Clash of the titles - Geeks V Nerds

The other day, someone (jokingly, I hope) referred to me as a nerd. And I was really, REALLY offended. And not for the reasons you may think (i.e., that being called names is nasty), but because I've always considered myself a bit of a geek, which is oh so much better than being a nerd.

In my opinion, being a geek means that you're smart, but not in a "better-than-you" way. Geeks are useful to have around, because they know how to fix things, but they're still fun to hang out with. They're a bit unusual, and have, at best, an eclectic taste in music, but are still, you know, normal. The word "geek" conjures up images of kids with long hair and black clothes, who would be cool if only they had a bit more confidence.

I consider myself a bit of a geek, because I do I do have a fondness for figuring out how to fix things (TV, stereo, DVD player, computer), and I'm bloody good at things like website design and computer programming. But I don't do them for fun. I do them when essential or when I can make money out of it. And therein lies the difference between nerds and geeks.

The word "nerd" conjures up images of a ginger kid with glasses and a crap haircut, chinos, white socks with black shoes, plaid shirt buttoned up to the top and tucked into the waistband of said chinos, calculator and pens in his breast pocket (in a pocket protector, of course), and a constant runny nose.

Nerds are also good at things like fixing computers and programming, but they do it for FUN! They ENJOY it! They do things like buy loads of cables and network their computers together so that they can play multiplayer Doom all night long, in a dark room, illuminated only by the sickly glow from their many, many monitors. They're usually quite smart, but they think that this elevates themselves above others, when, in fact, it really doesn't.

The dictionary of slang defines nerd as "An intelligent, obsessive and often socially inept person, typically thought of as boring or dull. The expression is often associated with technically minded computer users." How true.

So, in summary, geeks are cool, in a kooky sort of way. Think of people like Dana Skully in The X-Files, or Johnny Depp. You know they're awfully intelligent, but you still want to be their friend (plus they're hot). Nerds, on the other hand, should be rounded up and shot because they're smelly know-it-alls - think of people like Comic Book Guy in the Simpsons, and Bill Gates.

But that's just what I think.