Now they're calling and EEPROM programmer a hacking device. What a sad world.

Who is?

Definition of hacking is to do smth with it what it's not essentially designed for. Using your keyboard to smash down your coworker is by this definition a total hacker move. Using your CD drive as a cup holder is totally 1337 h4x0r. Don't fucking with people doing that. Seriously, they still own a dvd drive. Imagine what other crazy stuff they might own.

But programming an EEPROM programmer to program an EEPROM is not hacking I guess. Or does it force to write smth you normally can't? In that case, yes.

Does this have anything to do with the Facebook labels Linux and Distrowatch as malware?

@retoor with that definition, every js "dev" is a hacker.

I suppose if you are trying to change the default behavior of a consumer device then maybe it is accurate. I modded my original Xbox with a chip I soldered in place. It allowed me to have alternate modes of operation. Having a hard drive that I could run games from in not allowed in original. With the mod device I can put games on hard drive and not use CD if I don't want to. This allowed me to use PC mods on the game Morrowind on the Xbox. I didn't program the mod chip it was done by someone else. But it was used to hack the Xbox.

hacking used to just mean writing code until it works, aka fuck around and find out

then somehow it became exclusively about breaking into systems

hacking as in, you take an axe and swing it wildly, guizzz. once we stop viewing it that way all of programming will die because everyone will be too scared to change code, hurt by getting it wrong, so can never have a trial by fire where they can always get it right because they found all the ways to get it wrong

also I'm big on owning all my hardware. if I buy it it's mine to hack. i look at your vase wrong you want to send the cops after me? not gonna buy your dumb vase then. that's called a liability. why am I paying for a liability? bad deal.

@jestdotty in Japan it is illegal to alter things you own. They have some law against it. That is why Samsung is big on making so you can't root your phone anymore. So if you want to aggravate them then make videos of altering your Nintendo products. They might try and take down your video on Youtube though.

@Demolishun *avoids Japan* samurais are cool but modern Japan seems so cucked

@jestdotty Yeah, AFAIK a lot of it comes from the America influence after WW2 (e.g. censoring porn and banning prostitutes)

@BordedDev wow, I didn’t know that prostitution is illegal in Japan!