The Great Cornholio
New member
Due to my retro games and now my dice simulations, I've been jokingly labelled a geek. Which I accept as I work with computers and have been fascinated by them since my first ZX81. The sealing of this was my visit today to a retro computer show in scumland. (Fairfield Halls)
My point is, why were 90% of people at that show like the comic store guy from the Simpsons? Why do so many people with interests in so called "geeky" things conform to a stereotype? I'd like to think I am not like them as I wash my hair, have a girlfriend and like sport. But I share many of their interests, although no to such an intense degree. I enjoy watching Star Trek but don't attend meetings to perform away missions or argue endlessly over who is the best captain or pore over blueprints of a fictional vessel.
Don't get me wrong, the vast majority of these people are really nice and their pursuits are harmless. But I am at a loss to explain why such a large percentage conform to a "nerd" stereotype. There were Dr Who T-shirts and even a guy with an Amstrad CPC464 hung round his shoulder with a guitar strap for no real reason. There were people wetting themselves with excitement at the prospect of meeting Matthew Smith - admittedly, I was a bit star struck. For those non retro gamers amongst you, Matthew Smith is the guy who wrote Manic Miner and Jet Set Willy and then became something of a recluse.
For me, it was almost as interesting just people watching as it was listening to one of the founding fathers of computer games giving a very rare speech. One guy was droning on and on about various versions of a certain game and boring the pants of some poor stall holder. Very awkward conversations were struck up between people with little or no conversational skills - basically just listing names of old computer games and drooling as they are mentioned.
I just can't understand why liking computers, science fiction and the like means you have to have greasy, dandruff ridden hair, a massive gut barely covered by a too tight sci-fi or retro T-Shirt and no social skills. Is it a genetic thing?
Anway geek (hopefully not nerd!) that I am, I thoroughly enjoyed the visit and I am now the proud owner of a signed Jet Set Willy Cassette cover. It was very sad listening to Matthew's story of how the only money he ever got was £30000 for Manic Miner which he spent on women and drink and that as he set up his own company, he never received a penny in royalties for Jet Set Willy and is now jobless and not very well off to say the least.
For those of you that have every played Manic Miner or Jet Set Willy, I asked him if he could complete the game today and he said only with infinite lives. So if, like me, you struggled to get very far, take heart because neither can the programmer!
My point is, why were 90% of people at that show like the comic store guy from the Simpsons? Why do so many people with interests in so called "geeky" things conform to a stereotype? I'd like to think I am not like them as I wash my hair, have a girlfriend and like sport. But I share many of their interests, although no to such an intense degree. I enjoy watching Star Trek but don't attend meetings to perform away missions or argue endlessly over who is the best captain or pore over blueprints of a fictional vessel.
Don't get me wrong, the vast majority of these people are really nice and their pursuits are harmless. But I am at a loss to explain why such a large percentage conform to a "nerd" stereotype. There were Dr Who T-shirts and even a guy with an Amstrad CPC464 hung round his shoulder with a guitar strap for no real reason. There were people wetting themselves with excitement at the prospect of meeting Matthew Smith - admittedly, I was a bit star struck. For those non retro gamers amongst you, Matthew Smith is the guy who wrote Manic Miner and Jet Set Willy and then became something of a recluse.
For me, it was almost as interesting just people watching as it was listening to one of the founding fathers of computer games giving a very rare speech. One guy was droning on and on about various versions of a certain game and boring the pants of some poor stall holder. Very awkward conversations were struck up between people with little or no conversational skills - basically just listing names of old computer games and drooling as they are mentioned.
I just can't understand why liking computers, science fiction and the like means you have to have greasy, dandruff ridden hair, a massive gut barely covered by a too tight sci-fi or retro T-Shirt and no social skills. Is it a genetic thing?
Anway geek (hopefully not nerd!) that I am, I thoroughly enjoyed the visit and I am now the proud owner of a signed Jet Set Willy Cassette cover. It was very sad listening to Matthew's story of how the only money he ever got was £30000 for Manic Miner which he spent on women and drink and that as he set up his own company, he never received a penny in royalties for Jet Set Willy and is now jobless and not very well off to say the least.
For those of you that have every played Manic Miner or Jet Set Willy, I asked him if he could complete the game today and he said only with infinite lives. So if, like me, you struggled to get very far, take heart because neither can the programmer!
