
What is the solution then? I've just accepted the fact that I'm a geek. If people draw certain conclusions about that, then fine. But I'll prove them wrong. I'll play sports. I'll compose music. I'll tell jokes. I won't screw up my vision. I'll wear clean clothes, and comb my hair. So then if they think of me as a geek, they won't conclude "messy, antisocial, and nerdy (which is different from geeky)." And don't get offended when people *do* make these assumptions about you. Because you are what you are.
Tim.
What's a dojo? (Score:3)
By the way, I am a hacker, and I do hang out in a dojo (have since long before I became a hacker).
Not sometimes.. (Score:1)
--
Scott Miga
Sensationalism (Score:2)
While the article contains plenty of buzzwords to entertain the typical reader, me thinks this is pure sensationalism.
and thats just the hackers (Score:1)
or 'teletubbies' ?
--
His "tag"? (Score:1)
"Newbies," or "script kiddies," his tags for young novices.
What is this "his tag" shit?
Just another head-up-the-ass psycohobabblelist trying to pretend he knows something, when in fact all he shows is that he is so full of shit that he needs an enema the size of the Hoover Dam.
All that can be said.... (Score:1)
It's complete and utter BULL****.
At that point, nothing more can be said about it.
Chas - The one, the only.
THANK GOD!!!
Loners by choice, not incompetance (Score:1)
I also must question your assertion that a person who feels this way is "by definition" socially inept. What, exactly, is the definition that you're using? I define "socially inept" as "incompetant at interacting with other people in common situations." My point is that one can be quite competant at social interaction but simply have no desire to engage in such interaction as often as most people do. This may qualify as antisocial (in a certain sense of the word), but not socially inept. And it is certainly not an adequate or even accurate definition of either term.
Loners by choice, not incompetance (Score:2)
Of course, the article really seems to be focusing on crackers rather than hackers, and I can believe that most or at least many malicious computer attacks are committed by somebody who feels like a social outcast and who wants revenge on some segment of the society whom he feels has wronged him. And given that this guy seems to have only interviewed people convicted of committing computer crimes, perhaps that's the only sort of "cyberpunk" he's encountered in his study.
Anti social... not quite accurate... (Score:1)
No way, eh -- Winnipeg Policias are hosers (Score:1)
Anyway if you use an obscure Winnipeg ex-cop as a source you probably really don't have a story eh. So like, don't pay attention to the article or you'll get hosed.
Beauty eh.
"Coders" (Score:1)
- "Coders," who disseminate hacking methods but don't necessarily do it themselves.
huh. way to redefine an existing word there, guy.Hackers vs. Crackers (Score:1)
And probably it will be successful some day. I already notice in the German magazine c't that they slowly get the terms right (not everytime, but it increases).
This article is about Crackers (Score:1)
----------------------
Car drivers really are anti-social freaks (Score:1)
Michel
Slashdot.org
It may be a stereotype to describe drivers as anti-social freaks, but it is an accurate one -- at least for the best-known type of driver, says a University of Manitoba psychologist.
The average "road warrior" is a white, middle-class male, aged 18 to 28, who lacks social skills and comes from a dysfunctional family, says Marc Rogers, who is studying drivers for his graduate thesis.
"They usually have not the best social skills. They tend to be the loners," the former Winnipeg police officer says. "They feel a lot more comfortable behind a steering wheel than in face-to-face interaction."
At a car show in California's Silicon Valley earlier this year, Mr. Rogers stirred controversy with his presentation, "Psychology of a driver," in which he argued drivers tend to come from broken families. He said they may also have been subjected to physical or sexual abuse.
Drivers have killed thousands of people worldwide, driven at speeds of hundreds of miles/hour, and tried to wreak havoc on the roads of the world. But just who are they?
Mr. Rogers, after spending 12 years on the Winnipeg police force, including a stint as lead detective on the traffic department, has now turned his attention to finding out, in the hopes it will help safeguard against their intrusions.
As part of his graduate thesis, Mr. Rogers developed a profile of road warriors -- drivers whose hobby has put them before the criminal courts. But he stresses they are just one type of driver.
