(sorry, had to do it). Well, either I'm about to help someone, or a troll is going to get a meal. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. Lesson 0: "RTFM" = read the ... manual. You kind of walked into that one.

As for you not knowing how to be a geek. Well, it's not something you can learn -- it's a frame of mind. To thine own self... You can certainly be a computer afficionado without being a geek (and you can be a geek without knowing anything about computers other than where the on-off switch is -- "computer geek" is but one subclass of geek).

To gain a little insight into computer geeks:
http://www.tuxedo.org/~esr/faqs/hacker-howto.html
http://www.tuxedo.org/~esr/faqs/loginataka.html

But there's no need to try to be something you're not. If you are friendly and polite, you're welcome here even if you aren't a geek. And if you should evolve into one, well that's good too.

First, buy a few Calculus books and read them at 5 o clock in the morning for at least 3 hours. Do the problems religiously. Next, don�t mess with your hair. In fact, don�t even brush it. That would make you socially acceptable. You wouldn�t ever want to do that, would you?
When you get up in the morning, don�t call anyone on the phone or get dressed. In fact, don�t even leave the house during the day, only go out at night and when you do go out, make sure it is to a geeky place. (Such as a computer store or book store)
When in the book store, sit in the corner and read either math or computer books.

Practice hexadecimal on a Game shark. Learn how to count on your fingers in binary. Also speak in code. Get a copy of Mathematica and learn to program in it. Hitch a ride to MIT and have fun with �Athena�. Learn assembly code, and other such things and only talk to people who know C++. Fill your room with computer books. Learn how to build your own computer.

quote:

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Originally posted by bomberman21:
I want to be my imacs lover, giving her what she needs, when she needs it, and doing it right. The problem is I don't know how to be a geek. Is there a manual somewhere? Someone please help me!

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quote:

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Originally posted by bomberman21:
[BI want to be my imacs lover, giving her what she needs, when she needs it, and doing it right.[/B]

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Sounds like you need one of these Apple Unveils New Macs to Satisfy Mac "Lovers"

ahem seriously geekness is nothing more than pursuing your interest (whatever that may be) in such a way that the journey is the reward.

quote:

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Originally posted by Evilbunny:
First, buy a few Calculus books and read them at 5 o clock in the morning for at least 3 hours...Practice hexadecimal on a Game shark.

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Too funny! Plus do logic problems and Calculus problems for FUN in your spare time instead of watching sports on TV (except for the important games, of course).

I started out as a math major, getting A+ in advanced calculus, did logic problems for fun & then I discovered computers! My son does hexadecimals on his Game Shark. I don't think it's something you can will yourself to be. It's either in you or it isn't. When my kid was in 2nd grade he was taking apart his Super NES controllers & fixing them when they broke.

quote:

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Originally posted by EngrBohn:
[b]RTFM!

[/B]

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So you want to be a geek?

The first step that, oddly, no one has mentioned yet is to register an offical name at the forums. It's kinda' like your first official declaration of "I WANNA' BE A GEEK!"

Next, to become a geek, you have to understand what being a geek is about and why you should become one. The biggest point of geekdom is realizing that you don't have to be cool, you don't have to fit in, and it just doesn't really matter if people don't like you because you're not cool, if they're that shallow, then they don't deserve your friendship; their loss!

Geeks are open minded, we try our best to examine all the points of view, even if we don't agree with them. This open mindedness allows for a greater understanding and more vast (or "vaster") knowledge. In the geek world, it's all about what you know, and how willing you are to learn. As long as you're around cool geeks (not the damn overloading "I'm better then you" geeks), there's no shame in saying, "I'm a newbie." ("newbie" is a term for someone who just started doing something and maybe isn't very expierenced or doesn't know all the terms yet.)

I'll go out on a limb here and say that the most common geek is the computer geek, at the very least, it is the most well known type of geek. The fact that you love your computer is a good sign that you're on the right track. If you really love it as much as you say, you may find that you're going out less and less and staying home more and more, but don't let that alarm you, there is nothing wrong with that. I would like to mention, however, that since you are converting from a jock, it may be a good idea to make sure you don't "let yourself go," at least TOO much.

