Absolutely, seconded. Not only in it's stereotype of geek men (and it's implicit erasure of geek women) but in how the advice could essentially be summed up as "Find this dude that you don't really relate to and cater to his every whim. Watching him play video games while you bake cookies is what every relationship should aspire to." Utter dreck.
This is more like the guide to a bad geek stereotype. Seriously, gems like Geeks tend towards packaged, junk foods just made me shake my head. Especially funny given how many diet and exercise articles show up on hacker news.
As another example I don't expect girlfriends to understand much about computers or be genuinely interested in the apps I write. I don't need a girlfriend to talk shop with, that's not what girlfriends are for. It wouldn't be a negative, but really wouldn't be a positive much either.
I don't know if I agree 100% with the second part of your comment. A CS degree is by no means a requirement, but in general (geek or not) I'd like to be able to share what excites me with a girlfriend.
That said, I don't expect a girl to study Star Trek or anything (and, btw, was this article written 15 years ago? I don't think I know anyone who watches Star Trek.) just in order to get references to it. This is really a pretty stupid article that seems to have been written by someone whose greatest exposure to geeks is watching The Big Bang Theory.
One should keep in mind that there's a kernel of truth in all stereotypes. Even if that kernel represents only a small minority, that wildly different minority is what people remember.
I used to go to "gaming" stores 15 years ago to play tabletop wargames, collectible card games, board games, etc. You'd have the dads who just treat it as a fun hobby and are "normal", but you did have the occasional unwashed, overweight individual with a shabby graphic t-shirt. I briefly played a Star Wars CCG for its mechanics, but there were die hard Star Wars fans who would go on for minutes on random bit characters.
My friend works for BioWare as a creative writer. We both love our video games. Mine are cleverly concealed behind a veneer of mid-century and contemporary modern furniture so you don't know they exist. He has a 10-foot screen and front projection setup with a 1kW surround sound setup that he has no intention on tidying up. I only play about 5 hours of games a week now. He still can play for 30 hours a week on a regular basis.
I played World of Warcraft for 5 years. I ran and participated in some very hardcore groups including former FoHers and had several friends in a world Top 25 guild. I prefer a computer to be compact and dead silent, whereas some of my comrades feel a large box with a 600W power draw and sounds like a jet engine is perfectly normal. One was a big DIYer and a very sharp guy... but you'd swear he subsists solely on CLIF bars. I remember getting called out by him for stepping away to finish a proper meal.
I have a few Miyazaki films, but I've known anime fans that have no qualms about having rather vulgar figurines of female characters in skimpy clothing, walls covered in posters, etc. And they're going on 30.
I had a friend who collected DEC hardware. He honestly has a working MicroVAX cluster running on DECnet, three DEC Alphaservers, amongst other things running in his apartment. Probably a dozen operational computers, running 24x7.
I could go on and on. R/C cars. Model trains. Slot cars. Operating systems. In every group, you had always individuals that took it to an extreme, and boy do they stand out. Because they stand out, that's who and what is remembered.
There is a difference between a geek and a nerd, and I think this piece occasionally confuses the two. Then again, I wonder whether my understanding of the terms is universal or not...
I've always considered geeks to be those who "know their shit" about some technical topic (often multiple topics), and nerds to be more along the lines of "gamers and dungeon and dragon players."
This guide is brilliant. Indeed, girls are practically jumping out of their pants for guys who are generally available and are passed over by other women.
The food thing is the biggest WTF. Maybe once a month I'll have KFC/McD's after a heavy night out, and regret it.
If you're still harbouring resentments about shit that happened at high school at the age of 30, the problem is you.
As a geek, you're not special or deserving of different treatment, you're just another guy. If a little smarter than the mean.
People peddling this bullshit annoy me.
I like tinkering with autos. Driving 160-180mph is fun. Sky-diving is fun. Traveling to off-the-track places is fun. Kicking the shit out of, and getting the shit kicked out of you in sparring, is fun. Yes, I'm a gamer too.
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[ 4.1 ms ] story [ 65.1 ms ] threadAs another example I don't expect girlfriends to understand much about computers or be genuinely interested in the apps I write. I don't need a girlfriend to talk shop with, that's not what girlfriends are for. It wouldn't be a negative, but really wouldn't be a positive much either.
That said, I don't expect a girl to study Star Trek or anything (and, btw, was this article written 15 years ago? I don't think I know anyone who watches Star Trek.) just in order to get references to it. This is really a pretty stupid article that seems to have been written by someone whose greatest exposure to geeks is watching The Big Bang Theory.
(In fact, I'd reserve the phrase "very offensive" for things way nastier than a joke article on the internet.)
I used to go to "gaming" stores 15 years ago to play tabletop wargames, collectible card games, board games, etc. You'd have the dads who just treat it as a fun hobby and are "normal", but you did have the occasional unwashed, overweight individual with a shabby graphic t-shirt. I briefly played a Star Wars CCG for its mechanics, but there were die hard Star Wars fans who would go on for minutes on random bit characters.
My friend works for BioWare as a creative writer. We both love our video games. Mine are cleverly concealed behind a veneer of mid-century and contemporary modern furniture so you don't know they exist. He has a 10-foot screen and front projection setup with a 1kW surround sound setup that he has no intention on tidying up. I only play about 5 hours of games a week now. He still can play for 30 hours a week on a regular basis.
I played World of Warcraft for 5 years. I ran and participated in some very hardcore groups including former FoHers and had several friends in a world Top 25 guild. I prefer a computer to be compact and dead silent, whereas some of my comrades feel a large box with a 600W power draw and sounds like a jet engine is perfectly normal. One was a big DIYer and a very sharp guy... but you'd swear he subsists solely on CLIF bars. I remember getting called out by him for stepping away to finish a proper meal.
I have a few Miyazaki films, but I've known anime fans that have no qualms about having rather vulgar figurines of female characters in skimpy clothing, walls covered in posters, etc. And they're going on 30.
I had a friend who collected DEC hardware. He honestly has a working MicroVAX cluster running on DECnet, three DEC Alphaservers, amongst other things running in his apartment. Probably a dozen operational computers, running 24x7.
I could go on and on. R/C cars. Model trains. Slot cars. Operating systems. In every group, you had always individuals that took it to an extreme, and boy do they stand out. Because they stand out, that's who and what is remembered.
Gross understatement indeed! I found most observations spot on.
I've always considered geeks to be those who "know their shit" about some technical topic (often multiple topics), and nerds to be more along the lines of "gamers and dungeon and dragon players."
Seriously, how is it a guide to (assuming non-geeky) girls if he's candidly referring to Deanna and Bev.
If you're still harbouring resentments about shit that happened at high school at the age of 30, the problem is you.
As a geek, you're not special or deserving of different treatment, you're just another guy. If a little smarter than the mean.
People peddling this bullshit annoy me.
I like tinkering with autos. Driving 160-180mph is fun. Sky-diving is fun. Traveling to off-the-track places is fun. Kicking the shit out of, and getting the shit kicked out of you in sparring, is fun. Yes, I'm a gamer too.
My hobby which became my job doesn't define me.