Others include:
The Drug Community (Score:1)
I like IBM's idea... (Score:1)
I'm sure IBM knows what a 'hacker' is and what a 'cracker' is... they also know what 99% of the population thinks of when they hear 'hacker.'
I like what they did to correct this.
They call real "hackers" "ethical hackers" and "crackers" are "hackers".
I actually like this, because most people (that 99% I talked about earlier) associate "hacker" with this insane super-genius who can break into any computer in less time than it takes to turn on a light switch. By adding "ethical" to the front of this, it conveys the same thing... only you picture someone who is mature and knows how to use that power.
I usually use the definition "ethical hacker" to explain stuff to stupid people... like the one who wrote this psychology of hackers.
~enucite~
There is a general response form... (Score:1)
I wanted to write regarding the "Computer hackers really are anti-social geeks" article by Mr. Stewart Bell. This article fails to cite any evidence collected by Mr. Marc Rogers to prove any of the points that he asserts. Now I understand that this is a newspaper, and not a scientific paper - but I found this article to be offensive in the extreme.
This gentleman asserts that "hackers" frequently come from broken families, and may have been abused. It is not explained why he might think that, or what scientific method he might have used to ascertain this knowledge. Nor is it anywhere compared to what percentage of the non-hacker population come from broken families or are abused. I would think that by using some basic statistics, it is far more likely that a non-hacker would have been abused than a hacker.
If such an article had been written about a racial or religious group, this article would have never made it into your paper - it would have been judged to be trash science, only an attempt to justify ridiculous stereotypes. The assumptions made in it are ludicrous in the extreme, and I am outraged that such an item would appear in an otherwise prestigious newspaper. I hope that in future, journalistic integrity and facts will win out over sensationalism and assumptions.
Sincerely,
Leilah Thiel
Beautiful, just beautiful (Score:1)
Leilah
Of course they'd print THAT profile...! (Score:1)
This is not what I call responsible journalism.
Do you think that they would print an article saying that somebody has described all psychologists or journalists as delusional, arrogant, self-righteous, pompous windbags? Of course not!
I really resent the entire point of the article. As Rob points out, there are a few incorrect assumptions about definitions here. To my way of thinking, a person that breaks into systems is not a hacker. Such a person should be better described as a "criminal."
But, of course, we hackers are anti-social, so it's easy to dismiss us away. We have no spokespeople (sorry, ESR, RMS, et al!), so there are no comments to the contrary.
Interesting journalistic angle, though. Take a common misconception and prejudicial idea and give it credence by having it espoused by a so-called expert and report it as news.
The easiest way to deal with this (for me, at least) is to treat this as the garbage that it is and put http://www.nationalpost.com into my Junkbuster block file. It doesn't make the bad stuff go away, but I don't have to waste my bandwidth reading such trash.
--
and thats just the hackers (Score:1)
They may be from Mars (Score:1)
my momma's gonna kick your momma's butt! (Score:1)
It's like back in the 80's when everyone thought D&D caused all these people to sacrifice animals, and explore sewer systems, and so on so forth--but they neglected the fact that many of them had a serious history of drug abuse and such.
So I think it's kind of a cheesy superficial conclusion that is hampered by the very small group of hackers that the author has come in contact with.
re: lightsabres (Score:1)
Actually, saying that they're "pure energy" makes them sound insubstantial. If they can chop through things, they have to interact via the electromagnetic force. This means that they will also interact with the air, so they (at a minimum) have some air resistance.
also, rather than just being "pure energy", they could be a some kind of plasma (ionized gas). I obviously have no idea how they would implement the containment of such a thing, but if this were the case, the blade would have a mass too.
Then there's the fact that they would probably want to artificially weight them so that they balance properly. I've been in the fencing club at university, and i think it would be quite a nuisance (sp?) to have a sword that had all of its weight behind your hands instead of in front. You'd have to use a different set of muscles i think (although i'm not a kinesiologist).
that's my two bits for the day.
