I recently signed up for the local Java Users’s Group, as a way to poke my nose in something new, and maybe get a few locals interested in Hecl.

They just announced their upcoming meeting, at 9 AM on Saturday the 19th. When I read that, the first thing that went through my head is “Paul Graham is right, these guys are not hackers!”.

I don’t think I’ve ever been to any kind of Linux event that wasn’t an evening affair, perhaps with a meal and/or beer involved. Conferences occasionally start at that time of day, but that’s because people are paying to be there, want to fit as much stuff in as possible, and they last all day in any case. But choosing to meet at 9 AM on a Saturday is I think one of the clearest signs that this community is a bit different from others in which I take part. Not to put these guys down – a couple of them seem to be quite bright, but… perhaps they just aren’t hackers.