rant: why are geeks cool nowadays?

Reaperman@home · Post by **Reaperman@home** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 10:00 am

I'm sure there's a thread on this already--but just you try a search for "geek" and "cool" on this board.
Today I came to the realization that geeks are, in fact, cool these days. I was blinded by how much easier it was getting to be a geek in the world, that I didn't notice that I was actually even in style...

For starters, everybody I know uses a computer EVERY day...and a lot. Even the wrench-turners downstairs know all the words to Starwars Gangsta Rap. 'All Your Base' has become a pop culture icon and I get compliments on my Jet Jaguar desktop... The news story wasn't that Paris Hilton had pictures stolen off of her smartphone--the story should have read 'pop-culture icon trying to be total nerd'

In the movies, lousy comic-book movies are nothing new--what's new is that everybody sees and likes them. 'Normals' can even tell you who created Spider Man. Napolean Dynamite, terrible movie, but look at all the T-shirts around! And the Anime section...it's got its own aisle at best buy... Furthermore, Hobbits weren't always cool, but today you can walk down the street with an "i (heart) Tolkien" T-shirt on and you are likely to get "me toos" instead of beaten to death.

On TV, it started with Buffy--today we've seen a Dune miniseries, and of all things to bring back...battlestar galactica. ...and it's good... Primetime cartoons?--tons of them. And what's this I'm hearing about a possible Star Wars TV show? (I hope it's a sitcom about an Ewok family that adopts a madcap Gungan)

Even video games are cool... It must be true. Every 'pimped out' car on MTV has an Xbox or PS2, and how often do you hear people talking about 'Grand Theft Auto' or what they did in some sports game or...MMORPG(!). 15 years ago...try talking about something you did in a video game... I dare you... 'did you save the fairy princess in your little game last night--GEEK!' Today, I have to wear my gameboy around my neck to get a rise out of anybody--and even then it's only the PSP fanboys...

It's so much easier to be a geek now. What's happened? Are these the end times? What else was geeky and now is "cool"?

xriverfalconx · Post by **xriverfalconx** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 10:15 am

IDK, but if a lady see's you are a geek (LADY not girl/teenager/highschooler) they like that because they see you as being financially fit and women need security.

My guess would be that because of the way females are evolving today, us men must evolve too so we can continue impressing them and stop them from joining the "L" club!

Post by **Sparkfist** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 11:33 am

Well its hit off as pop culture. The things is there are still people that are the true know it alls. Things like the little kid craze over anime brought that into main stream, aside from the fact it has better done stories and has a section for mature audiances.

Also with computers, and internet being the big place to transfer information you have everyone know about songs like "all your base". You still have the people that are the true geeks. The ones that know more then how to get to a site, defrag their hard drive and simple crap like that.

I dont know if I fit in as a geek, I'm far to unfocused. The only aspect that can make me one is that I can sovle simple problems (make a comuter run faster) and I'm into linux/unix systems.

Foxx373 · Post by **Foxx373** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 11:38 am

I know what you mean,. I remember the days when the fact that I had a computer in my home made me a geek. And the fact that i could write my own programs and build my own hardware put me in a higher class of geek. Now-A-Days everyne is wired, everyone has to have the fastest computer with the most pimped out cases. WTF happened to a big steel biege box? I guess you can blame it on the fact that computers cost less than $300 today, rather than thousands. Knowing how to code stuff years ago wasnt something everyone could do. Now every leet-o freet-o hacker wannabe can code HTML, PHP, Visual Basic and god only knows whate else, meanwhile they really dont know their butthole from their elbow when it comes to a computer.

Not to mention how easy (and decrepit!!) software companies has made it to use a computer. Windows has to be THE biggest money sucking, problem causing, bloated OS known' to MAN KIND. And AOL has completely destroyed literacy. Nobody knows how to speak and spell anymore. Typos i can understand but "Thnx, BBIAF, LOLZ..." I know people that actually TALK like that!

What the hell does it take to be a SMART social outcast these days? Oh, wait, i know the answer to that. Im sure noone wants to hear it though (in my own words, its propbabbly going to vulgar and nasty, and witout the latent homosexual tone of voice, it will be taken out of context).