-Doviende
Hehe I can safely commit 'puter crime in the US!!! (Score:1)
*sigh* (Score:1)
bladerunner has a lot to answer for.... (Score:1)
in my mind 'cyberpunk' is just a term made up by hollywood, because they know as well as you do, nerds do not fit societies description of 'cool'.
ie. they don't sell movie tickets.
but... If we take away your nerds tramping boots, plain blue jeans, and rs/6000 t-shirt and slap him in black PVC and leather, dump a trench coat on him and maybe throw some sunglasses and a few body piercings into the mix, then you've got yerself a 'cyberpunk'. The 'cool' world wants cyberpunks, but it doesn't want geeks.
I mean how many people would have gone to see the Matrix if it starred a skinny ass white boy who couldn't act. oh... wait a minute.
And another thing... 12-28??
how many 12 year olds do you know who are proficient in assembler? When i was 12 i had just gotten a C64 and was starting out on BASIC. (seems strange to me now how you could just type BASIC into the command prompt and it would work)
ANyway...
thats all i have to say...
Hackers vs. Crackers (Score:1)
There are some people using the term hackers for people who break into systems while not causing damage, and crackers for the people who does. But I don't know... it's just not that simple.
They may be from Mars (Score:1)
Yadda yadda yadda (Score:2)
null_packet
Who say hackers can't hang out in dojos? (Score:1)
From his web page, [tuxedo.org]
"I practice Moo Do, an eclectic martial art based on Tae Kwon Do. In November 1997 I attained the rank of Black Belt (1st Dan)."
They may be from Mars (Score:1)
I fit the profile... (Score:1)
White -- check.
Middle-class -- check.
Male -- check.
Lacks social skills -- that's what my parents tell me
Dysfunctional family -- Mom and dad have their differences but are still married.
Feels more comfortable behind a computer system than in face-to-face interaction -- check.
Subjected to physical abuse -- does paddling count?
Ooh... you better watch out for me... especailly since I've been known to read Bugtraq!!!!
Actually, I probably am not even at the level of "scrpit kiddie", and I read Bugtraq to see what security issues I need to fix on my own computer, and to laugh at how many times Microsoft appears on there.
I personally wouldn't try to crack for two reasons:
1. The most sophisticated attack I know is "ping -f" which isn't even a feature on Solaris ping and any halfway decent server should be able to handle it without a problem.
2. Cracking is just plain Bad & Wrong, Internet access is a priviledge, you'll probably go to jail and earn the disrespect of real hackers everywhere, etc. etc.
Finally, just remember that it's ok to say "If a person is a hexor (can we use that instead of cracker because it's considered derogatory in the South?) then he probably has X personality traits", but it's NOT ok to say "if a person has X personality traits then he's probably a hexor."
Classify me not... (Score:1)
Carefull with Cracker. It's well used in a negative light down here in the South US, to refer to white males ~18-27. Referring specifically to the Georgia Crackers, men who unloaded the slaving ships in Savanaha with whips.
I think I've mentioned this before, but "cracker" is not necessarily derogatory, and your etymology is wrong. "Cracker" was the name for cattle drivers (who did use whips, but only on cows) in south Georgia and Florida. It can be derogatory, but many call themselves "crackers" as a point of pride, especally among Florida natives, who make up only 1/3 of our population. Also, it is not restricted to age.
Mike
--
What's a dojo? (Score:1)
Who's he talking about? (Score:2)
And speaking of anti-social, how come there wasn't a forum to talk back at?
Who's he talking about? (Score:1)
There's a big difference in trying to change the world and trying to make a buck.
Ignore this crap... (Score:1)
They're nortorious for missing major stories and getting their facts wrong. Most of us wouldn't let our dogs take a dump on this paper...
Didja hear what Black did to the F. Post crew? (Score:1)
For all the conservatives and Ayn Rand Freaks on
This guy has done more to convert people to socialism than Lenin could have dreamed of (although I'm sure Conrad didn't want to!).
God, where's Ed Broadbent when you need him?
re:sigh (Score:1)
------------------------------
Janus Dissonation is watching.
------------------------------
Insulting and Inaccurate (Score:1)
I find the article personally insulting, abusive families, sexual abuse, loner? My family has always treated me great, and I have a good social life...