Above all, let yourself be open to learning. Open yourself to all ideas and examine them for yourslf. Don't be afaraid to be different! Different is good!!! Read some books, read some web pages, read, it's good for you.

And, now for something completely different....I'll spell out some of the geek slang that others have already posted and didn't clarify.

Troll. A troll is a person that posts in the forums in an attempt to start a flame war.

Flame. A message that's sole intent is to induce anger in it's reader(s).

Hexadecimal. A numbering system based on 16 instead of 10. Includes digits 0 through 9 and letters A through F.

Binary. A numbering system based on 2 instead of 10. Uses digits 0 and 1 only. Is the most basic form of "code" on a comptuer.

Mathematica. A popular mathematics equation building program.

RAM. Random Access Memory, or "memory." Usually measured these days in Megabytes, but more rarely in Gigabytes.

Byte. A measure of data. One byte is one character. 1024 bytes is a Kilobyte (K), 1000 K is a Megabyte(M) or Meg, 1000 M is a Gigabyte (GB) or Gig, 1000 GB is a Terrabyte (TB) (rare to see).

If you have any other questions, we're here to help. And, of coruse, once again, Welcome!

quote:

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Originally posted by MacManKrisK:
Next, to become a geek, you have to understand what being a geek is about and why you should become one. The biggest point of geekdom is realizing that you don't have to be cool, you don't have to fit in, and it just doesn't really matter if people don't like you because you're not cool, if they're that shallow, then they don't deserve your friendship; their loss!

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Speak for yourself man, I'm cool.

Really though, you are on your way already. When you find yourself torn between DSL and dial up because bandwith is sexy and there is just something about the sound of a modem connecting that gives you a rush, you are there.

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reality.sys corrupted. universe halted. reboot (y/n)?

quote:

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Originally posted by MacManKrisK:
Byte. A measure of data. One byte is one character. 1024 bytes is a Kilobyte (K), 1000 K is a Megabyte(M) or Meg, 1000 M is a Gigabyte (GB) or Gig, 1000 GB is a Terrabyte (TB) (rare to see).

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When you use a big "B", all those "1000"s should be "1024"s. "1000"s require the use of a small "b". Also, the correct spelling of 1024GB is "terabyte" - which is far from rare any more. At the current price of hard drives, you could put together a RAID-5 array 1TB in size from 7 181GB drives (~$1200 each) for under $10,000.

quote:

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Originally posted by SupportGoddess:
Really though, you are on your way already. When you find yourself torn between DSL and dial up because bandwith is sexy and there is just something about the sound of a modem connecting that gives you a rush, you are there.

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I'd argue that if you prefer a connection that is slower by orders of magnitude, just because it sounds interesting, you're insane - but that's just me.

quote:

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Originally posted by +Andrew:
I'd argue that if you prefer a connection that is slower by orders of magnitude, just because it sounds interesting, you're insane - but that's just me.

-Andrew

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You never miss listening to it? Even just a little bit?

Besides, insanity has a lot to do with perspective. There are also people that think I am insane for paying more just for a faster connection.

Byte. A measure of data. One byte is one character. 1024 bytes is a Kilobyte (K), 1000 K is a Megabyte(M) or Meg, 1000 M is a Gigabyte (GB) or Gig, 1000 GB is a Terrabyte (TB)

- +Andrew -
When you use a big "B", all those "1000"s should be "1024"s. "1000"s require the use of a small "b". Also, the correct spelling of 1024GB is "terabyte" - which is far from rare any more.

Nit, nit, nit. The notion of using small "b"s to indicate 1000's vs 1024's is new to me -- indeed, in my field of research, "B" vs "b" has a different connotation -- "B" to indicate bytes (using multiples of 1024), and "b" to indicate bits (using multiples of 1000).

Memory manufacturers honor the traditional 1024-multiple when reporting how many bytes' capacity their memory holds, but hard drive manufacturers started switching a few years ago (thanks to marketeers), and now all hard drive manufacturers report the capacity in bytes using 1000-multiples.

