--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To be a hacker - when I use the term - is…" description: "\"To be a hacker - when I use the term - is somebody who is creative and does wonderful things.\" — Tim Berners-Lee" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8cd/tim-berners-lee-3302_creative_to-be-a-hacker-when-i-use-the-term-is-so_1647665.png" --- # To be a hacker - when I use the term - is somebody who is… ![“To be a hacker - when I use the term - is somebody who is creative and does wonderful things.” quote by Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8cd/tim-berners-lee-3302_creative_to-be-a-hacker-when-i-use-the-term-is-so_1647665.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8cd/tim-berners-lee-3302_creative_to-be-a-hacker-when-i-use-the-term-is-so_1647665.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8cd/tim-berners-lee-3302_creative_to-be-a-hacker-when-i-use-the-term-is-so_1647665.png) > “To be a hacker - when I use the term - is somebody who is creative and does wonderful things.” [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A hacker is defined by creativity and the ability to produce remarkable outcomes through unconventional problem solving. **In simple terms:** Hackers are creative problem solvers. Key Takeaway Cultivate curiosity and experiment boldly. Themes creativity innovation technology Mood inspired determined Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - software development - startathons - open source projects Key Concepts computing problem solving digital culture Questions to Reflect On - How can you apply hacker mindset to everyday challenges? - What barriers hinder your creative problem solving? A Different Perspective Innovation can be limited by resources or institutional constraints. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Creative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative/) [Creative Does](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative-does-442811/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Cybersecurity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cybersecurity/) [Doe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doe/) [Hacker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hacker/) [Hacker Use](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hacker-use-623628/) [Hackers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hackers/) [Somebody Creative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/somebody-creative-623629/) [Term](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/term/) [Term Somebody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/term-somebody-623630/) [Use](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/use/) [Wonderful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wonderful/) [Wonderful things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wonderful-things/) ## Related quotes > [A hacker to me is someone creative who does wonderful things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/a-hacker-to-me-is-someone-creative-who-does-wonderful-things/) [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) > [Love is creative. It does not flow along the easy paths, spending itself in the attractive. It cuts new channels, goes where it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/love-is-creative-it-does-not-flow-along-the-easy-paths-spending/) [Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/) > [The genius is a genius by the first look he casts on any object. Is his eye creative? Does he not rest in angles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-genius-is-a-genius-by-the-first-look-he-casts-on-any-object-is/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“But in the end, the hackers were misunderstood figures. They wanted nothing more than to belong, to subsume their brilliant selves in an even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-foer/but-in-the-end-the-hackers-were-misunderstood-figures-they-wanted/) [Franklin Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-foer/) > [It's true, I had hacked into a lot of companies, and took copies of the source code to analyze it for security bugs. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-mitnick/it-s-true-i-had-hacked-into-a-lot-of-companies-and-took-copies-of-the/) [Kevin Mitnick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-mitnick/) > [God is a hacker, not an engineer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-crick/god-is-a-hacker-not-an-engineer/) [Francis Crick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-crick/) > [A hacker is someone who enjoys playful cleverness—not necessarily with computers. The programmers in the old MIT free software community of the 60s and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-stallman/a-hacker-is-someone-who-enjoys-playful-cleverness-not-necessarily/) [Richard Stallman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-stallman/) > [You have a very large population of hackers in Eastern Europe in general and Russia especially. A lot of them consider themselves patriotic individuals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dmitri-alperovitch/you-have-a-very-large-population-of-hackers-in-eastern-europe-in/) [Dmitri Alperovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dmitri-alperovitch/) > [ We are now debating and talking about a story \[Russian hacker attack\] based on something that isn't true. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reince-priebus/we-are-now-debating-and-talking-about-a-story-russian-hacker-attack/) [Reince Priebus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reince-priebus/) > [The Hacker Ethic: Access to computers--and anything which might teach you something about the way the world works--should be unlimited and total. Always yield…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-levy/the-hacker-ethic-access-to-computers-and-anything-which-might-teach/) [Steven Levy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-levy/) > [When an attacker fails with one person, they often go to another person. The key is to report the attack to other departments. Workers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-mitnick/when-an-attacker-fails-with-one-person-they-often-go-to-another/) [Kevin Mitnick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-mitnick/) > [I characterize myself as a retired hacker. I'm applying what I know to improve security at companies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-mitnick/i-characterize-myself-as-a-retired-hacker-i-m-applying-what-i-know-to/) [Kevin Mitnick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-mitnick/) > [It is widely grokked that cats have the hacker nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-s-raymond/it-is-widely-grokked-that-cats-have-the-hacker-nature/) [Eric S. Raymond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-s-raymond/) > [The workstation-class machines built by Sun and others opened up new worlds for hackers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-s-raymond/the-workstation-class-machines-built-by-sun-and-others-opened-up-new/) [Eric S. Raymond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-s-raymond/) > [New security loopholes are constantly popping up because of wireless networking. The cat-and-mouse game between hackers and system administrators is still in full swing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-mitnick/new-security-loopholes-are-constantly-popping-up-because-of-wireless/) [Kevin Mitnick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-mitnick/) ## More by Tim Berners-Lee > [When something is such a creative medium as the web, the limits to it are our imagination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/when-something-is-such-a-creative-medium-as-the-web-the-limits-to-it/) [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) > [You can’t propose that something be a universal space and at the same time keep control of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/you-can-t-propose-that-something-be-a-universal-space-and-at-the-same/) [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) > [Web users ultimately want to get at data quickly and easily. They don't care as much about attractive sites and pretty design.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/web-users-ultimately-want-to-get-at-data-quickly-and-easily-they-don/) [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) > [Physicists analyse systems. Web scientists, however, can create the systems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/physicists-analyse-systems-web-scientists-however-can-create-the/) [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) > [AI is not just heading for our industry, it will radically change the machinery we use in marketing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/ai-is-not-just-heading-for-our-industry-it-will-radically-change-the/) [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) > [Web pages are designed for people. For the Semantic Web, we need to look at existing databases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/web-pages-are-designed-for-people-for-the-semantic-web-we-need-to/) [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) > [One of the issues of social networking silos is that they have the data and I don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/one-of-the-issues-of-social-networking-silos-is-that-they-have-the/) [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) > [The more you enter, the more you become locked in. Your social-networking site becomes a central platform - a closed silo of content, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/the-more-you-enter-the-more-you-become-locked-in-your-social/) [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) > [Celebrity damages private life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/celebrity-damages-private-life/) [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) > [I think, in general, it's clear that most bad things come from misunderstanding, and communication is generally the way to resolve misunderstandings - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/i-think-in-general-it-s-clear-that-most-bad-things-come-from/) [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) > [When somebody has learned how to program a computer ... You're joining a group of people who can do incredible things. They can make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/when-somebody-has-learned-how-to-program-a-computer-you-re-joining-a/) [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) > [I'm an optimist about humanity in general, I suppose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/i-m-an-optimist-about-humanity-in-general-i-suppose/) [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) > [Anyone who has lost track of time when using a computer knows the propensity to dream, the urge to make dreams come true and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/anyone-who-has-lost-track-of-time-when-using-a-computer-knows-the/) [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) > [Universality has been the key enabler of innovation on the Web and will continue to be so in the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/universality-has-been-the-key-enabler-of-innovation-on-the-web-and/) [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) > [What is a Web year now, about three months? And when people can browse around, discover new things, and download them fast, when we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/what-is-a-web-year-now-about-three-months-and-when-people-can-browse/) [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) [Explore all 134 Tim Berners-Lee quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) ## More Creative quotes > [An artist's creative energy is ephemeral as a flower. It blooms and soon dies. No artist is great forever. Personally, I think I reached…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-ki-duk/an-artist-s-creative-energy-is-ephemeral-as-a-flower-it-blooms-and/) [Kim Ki-duk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-ki-duk/) > [When