I especially like how he's geting credit for some of the terms put there...last I checked newbie and script-kiddie wern't invented by him...
Loners by choice, not incompetance (Score:1)
It seems to me that society needs to have the stereo type so that they can feel more comfortable with there lack of knowledge.
further (Score:1)
anyways,
hollis
Hackers vs. Crackers (Score:1)
My point is does it make sense to try to chage the publics conception of what a "Hacker" is? Between the movies and the recent news coverage, the term "Hacker" has become synonymous with a person who uses his computer knowledge for evil. Is it posible to redifine this word in the publics eye. Even if it is wouldn't it just be easier to adopt the deffinitions that everyone else is using?
I like IBM's idea... (Score:1)
Yadda yadda yadda (Score:1)
This article doesn't really define what they consider a hacker, so I'm not sure why anyone would take this personal. I don't think that soemone is a hacker just becaue they major in computer science.
I'm a geek / hacker wannabe... so I'm not sure where I fit in, but I can tell you that I'm anti-social and I dont' see anything wrong with it!
So you can all just F*** right off
Ummm, this stuff is so lame, not worth arguing. (Score:1)
i think im going to right a report on hungry kids on the moon yeah that;'s it and maybe then can put it on cnn and i can look like a dork , the media is seriously fucked up we need more slashdots and less msnbc's i mean
WE DON'T WANT TO SEE MONICA AND THE PRESIDENT HUGGY SO FUCK OFF ALREADY.
boy does this post make me look bad, ah well.
Dysfunctional families (Score:1)
> pentagon systems, I still have a hard time
> believing that. Secure systems like that would
> be next to impossible to breach, even by
> dedicated, sophisticated crackers who know what
> they're doing and have the equipment and
> training necessary.
I wouldn't worry about that too much. I'm a software engineer for a government contractor, and there are all sorts of rules about classified computers. First, they can't ever be connected to the internet or any other unclassed network, not even through a firewall. In fact, they can't be within three feet of any computer that is.
Pentagon computer cracked? Sure. Classified systems? Impossible unless the Pentagon isn't following their own security rules (which the rest of the Military is following) or the crackers manage physical access.
Reporters: Money-hungry journalists (Score:1)
Hehe, nice one.
Don't forget:
*sigh* (Score:1)
To truly be a hacker, you need to be the type of person who learns for learning's sake, and enjoys it more than anything else. The kind of person who questions everything, who doesn't want to know that something works, they want to know
As a side note, to demonstrate that, I was recently thinking about the fact that since Lightsabers have blades of pure energy, they should have no mass. And yet, they film the movies with the actors using metal rods, which means the lightsabers move as if they had mass. Odd, eh?
--
Matthew Walker
My DNA is Y2K compliant
anti-social (Score:1)
fucking big television. Choose washing machines, cars, compact disc
players and electrical tin openers... choose DIY and wondering who the
fuck you are on a Sunday morning. Choose sitting on that couch watching
mindnumbing, spirit-crushing game shows, stuffing junk food into your
mouth. Choose rotting away at the end of it all, pishing your last in a
miserable home, nothing more than an embarrassment to the selfish,
fucked-up brats you spawned to replace yourself. Choose your future.
Choose Life
- nr
foo (Score:1)
- nr
National Post can blow me (Score:1)
Classify me not... (Score:1)
Of course, Cracker is not a positive term in hacking culture either.. So be it..
...
. "The future masters of technology will have to be lighthearted and
Classify me not... (Score:2)
I think the root of the problem is this: The "hackers" who get the most attention in the media are the ones who crack into systems. Aka: "Crackers" (Once we get around to getting hacker and cracker defined in the AP Style Journal, hopefully that will change.. But thats another story). The average cracker is a waste of brain cells who sits home scanning addr blocks for common holes looking for sites to crack. Yes, these people have no lives. No creativity either. I can remember very few "cracked sites" where I though some creativity was put into the page they put up.. (Not that I condone cracking pages..)
The main reason I am offended by the hacker vs. cracker vocabulary problems in the media is because I find myself compared to anti-social script kiddie idiots.