Regardless of which you use, the important thing is to be consistent. For the uninitiated, the reason memory has traditionally been measured with 1024-multiples is because the memory address lines force a binary encoding of the address (yes, yes, there are ways to do trinary encoding, and other bases too, but binary was the simplest when practical computing was in its infancy -- still is the simplest, for that matter), which is convenient since it also simplifies the decoding logic to access the memory latch in question. So since there are all these technical reasons to work with powers-of-two, when it came to short-handing the numbers, it was natural to use 1024-multiples for K, M, G, etc, instead of 1000-multiples.

I'd argue that if you prefer a connection that is slower by orders of magnitude, just because it sounds interesting, you're insane - but that's just me.

- SupportGoddess -

You never miss listening to it? Even just a little bit?

Mmm -- yes. It gives you a sense of progress, and if there's a problem, you can identify it by the sound. Now I have to rely on blinking lights that pretty much amount to "standby" "connecting" "connected" "not-working-but-I'm-not-going-to-tell-you-
what-the-problem-is-and-you're-going-to-spend-
the-next-two-weeks-on-the-phone-with-customer-
support-while-they-try-to-find-a-software-problem-
by-having-you-uninstall-almost-every-piece-of-
software-on-your-system-before-they-finally-
realize-the-server-in-Chicago-isn't-turned-on". Maybe when I have some free time I'll code up something to make the modem sounds when I tell the DSL to connect -- it won't be any more informative than the blinking lights, but it'll be more pleasing. Of course, the catch is the idea of "free time".

Besides, insanity has a lot to do with perspective. There are also people that think I am insane for paying more just for a faster connection.

They've obviously never done any serious browsing. Even sites that are largely text-based are appreciably faster over DSL. With a dial-up, there was exactly one site that I visit regularly where the bottleneck was not the connection (it runs on a slow server -- it's slow regardless of whether I access it over dialup or DSL or OC3); with DSL, there are a few more sites where the server is the bottleneck (and there even one site where *my* system was the bottleneck!). But my non-techy wife cannot stand the thought of ever going back to dialup.

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cb
Oooh! What does this button do!?

Considering that, generally, geeks tend to obsess over a subject to the point of exhaustion, or until they get bored of it, you're well on your way with your stated goal for your Imac.

Leave no program untweaked. Explore your computer to the point where you know how to find anything on it. push it until it breaks--or until you have to run the restoration program.

Break the OS and fix it a few times.

When you hear someone talking about their own Imac problems and tell them how to fix it, you will have arrived at being a Geek guru!

quote:

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When you use a big "B", all those "1000"s should be "1024"s. "1000"s require the use of a small "b". Also, the correct spelling of 1024GB is "terabyte" - which is far from rare any more.

Nit, nit, nit. The notion of using small "b"s to indicate 1000's vs 1024's is new to me -- indeed, in my field of research, "B" vs "b" has a different connotation -- "B" to indicate bytes (using multiples of 1024), and "b" to indicate bits (using multiples of 1000).

---

1 bit (bit)
1 byte (B) = 8 bits
1 kilobyte (kB) = 10^3 bytes = 1,000 bytes
1 megabyte (MB) = 10^6 bytes = 1,000,000 bytes
1 gigabyte (GB) = 10^9 bytes = 1,000,000,000 bytes
1 terabyte (TB) = 10^12 bytes = 1,000,000,000,000 bytes

There is also a standard of sorts in the computer community to use b and B for bits and bytes, and k and K to be decimal and binary. The former is much more standard than the latter. As you say though if it is measured in bits decimal is assumed. Basically though whatever the capitalization may be if we are talking RAM it is binary, and storage and bandwidth are decimal. My advice is in the rare cases where it actually matters it is best to define your units explicitly.

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Geordie

That's funny! When I was realy little, I used to use my fingernails to unscrew the screws on my crib so I could ESCAPE!
I also do math for fun. My favorites are set theory and elliptic curves. (Equations of the form y^2 = X^3 + aX^2 + bX + c

The point is to find soultinos for them by assigning values of a, b, and c. I usually give a starter problem to people of finding the solutions for y^2 = x^3, a simple elliptic curve. They usually get really stumped! The more complicated they are, the better!)

Oh, and Mathematica RULES!

