---
title: Great Hackers
date: "2004-07-29T12:00:00Z"
categories:
  - my-best-links
wp_id: 822
description: I recommend Paul Graham’s essay on the qualities of exceptional programmers. It examines why great hackers prioritize technical challenges over money, the benefits of hiring based on language choice, and how technical founders create better engineering cultures.
keywords: [paul graham, hacker culture, technical hiring, software engineering, programming languages, engineering management]
---

Excellent article by Paul Graham on [great hackers](http://www.paulgraham.com/gh.html).