Geeks vs. Nerds
(Cross-posted from the CSS Tinderbox. Originally posted on February 4, 2008)
It’s a classic struggle and one with both sides deeply entrenched. But the clear line that separates nerds from geeks is blurred or damn near indecipherable by many, many people because it’s commonplace to lump both groups together and use either label to loosely describe one or the other.
This is unacceptable because everyone should understand that geeks are most definitely not nerds and vice versa. And while just like all other social or ethnic groups share common boundaries or tendencies, there really is a difference between the two. And please, don’t confuse a geek with being a dork because that’s a whole other story.
So what makes them different? They’re different because geeks are cooler than nerds! There, I said it.
A nerd is someone who would camp out for three days in their Jedi costume just to watch a home movie from that money-grubbing-ass-clown George Lucas or dress up like a hobbit to go to Gen Con. And don’t get me started with the deeply rooted connection between nerds and Dungeons and Dragons.
Wikipedia says that a nerd is "a person who passionately pursues intellectual activities or esoteric knowledge rather than engaging in more social activities. Therefore, a nerd is often excluded from physical activity and considered a loner by peers."
Unless of course they’re all gathered together to fight over the whole Star Wars vs. Star Trek thing, which in that case is only accidentally a social event.
The flipside is that a geek is "a person who is interested in technology, especially computing and new media. Most geeks are adept with computers, and treat the term hacker as a term of respect, but not all are hackers themselves."
A geek is more of a loner (sometimes by choice) with a strong counter-culture attitude. And geeks actually have a sense of humor too.
But when I say geek, I mean old-school geek. Not the geek chic clique that try to seem quirky and off-beat while hanging out at Starbucks with their iPod.
And by old-school, I mean the unpopular kids that earned their spurs before it was semi-cool to be a geek like it is now and way before anything from Apple was a fashion statement.
Illustration by Raymond Krause
It’s a classic struggle and one with both sides deeply entrenched. But the clear line that separates nerds from geeks is blurred or damn near indecipherable by many, many people because it’s commonplace to lump both groups together and use either label to loosely describe one or the other.
This is unacceptable because everyone should understand that geeks are most definitely not nerds and vice versa. And while just like all other social or ethnic groups share common boundaries or tendencies, there really is a difference between the two. And please, don’t confuse a geek with being a dork because that’s a whole other story.
So what makes them different? They’re different because geeks are cooler than nerds! There, I said it.
A nerd is someone who would camp out for three days in their Jedi costume just to watch a home movie from that money-grubbing-ass-clown George Lucas or dress up like a hobbit to go to Gen Con. And don’t get me started with the deeply rooted connection between nerds and Dungeons and Dragons.
Wikipedia says that a nerd is "a person who passionately pursues intellectual activities or esoteric knowledge rather than engaging in more social activities. Therefore, a nerd is often excluded from physical activity and considered a loner by peers."
Unless of course they’re all gathered together to fight over the whole Star Wars vs. Star Trek thing, which in that case is only accidentally a social event.
The flipside is that a geek is "a person who is interested in technology, especially computing and new media. Most geeks are adept with computers, and treat the term hacker as a term of respect, but not all are hackers themselves."
A geek is more of a loner (sometimes by choice) with a strong counter-culture attitude. And geeks actually have a sense of humor too.
But when I say geek, I mean old-school geek. Not the geek chic clique that try to seem quirky and off-beat while hanging out at Starbucks with their iPod.
And by old-school, I mean the unpopular kids that earned their spurs before it was semi-cool to be a geek like it is now and way before anything from Apple was a fashion statement.
Illustration by Raymond Krause
Comment
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Comment by Gilbert Sanchez on August 21, 2008 at 11:29pm -
Did you get the names wrong in the picture? I thought nerds where the ones with star wars costumes...
The chic geek thing is definitely something you always see at Starbucks. Always gives me and my fellow geeks a good laugh...
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Comment by CSS Tinderbox on May 9, 2008 at 3:08pm - nothing like someone posing to be a geek only when it's fun or fashionable. let's see them stick around once the wedgies are being handed out.
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Comment by solkem on May 9, 2008 at 11:05am - totally agree with u esp about this new breed of superficial geeks that "hang out at starbucks" as u said. nice comparison.
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