Geeks of the world unite!

Message

Charlemagne · #1 Post by **Charlemagne** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 5:56 pm

Let's face it: this forum has some pretty geeky members, and for those who don't know about it, the What The Hack hacker conference/geekfest is happening at the end of this month. You don't actually have to be a hacker to attend, you can just go to take in the presentations, meet people from different places and soak up all the geeky goodness. Apparently, there'll be a 200 m^2 tent devoted to hacking and a 100 m^2 tent devoted to sleeping and drinking beer.

I wish I could go but I have neither the time nor the money, however people living a bit closer may want to check it out. It takes place from 28-31 July at terrestrial co-ordinates 51.554514°N, 5.343676°E.

Geeks of the world unite!

Broomie · #2 Post by **Broomie** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 5:59 pm

Oh lord, a weekend with geeks would be my ticket to suicide.

FatherGhostface · #3 Post by **FatherGhostface** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 6:25 pm

Yeah, and a Tuesday I'll never get back! |I

Gronagor · #4 Post by **Gronagor** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 6:41 pm

Truelly scary. :eek

Charlemagne · #5 Post by **Charlemagne** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 7:18 pm

What's scary? Geeks/hackers or the fact that they occasionally gather in one place to talk about stuff? There are lots of other conferences besides this one, you know. This just happens to be a really big one.

Broomie · #6 Post by **Broomie** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 7:29 pm

Charlemagne, I would have nothing against geeks/nerds joining up to talk about stuff, but unless they're the good kind of hackers (hacking into a program to make it better) I dispise hackers. Imagine 1000 of them together, with all that nerdinagy they have they could rule the world, or the internet.

Angelus3K · #7 Post by **Angelus3K** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 7:33 pm

I love hackers, if it werent for them we wouldnt have things like emulators to play all the amazing classic games and we also couldnt play those classic games on our PS2's, Xbox's and PSP's etc

Charlemagne · #8 Post by **Charlemagne** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 7:40 pm

Bromios wrote:Charlemagne, I would have nothing against geeks/nerds joining up to talk about stuff, but unless they're the good kind of hackers (hacking into a program to make it better) I dispise hackers. Imagine 1000 of them together, with all that nerdinagy they have they could rule the world, or the internet.

Ah. You (and, no doubt, many people here) are still under the the unfortunate misconception that hackers are criminals. They're not. Criminals are called "crackers", "phishers", "phreakers", "spammers", politicans, etc.

A hacker is merely an expert hobbyist. Also, many real hackers are of the opinion that the term is independant of any specific discipline, though they're usually tech-related. For example, model builders, amateur engineers, amateur astronomers, HAM radio enthusiasts, and programmers can all be "hackers". Their experiments, tinkering and ad-hoc solutions to problems they encounter are the "hacks". It's unfortunate that the media still haven't figured this out.

Kurdt · #9 Post by **Kurdt** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 7:43 pm

Those would be Broomie's example of the good hackers who hack to make life better instead of mess stuff up.

Either way, I'm not nerdy enough to survive in that showerless pocket-protector haven. I'd die of noxious air poisoning about 3 steps into either tent. All of the beer in the world couldn't medicate me enough for something that colossally and overwhelmingly pantywaist. *shudder emoticon*

Angelus3K · #10 Post by **Angelus3K** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 7:44 pm

The original meaning of the word hacker/crackers is someone who dissasembles something or "hacks" it to rebuild it and make it faster/more efficent.

Or something like that.

Charlemagne · #11 Post by **Charlemagne** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 7:51 pm

Kurdt wrote:Either way, I'm not nerdy enough to survive in that showerless pocket-protector haven. I'd die of noxious air poisoning about 3 steps into either tent. All of the beer in the world couldn't medicate me enough for something that colossally and overwhelmingly pantywaist. *shudder emoticon*

Didn't you look at the website? They have showers and flushable toilets.

Besides, the stereotype of the socially- and sexually-inept, pocket-protector wearing geek is incredibly lame and has never been true. They'll also be discussing more mainstream topics like digital privacy, freedom of speech (presumably relating to the "post-9/11 world") and government transparency. I really wish I could attend.

FatherGhostface · #12 Post by **FatherGhostface** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 7:53 pm

Yeah and if you guys think I'm going to sit around listening to this all day....

"Every program has at least one bug and can be shortened by at least one instruction -- from which, by induction, one can deduce that every program can be reduced to one instruction which doesn't work."

