DefCon 18 was a blast and if you were there you know that!  So if you were there,this post is not for you (well, I guess it could be but, well, read on).
Inevitably, every time I come back from Vegas, I’m always asked by the InfoSec people I know how it was.  Some want to know if I got into the infamous “Hacker Pimps” party, others want to know what contests I entered and how I did, and others, usually the younger ones who still haven’t lost that spark of curiosity that led them down the path of computer security, give me this starry-eyed look and say, “Was it as cool as I think it was?”

So this post is mostly for you, and in a word, yes… It was as cool as you could imagine and then some.  I think what makes DefCon special among all IT conferences and IT Security conferences specifically is that the majority of people at Defcon are people who haven’t lost that spark of curiosity.  For 4 days you can watch, learn, talk and exchange knowledge with other people who not only know what you are talking about, they want to talk to you about it.   Ok, ok, so most people attending are a bit more on the introverted side than they are on the extroverted side but we hackers have a solution to that, too, and it’s called alcohol.

I have never been anywhere else where you can walk right up to tool creators, security authors, and experts in every major IT Security field, shake their hands, say hello, say thanks, and ask a question that’s been bugging you for a while now… And you know what? They answer!  They are usually extremely approachable and happy to talk to you.   Where else can you slide up to a table full of people picking locks, hacking hardware, talking exploits and watch, listen and learn?

I’ve been told on more than one occasion that I’m a bit unapproachable due to my scowls.  I have explained that my scowls are not for disdain (usually) but have more to do with curiosity in encountering a problem for which I’ve not yet developed a solution.  I found that a lot of people in our industry share my scowl and adopt it as somewhat of a default expression, making it seem like these people don’t want to talk to strangers.  However, I’ve found that if you say hello and introduce yourself, the scowl dissipates and you can end up scoring the 411 on a private party, an invitation to join a group for drinks or being a volunteer for an event and scoring major DefCon Karma.

Hackers have a reputation for being a bit standoffish and having a certain air of superiority about them, and perhaps this is true, but I can tell you that perhaps it is nothing more than a defense mechanism against the “normals” and those who would rather label you than try to understand your passion.  All I know is that attitudes and arrogance seem to dissipate the moment you don that Defcon badge around your neck.  Perhaps the true hacker magic in the badges has less to do with the kind of integrated controllers and interfaces installed and more to do with their ability to dispel arrogance and for one glorious extended weekend, have it become a sigil of unity across our IT security community.