The average white hat is actually a pretty social person. Ususaly someone who like to share what they know with others in public forums. (At least from my experence..)
Bah.. I'm babbling again..
...
. "The future masters of technology will have to be lighthearted and
hey (Score:1)
Yadda yadda yadda (Score:1)
lightsabres practicalities (off originial topic) (Score:1)
Actually, saying that they're "pure energy" makes them sound insubstantial. If they can chop through things, they have to interact via the electromagnetic force. This means that they will also interact with the air, so they (at a minimum) have some air resistance.
But the air resistance would minimal compared to the resistance given by gravity. The shear weight would be the biggest factor, and with it dropped substantially, that would likewise decrease the resistance, and thus increase the speed with which it can be wielded.
>- Doviende:
also, rather than just being "pure energy", they could be a some kind of plasma (ionized gas).I obviously have no idea how they would implement the containment of such a thing, but if this were the case, the blade would have a mass too.
Well... I think a plasma of some kind would be more plausible than pure energy. It has some mass, which means it can be physically confined. Have a limited magnetic field emit from the base as a containment field (remember, plasma is a *charged* gas, alloing for such containment), and the gas could be held. Then, turning it on and off would merely be expanding the magnetic field and thus the range the plasma can move about. Of course, practical considerations abound (I'll get to them below).
>- Doviende:
Then there's the fact that they would probably want to artificially weight them so that they balance properly. I've been in the fencing club at university, and i think it would be quite a nuisance to have a sword that had all of its weight behind your hands instead of in front. You'd have to use a different set of muscles i think (although i'm not a kinesiologist).
I don't know if that would advantageous. As a fencer, I prefer to have as much weight as possible behind the bell garde and in my hand. This gives me more control (particularly in the two thrusting weapons) and less fatigue. As for using the different muscle set, well, that all comes down to training. If you train with it, you will develop the control and muscles necessary to use it properly.
The biggest things I see as a problem are the following:
1): What happens when two lightsabers collide? Would the magnetic field hold, or, if they can be compressed enough, would it force the plasma out (and since they are charged the same, force them out in a violent manner)? This may not be a problem with strong enough fields, as the two fields would bounce off each other (maybe...).
2): Strong magnetic field in a metal ship or building... 'nuff said.
3): The weapon would become, in Newtonian mechanics, as close to a point-mass as we can achieve in reality. With it come control problems; no inertia = inability to gauge the position of the blade and its tip (with potentially fatal consequences for the wielder).
Well... that's my bit on the matter...
-G.
they've almost got me pinned, but not quite (Score:1)
Also, what's with the lack of description of the more benelolent hackers? I didn't realize that all hackers were malicious. Oh well, I suppose that society will never be enlightened.
Hehe I can safely commit 'puter crime in the US!!! (Score:1)
Don't ya just love cops who THINK that they can spend a few years chasing after people and "get to know how they think, how they act" - you just gotta laugh.
Most computer crime is perpetrated by white collar types - usueally in the Redmond area
cyberdojo (Score:1)
Well at least I'll have an excuse... (Score:1)
Jat "Not responsible for his own actions" TDB
"how come there wasn't a forum to talk back at?" (Score:1)
Some REAL serious science going on here (Score:2)
Dysfunctional families (Score:2)
So what does it mean to be dysfunctional? Is it a requirement that you've been institutionalized, hostipalized, and robbed blind at the hands of family members, or is it something as simple as "my mommy spanked me when I was 5 because I threw the dog off the roof and I've never been the same since"
Script kiddies, which I consider to be more of a nuisense than those who actually know something about what they're doing, are likely not from dysfunctional families at all. They're just morons in need of a severe beating at the hands of someone they hacked to discourage further agressive behaviour at the keyboard.
As for breaking into the highly classified pentagon systems, I still have a hard time believing that. Secure systems like that would be next to impossible to breach, even by dedicated, sophisticated crackers who know what they're doing and have the equipment and training necessary. Even attempting to break into those systems is a federal crime, and I believe that might be what they're referring to.
