# Definition of Hack

**Author:** kinlane  
**Canonical:** https://apievangelist.com/2012/01/10/definition-of-hack/

kinlane-productions2.s3.amazonaws.com ![](https://kinlane-images.s3.amazonaws.com/apievangelist/api-evangelist/Hack-the-Planet.jpg)

I’m spending a lot of time traveling around the country going to [hackathons](/events/ "hackathons"). I find myself constantly explaining what the term hack means.

I’m blown away by the number of people, even in the tech industry that still see hack as a negative term. At the [AT&T hackathon in Las Vegas](/events/att_mobile_app_hackathon_las_vegas.php "AT&T Hackathon") , I encountered quite a few hardware folks in town for CES, attending the event. I was asked by one guy, “Are all these people trying to hack someone’s network?”.

So, as part of my 2012 hackathon roadshow, I will take on trying to rebrand the term. Currently, these are the common definitions of the word hack:

*   To cut or chop with repeated and irregular blows: hacked down the saplings
*   To break up the surface of soil
*   To alter a computer program
*   To gain access to a computer file or network illegally or without authorization
*   To cut or mutilate as if by hacking
*   To cope with successfully
*   To chop or cut something by hacking
*   To write or refine computer programs skillfully
*   To use one's skill in computer programming to gain illegal or unauthorized access to a file or network
*   To cough roughly or harshly
*   A rough, irregular cut made by hacking
*   A tool, such as a hoe, used for hacking
*   A blow made by hacking
*   A rough, dry cough

The definition I’ve heard, and prefer is:

> **_A quick and dirty programmatic solution to a problem._**

I would like to solicit other definitions and feedback of how you’d like to see the term hack used widely in the media and Hollywood.