Mr. Cool · Post by **Mr. Cool** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 12:01 pm

Reaperman@home: Dont you DARE call NApolean dynamite a ad movie. I think it depends on the kind of geek if you are cool. If you have no social skills, then you will have no friends, but if you have social skills, and just happen to like gadgets nad computers, then you will have friends, and be cool.

kidw/32+systems · Post by **kidw/32+systems** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 1:19 pm

plus b/c everyone uses a computer so they need a geek to fix it and they tell each other and so on and in SYNC. mag they had a page on what the hottest things that a geek can do
i think the word geek needs a new definition for todays true geeks
yes i too have become a bit more popular just by fixing things and helping them(i don't charge them though

)

Reaperman@home · Post by **Reaperman@home** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 1:35 pm

I don't care who is more of a geek...
what I'm getting at is that everybody is a geek. What do you call somebody who owns at least one mp3 player, plays video games, watches cartoons/sci-fi/fantasy programming, and can't stand a day without the internet.

They're geeks, and are pretty much everybody. Brace yourselves, because we are cool.

soundwave · Post by **soundwave** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 1:37 pm

Reaperman@home wrote:owns at least one mp3 player, plays video games, watches cartoons/sci-fi/fantasy programming, and can't stand a day without the internet

Yeah, thats me.

Trv · Post by **Trv** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 1:49 pm

yeah, our society has really taken a turn. Forunatly, I can still talk about computer, google's gretness, and computer games (New systems like x-box and PS2 are for /\/()()|3z).

and be considered a geek

HK-47 · Post by **HK-47** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 2:03 pm

soundwave wrote:
Reaperman@home wrote:owns at least one mp3 player, plays video games, watches cartoons/sci-fi/fantasy programming, and can't stand a day without the internet
Yeah, thats me.

Same.
But look at hacking for a second. Now a true hacker isn't a moron, he is a person who has a keen intrest in technology and enjoys exploring how things work. But nowadays, just like the geek thing, everyone wants to be "the 1337 haxxor" with all sorts of "L33T 5|<1|_5". Everyone thinks they are the coolest damn person in existance. Its totally screwed up. Its similar to that cad comic I thing sponge posted (http://www.ctrlaltdel-online.com/?t=arc ... 2003-06-06) ... Everyone thinks they're cool, but they're really morons. Im sure you know how computer savy people can think they are. Meanwhile, they're just giving a once exclusive group a crapy name. Take the word hacker for example... It once was a word similar to geek, meaning a person really into computers/tech. Now if you watch the media its "hacker this..." and "hacker that..." and "hackers are evil..." and all this crap. Computers have become so easy to use, any moron can be "1337" and as a result the english language is constantly bastardized though "L33T5P34K" and msn/aim-speak. It bloody horible. Its tearing apart society as people are becoming stupider and stupider. I know I've been using hacking for a second, but the same things apply to geeks... The population of "geeks" is so high, that its becoming a meaningless word. Im now going to stop typing before I call 75% of the population of earth complete morons... Oops, to late.

gamer2 · Post by **gamer2** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 2:17 pm

Im like a Super geek at school, i game, I make up Heros and thier Protagonists, and so on.

Post by **Triton** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 3:10 pm

im my opinion ther are 2 types of "geeks" there are the "cool" geeks who think they are the bomb becasue they can use a computer (like msn ans surf websites) and so some basc stuff, and own an mp3 player etc, then there are the REAL geeks, like amny on this board, who still do hardware hacking and BUILD things themselves, who like anime and drawing (like me) and arent mainstream lamers who watch mtv and g4 becuase its "cool" and "gamerish"

G-Prime · Post by **G-Prime** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 3:20 pm

Their are almost no geeks at my school. I sware...there must only be only like 2 or 3 people who know how to use a computer at my school. Every one thought I was a hacker (I am but thats besides the point) because I used netsend and showed the how to get around the school filter. Im not ever going into how few people know electronics...me, and ummm........me

cowsgoquack101 · Post by **cowsgoquack101** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 4:13 pm

there are a few and i mean VERY few people who like games and tech at my school. like me and 2 other people know stuff. They ask me all about crap they don't

i myself am not really a hacker i just play games and am a geek. I like anime, computers, games, robots, cartoons, rescueing the princess and so on...butkind of wish i could be a loner. Everyone at school think they are cool because they can change the color of the windows screen.

demonofaj · Post by **demonofaj** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 4:18 pm

G-Prime, can you uh, TEACH HOW TO BYPASS FILTER, there I said it, BITE ME. Sorry bout caps, but I reALLY wannna know.