you're being truly creative, time stands still, and you enter a dimension that can carry you beyond the ordinariness of everyday life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-linn/when-you-re-being-truly-creative-time-stands-still-and-you-enter-a/) [Denise Linn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-linn/) > [I started off playing by ear, and being around a bunch of musicians and playing in the streets and in the different parades and,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/troy-andrews/i-started-off-playing-by-ear-and-being-around-a-bunch-of-musicians/) [Troy Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/troy-andrews/) > [Can you imagine any better example of divine creative accomplishment that the consummate flying machine that is a bird? The skeleton, very flexible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-murchie/can-you-imagine-any-better-example-of-divine-creative-accomplishment/) [Guy Murchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-murchie/) > [Money is only used for two things. One, it's to make you comfortable, and the more comfortable you are the more creative you will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/money-is-only-used-for-two-things-one-it-s-to-make-you-comfortable/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [Beware of self-indulgence. The romance surrounding the writing profession carries several myths: that one must suffer in order to be creative; that one must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brin/beware-of-self-indulgence-the-romance-surrounding-the-writing/) [David Brin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brin/) > [I can't let fear kill my creative brain. Fear is the killer. Your bad choices come from fear. And I'm constantly combating fear. I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-m-chu/i-can-t-let-fear-kill-my-creative-brain-fear-is-the-killer-your-bad/) [Jon M. Chu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-m-chu/) > [Many humanists have argued that happiness involves a combination of hedonism and creative moral development; that an exuberant life fuses excellence and enjoyment, meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kurtz/many-humanists-have-argued-that-happiness-involves-a-combination-of/) [Paul Kurtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kurtz/) > [The creative strength is good enough and deep enough to bring itself to flower and to grow in spite of this sickness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/the-creative-strength-is-good-enough-and-deep-enough-to-bring-itself/) [Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/) > [Anytime I get the chance to sing or work with Michael John, it is such an incredibly fertile and incredibly creative and safe and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/audra-mcdonald/anytime-i-get-the-chance-to-sing-or-work-with-michael-john-it-is-such/) [Audra McDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/audra-mcdonald/) > [What Sri Chinmoy does is God-given! He has a tremendous, a fantastic creative urge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-shankar/what-sri-chinmoy-does-is-god-given-he-has-a-tremendous-a-fantastic/) [Ravi Shankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-shankar/) > [Majority decisions tend to be made without engaging the systematic thought and critical thinking skills of the individuals in the group. Given the force…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/majority-decisions-tend-to-be-made-without-engaging-the-systematic/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [when times are tough, the weak bail and the tough get creative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelley-armstrong/when-times-are-tough-the-weak-bail-and-the-tough-get-creative/) [Kelley Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelley-armstrong/) > [Teasing out the way the world might look through another's eyes is what makes the creative process so fascinating and enjoyable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-l-carter/teasing-out-the-way-the-world-might-look-through-another-s-eyes-is/) [Stephen L. Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-l-carter/) > [The creation lives as genesis beneath the visible surface of the work. All intelligent people see this after the fact, but only the creative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-klee/the-creation-lives-as-genesis-beneath-the-visible-surface-of-the-work/) [Paul Klee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-klee/) [Browse all 7,284 Creative quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To be a hacker - when I use the term - is somebody who is creative and does wonderful things.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Tim Berners-Lee" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/to-be-a-hacker-when-i-use-the-term-is-somebody-who-is-creative-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Creative" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/to-be-a-hacker-when-i-use-the-term-is-somebody-who-is-creative-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8cd/tim-berners-lee-3302_creative_to-be-a-hacker-when-i-use-the-term-is-so_1647665.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8cd/tim-berners-lee-3302_creative_to-be-a-hacker-when-i-use-the-term-is-so_1647665.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8cd/tim-berners-lee-3302_creative_to-be-a-hacker-when-i-use-the-term-is-so_1647665.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“To be a hacker - when I use the term - is somebody who is creative and does wonderful things.” — Tim Berners-Lee", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Tim Berners-Lee", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "To be a hacker - when...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/to-be-a-hacker-when-i-use-the-term-is-somebody-who-is-creative-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/to-be-a-hacker-when-i-use-the-term-is-somebody-who-is-creative-and/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```