A password isn't information, especially in this context, it's data. How the login or encryption system works is information. Of all the misconceptions about hackers this is one of the weirdest to criticize. From the introduction of computers until the mass adaptation of the Internet, access to information was the largest issue in hacker culture. From BBSes to hacking groups and computer clubs, it was all about access.
> Basically a hacker is someone who enjoys hacking for its own sake
Not only isn't that what your quote says, it's essentially just the definition of an enthusiast. Hackers are, even in the most watered down definitions, something different. Doing something for fun is part of hacker culture, but it's not the purpose of it. It's things like curiosity, exploration, exchange of ideas etc.
> Whether you like it or not, most discoveries will be made by those who enjoy discovery, not as part of some moral crusade.
Rarely. Discoveries (at least "common" ones) tend to be made by people who see a future other people don't. One could argue that people like Elon Musk is very much on a moral crusade and that his motivations are utopic.
I don't really care who calls themselves or things "hacker" these days. But if you don't recognize that hacker culture, or the future of technology in general, is something more you're missing out.
The difference between passwords, DRM, and proprietary software is then intent. They all serve the same function - secrecy - but for different purposes. The secret password is meant to provide security to the holder in regards to the information they hold. Proprietary software and DRM are meant to provide secrecy to the rights holder in regards to software other people hold.
No, that sounds right. Didn't you hear about RMS's famous anti-password crusade when passwords were added to ITS?
Also, ITS had no root, or even permissions: you could log in as any user and do anything. Except browse the directory where the ZORK sources were kept, after Blank et al. hacked in permissions for that directory (and even then, some DEC engineers patched the system to subvert it and grabbed a copy of the source, translating it to FORTRAN, and giving us DUNGEON. The Zork developers figured that if they went to that much effort, they deserved the source.
"Have some thought about the people your decisions effect" is a moral crusade?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Stallman
Stallman found a way to decrypt the passwords and sent users messages containing their decoded password, with a suggestion to change it to the empty string (that is, no password) instead, to re-enable anonymous access to the systems. Around 20% of the users followed his advice at the time, although passwords ultimately prevailed. Stallman boasted of the success of his campaign for many years afterward.[17]
This contradicts the common adage "necessity is the mother of invention". I am building software every day to try to solve problems in my neighborhood... you seem to be saying people like me rarely invent anything, but coders who just do projects on the weekend for fun do. Why?
I like this. A lot!
And the OP likes this a lot :)
"A person who enjoys exploring the details of programmable systems and how to stretch their capabilities, as opposed to most users, who prefer to learn only the minimum necessary."
Basically a hacker is someone who enjoys hacking for its own sake, not as part of some moral crusade. The OP is proposing another moral crusade which is just as irrelevant. Whether you like it or not, most discoveries will be made by those who enjoy discovery, not by those who view it as a means to reach utopia.