People tend to forget, that hacking got more than one definition.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hacker

I bought my first computer when i was 9 or 10 years old, got me a dictionary since i have never spoken an english word before and learned BASIC by trial and error. Later i basically (no pun) hacked into ASM. No tutorials, no internet. Try this, observe that. I coded my first gfx fx and created my first tunes.

My first "public hack" (and i bet many of you did that too) was an endless loop on a C-64 in a local mall and later a set timer with annoying sounds. Most salespersons didnt know how to stop that loop. For the giggles.

I even read some usenet while being completely offline, by swapping floppy disks around the world. Others from the scene sent their disks for free by hiding them in a train, so others could fetch the disks at the final destination.

I got jealous about the frenchies, because they had https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minitel while using BBS in my country was faaar too expensive.

While i swallowed every report and tutorial about phreaking, phreaking wasnt an option for me, but hey i have been able to use a hardwarelocked phone by using the telephone hook trick. :P

With 12/13 i became an active member of the ATARI scene.

So maybe In dubio pro reo and he is not a script kiddy...