I've seen this before, a couple years ago in IEEE Spectrum, and now-and-again elsewhere. Like "hir", I suspect few people use these terms, but I must give the IEC credit for trying to eliminate ambiguity. Nonetheless, I'll refrain from using these terms until they're more conventionally accepted and until I stop thinking of Bill Cosby's "At the Dentist" routine everytime I see those prefixes.

(Similar to "you can't appreciate classical music until you can hear 'The William Tell Overture' without thinking of the Lone Ranger.")

quote:

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Originally posted by tafkact:
www.harddrivehell.com/manual.html

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I agree that people who need to be beaten with the RTFM cluestick are their own problem, but you have to explain this in proper grammar.  Not because that's the only way they'll get it (they won't get it, period) but to be so obviously clueless about the language is bad style and ironic to boot.

quote:

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Originally posted by Evilbunny:
The point is to find soultinos for them...

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Bomberman, I would recommend a quiet visit to a bookstore with a technical section. If you don't want other geeks to see you, go early in the morning. If you don't want other jocks to see you, go on Friday evening. If you don't want anyone else to see you, go to a bookstore in another town.

Once you're in, find the shelves full of computer books. Spend a couple of minutes in each book that looks even vaguely interesting. If it's a decent bookstore, nobody in the bookstore is going to mind if you spend an hour or two before you buy anything.

Speaking very broadly, a typical geek will look at 10-20 books in a new technical area, and ultimately purchase 2-4 of them. Performance varies widely from geek to geek though.

Now comes the part that separates the geeks from the wannabes: you have to read one of the books, an entire book. You have to read obsessively for the better part of a day. You have to start planning your days around your reading sessions (with frequent interludes for the imac).

At first, any book that is interesting and informative will be good enough. After a while you will notice that some publishers and authors are better than others. I'm not a Mac guy so I don't know what Mac geeks read. I'm a Unix/C++ geek, so I read a lot of books from O'Reilly and Addison-Wesley.

One of the biggest geeks I know is a grad student in computer science at Georgia Tech. His specialty is autonomous robotics. He has at least two bachelor's degrees (CS and Physics) and is probably starting his PhD dissertation.
He also used to play football for Missouri, and in fact, used his fifth year of eligibility to pick up that extra Physics degree.

Being a geek isn't about being unathletic or unpopular, although a lot of us turn out that way. It's about loving technology, role playing games, science fiction, and all that, to the point where we dont' particularly give a crap if other people don't get the joke. A lot of us can sympathize with being unathletic or unpopular, but they are not prerequisites for geekdom.

That having been said, there's really only two ways to become a major geek, or to impress the geek crowd, IMO.

(1) Create a cool piece of technology (e.g. the Linux kernel, or a neat perl module)
(2) Create a cool piece of geek culture (e.g. Slashdot or After-Y2K, or Babylon 5)

Anything else and you're really just a geek larva at best or a tourist at worst.

Hope this is helpful.

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And the Goddess said to the God, "What do you mean it *broke*?!?!?" And thus was the Universe created.

For me it revolves around what I love, and doing my best to do it well. I think that can be applied to films, music, anything.

Do we start off considering ourselves geeks? Probably not, I didn't. I have just been called a geek so often that I pretty much adopted the lable as my own.

Being called a geek is not necessarily derogatory, at least I have never felt that it was applied to me that way. One thing you have to remember, often people that are called geeks excel at what they love doing. Other people that have less devotion to something can find the knowledge and competence that come from that devotion intimidating.

Make 60 posts as a registered user.

Anyhoo, there are many paths one may walk on the road to geekiness, one is the path the tech geek, one is the anime geek, or the Sci-fi geek (Wow I really hate that abbreviation), or the lit Geek, or the philosophy geek. There are to many to name, but the important lesson is that you should not limit your self to one Geeky pursuit. Becoming a Geek of all trades is the first step on the path of the Uber-Geek.

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Yawn, Boring

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Yawn, Boring

Anyway, as Lord of the Flies shows you... there's a jock in every geek.

Me? I proudly include myself in the computer and sports geek categories. Perhaps theoretical science geek too.

I'm getting there.

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-Charisma

--------------------------------

Hacking is not a
crime... no wait, it is.