Penguin
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This is best defined in the JargonFile:

<person, jargon> (Originally, someone who makes furniture with an axe) 1. 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.

2. One who programs enthusiastically (even obsessively) or who enjoys programming rather than just theorizing about programming.

With reference to common computer culture, being a hacker is more than just about programming. A SystemAdministrator is often a hacker (Not all are though.) They are interested in getting the most out of their systems. (See 6. An expert or enthusiast of any kind. One might be an astronomy hacker, for example.)

NOTE: HACKERS ARE NOT BAD PEOPLE

The media have abused the term; hackers tend not to be the sort that break into other peoples systems. Chances are, if there's a vulnerability on your system, it was a hacker that discovered it and wrote the patch for it.

You should call those bad people that choose to break into other peoples systems 'crackers'.

See a hacker glossary, and read Care and Feeding Of Your Hacker.

Hackers start at Geek and tend toward Nerd.

JargonFile:Hacker