-Restil
restil@alignment.net
Yeah, like the police are such hot stuff (Score:1)
cyberdojo (Score:1)
Loners by choice, not incompetance (Score:1)
I honestly couldn't agree more. I'd say more on this but I think you've hit the nail on the head there. I can't get enough of diving into systems and learning about them, and it does make me seem like a selfish pr1ck sometimes to those I love and care about.
The key I think is trying to strike a balance, rather than oscillating between two polar behaviors...
dojos (Score:1)
I guess there aren't many cyber-dojos where you live
Dysfunctional families (Score:1)
Ummm, this stuff is so lame, not worth arguing. (Score:1)
Please, I need the bandwitches today, so don't argue this crap, it has been written over and over again. who cares. skrew them. my grandma is a hacker, she is 82, black, social, from a functional family. Oh!, they were talking about the average... okay , okay. blah.
Dysfunctional families (Score:1)
It's sad, but I think everything else is becoming normal.
Hackers vs. Crackers (Score:1)
Carlos' Adivse: Stick with your guns, and smile on the fact that YOU understand more about this subject then THOSE people.
And don't let THOSE people define you, especially when they don't understand the words they are using. Let them play in their ignorance, it's not going to hurt anyone.
*Carlos still remains a lowly hacker on the Programming Food Chain*
Thank-you, I'll be here all week.
Social Engineering (Score:1)
And what's up with this guys Profile. " hackers tend to come from broken families. He said they may also have been subjected to physical or sexual abuse." This fits a whole lot of groups other than hackers. (ie. Strippers/porn stars, Drug Dealers, ect...)
Another one misses the point. (Score:1)
Besides, it was only the silly "hackers, cyberpunks" who got caught and had to part take in this little survey. How many criminals have the same "broken home" nausa to fall back on? We all know that hackers have NO self-esteem issues, none... nada. It's really for the fun of breaking into a system. Yea... they don't need the attention.
This is a bit tongue and cheek I know, but I'm tired of the media just missing the point. 2600 meetings are actually sprouting up... again. Maybe the world IS ending...
Hackers vs. Crackers (Score:1)
"ultimate internet terrorist" (paladin, 1998), continually uses these terms synonomously.
Personally, I don't want my girlfriend's parents' eyes to glaze over in terror when she tells them that I am geek. When in fact what I really do is perform sick circus tricks.
Classify me not... (Score:1)
Now it may ust be me but online culture is not going to change what the lower class blacks call you in the street.
Sorry this was a tangent, but worthwhile comment
Canadians really are hosers, psychologist reveals (Score:1)
Didja hear what Black did to the F. Post crew? (Score:1)
More National Joke info:
The Post was created after (fellow Canucks, correct me if I'm wrong) Conrad Black, a newspaper mogul up here, shut down a paper called the Financial Post. He folded it into his new National Post, but not before firing all the employees. He hired back the non-reporting staff. Things get weird here. He fired the journalists, but kept them under contract. Their contracts lasted, at the time, another three years. Black not only dumped them, he kept them unable to work for competitors, and thus unemployed, for three years.
Whether this is legal is questionable; it just might be, but Black has powerful friends on Parliament Hill (our equivalent of the Beltway). This stuff never hit the news (he'd sue the pants off any paper that dared mention it), but I have good connections.
Sleazy, eh?
Yeah, like the police are such hot stuff (Score:1)
I have been impressed with the objectivity of excops in the past, and I see nothing to chnage it here. I thought there was a glimmer of hope when he "stres[sed] they are just one type of hacker"... pffah. I should have seen it coming.
He started with a prejudice, and studied for years to rationalise it; collecting the anecdotes with which fit his view of the world, and discarded the rest. Seen it and seen it. It'd be laughable if it weren't in such influential hands.
Yeah, like the police are such hot stuff (Score:1)
My Thesis on Psych Profiles for Pointy Heads (Score:1)
Anecdotal evidence exists suggesting these traits in journalists.
I did become a hacker by hanging out in a Dojo... (Score:1)
I have always been into 'puters but I only really
emereged into hackerdom once I joined karate about 6.5 years ago now.. it's pretty funny, my instructor turned into my best friend and happened to be a true guru..
Caesium
Responded to their article (Score:1)