Nothing is wrong with wanting to change the world. But you don't find the language being used rather creepy? It really does sound like delusions of grandeur. For a one-day event? There is nothing wrong with wanting to change the world, but there is something wrong with hubris, ego, megalomania...
Delusions of grandeur, perhaps, but I don't see a problem with setting high goals for SHDH. At the events I've gone to, I've seen people doing all sorts of crazy shit - at one of them, someone was doing some sort of biotech experiments with DNA and yogurt, and at another event, I saw an early version of that Word Lens realtime translation app that came out on iOS a couple months back. I think genetic engineering and realtime translation both have the potential to change the world, don't you?
Ah, well first off I thought this event was just something these guys from his job organized, like, at one of their houses.
But still. Even for a large event like that, the language he quoted in the article was kinda creepy. I of course agree that at any time ideas can spark and work can begin that will eventually have a large impact. I'm sure there are CS conferences that use more sober language.
Except that when you're working in a technology field, everything you do changes the world. It may not have a sweeping impact, and may only make a small and seemingly superficial change. But that small change makes it that much easier on the next person.
Who knows - perhaps that one day event is where hacker X meets hacker Y and they go on to form company Z, and really do change the world by introducing product Δ.
Though I certainly understand where you're coming from, and how one could read the SuperHappyDevHouse blurb as being extremely egotistical.
Last I checked, software development kinda sorta is really changing the world.
Now, if they claimed they were trying to take over the world, that would be hubris. But changing the world? A noble goal if you ask me. Not creepy at all.