"Who needs television -- I have ISDN."

"It is a natural law. Physics tells us that for every action, there must be an equal and opposite reaction. They hate us, we hate them, they hate us back and so, here we are, victims of mathematics."

"There are only two ways of dealing with women...and neither of them work."

"At Group L, Mr. Stoffel oversees six first-rate programmers, a managerial challenge roughly comparable to herding cats."

Then you are sooooo sadly mistaken!

VampD3 · #13 Post by **VampD3** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 8:05 pm

I love Geeks, why do you think I'm in love with Angelus ;)

JOKING Angelus!!! :p

Broomie · #14 Post by **Broomie** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 8:34 pm

<ghetto>Ooooh she just gave ya BEEF, A to the 3K!</ghetto>

I'm sorry I said hacker... I meant h4x0r.

But you know what I mean, the kind of people who use their l337 skills to mess people's websites and computers up and have no sense of remorse whatsoever.

Kurdt · #15 Post by **Kurdt** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 8:59 pm

Charlemagne wrote:Besides, the stereotype of the socially- and sexually-inept, pocket-protector wearing geek is incredibly lame and has never been true.

You, my friend, have obviously never set foot in a comic book/gaming store.

Charlemagne · #16 Post by **Charlemagne** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 9:04 pm

Actually I have. I used to visit a comics/gaming store when I lived closer to Toronto. The guy who ran it looked exactly (and I mean exactly) like the Comic Book Store Guy from the Simpsons. The first time I went in I had to leave quickly with my hand over my mouth so he wouldn't see me laughing. But I can honestly say I've never seen a stereotypical geek. Maybe they only exist in Texas.

Broomie · #17 Post by **Broomie** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 9:14 pm

Yes I know someone who looks exactly like the comic book guy, he's called Nathan and lives a couple of doors away from him. He's very insecure and doesn't watch TV except for Star Trek I guess, only watches movies (mostly Sci-fi and... well just Sci-fi) I've been round his house (30 years old, still living with his parents) since his parents are very good friends with my parents, in his room he has exact, spot on detailed replicas of famous spaceships from Star Wars, Star Trek and model figures. A whole shelf of comics, LOTS of comics and when I see him... I just say "Worst Episode Ever" and he never knows what I'm talking about.

Quest For Glory Fan · #18 Post by **Quest For Glory Fan** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 9:46 pm

I actually call the guy at our shop Comic shop guy and he gets the freference. Then I laugh and poke his pudge and for some reason I never got kicked outta there. Well I almost did this one time "Oh my gawd! this sleeve isn't the same length as the other 99 in the box!" So me and another geek went outside to burn it and he got really mad about burning stuff near his shop. Oh well you never really need more than 60 sleeves when playing Magic The Gathering...Like I...don't? SHUT UP I'M STILL AWESOME

*Runs*

Steffi Evenstar · #19 Post by **Steffi Evenstar** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 11:00 pm

oooo! i should go to find myself a man ... i loooooooove geeks. (yeah, just look at my avatar.) i'm not sure what it is about them, but hoo boy, do i find it appealing.

andddddddd

according to http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/ ... 1224c.html this article, geeks make better lovers .... is that true, Vamp? ;)

FatherGhostface · #20 Post by **FatherGhostface** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 11:13 pm

So ya like geeks huh? Then allow me to point you in my Cousin Earl's direction, or my friend Giovanni's direction. Make your pic! :p

Quest For Glory Fan · #21 Post by **Quest For Glory Fan** » Wed Jul 06, 2005 12:00 am

Somehow I feel she's uninterested. However that article seems more like teen gossip then anything else.

Blackthorne519 · #22 Post by **Blackthorne519** » Wed Jul 06, 2005 12:01 am

Steffi Evenstar wrote: according to http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/ ... 1224c.html this article, geeks make better lovers .... is that true, Vamp? ;)

You should ask God. My girlfriend screams his name a lot.

Bt

Quest For Glory Fan · #23 Post by **Quest For Glory Fan** » Wed Jul 06, 2005 12:04 am

I had to refrain from that one I knew some over sexual male would say it.

Jafar · #24 Post by **Jafar** » Wed Jul 06, 2005 2:43 am

I'm not a geek, I'm a nerd! Get it right!

Quest For Glory Fan · #25 Post by **Quest For Glory Fan** » Wed Jul 06, 2005 2:47 am

and the difference being?

Geeks of the world unite!

Geeks of the world unite!

..........

..............

Hmmmmm