The eclectic musings of a bitter software engineer.

Dating a stereotype

Sunday December 11, 2005 @ 09:55 AM (PST)

This morning I stumbled across some woman's blog entry, Dating an Apple Developer, and cringed as I read it.

I don’t care if you sister is getting married or your grandmother dies. If your man has a project with a quickly approaching deadline forget about him being there.

...

The nice thing about most computer boys is that they don’t typically check out other women. The downside of this is that they don’t notice the other women because they are too busy checking out people’s cell phones and iPods. When it comes to boys and their toys your short mini skirt just can’t compare. Trust me - I have learned this the hard way.

Is it just me, or does her boyfriend sound like a real jerk? I hope she's exaggerating.

I may not work for Apple, but I am a developer, and while I do occasionally obsess over a project, there is nothing more important to me than Felicity. If I've got a choice between meeting a deadline and spending quality time with the woman I love, it's a no-brainer. The deadline can go screw itself.

And what's this crap about her boyfriend not finding her sexually attractive because he's too distracted by gadgets? I love me a sexy gadget, but the first thing I noticed about Felicity wasn't her cell phone, and it still isn't. And that's not just because she's using an old Nokia 3390 that I loaned her after she accidentally took her cell phone snorkeling in Hawaii.

Geek stereotypes (and the people who propagate them) really bug me. I'm the biggest geek there is, but I don't fit most of the stereotypes and it's insulting when I get lumped in with people who do. Emily, whoever you are, my advice is to either talk some sense into your boyfriend or find a guy who appreciates you more than his job.

Comments

By her own stereotype, shouldn't the guy have been so hindered by his incredibly overpowering geek awkwardness that he couldn't score the prize that she most certainly is?

Sunday December 11, 2005 @ 01:07 PM (PST) Posted by Sam

Excellent point.

Sunday December 11, 2005 @ 04:28 PM (PST) Posted by Ryan Grove
Regardless of whether or not she's exaggerating, she needs to break up with this guy:

-If she is exaggerating, then she's probably a bitch, and she would be doing both this guy and every other geek a favor if she broke up with him and never dabbled in the geek pool ever again.

-If she isn't exaggerating, then she needs to break up with this guy (I doubt he'll notice, based on the description) and find someone worth dating.
Monday December 12, 2005 @ 09:08 PM (PST) Posted by Cessen

Should have read the blog entry before posting. Doesn't sound like she's a bitch. He just sounds like a jerk.

Monday December 12, 2005 @ 09:14 PM (PST) Posted by Cessen
Hi Emily!

Ummm....

Hey check out that cell phone!
Tuesday December 13, 2005 @ 10:42 AM (PST) Posted by Flickr
This is why I dislike labels and stereotypes... and this is why I no longer call myself a geek or a nerd.

Still, an insightful post. It should make anyone think a little -- and not just "developers".
Tuesday December 13, 2005 @ 10:38 PM (PST) Posted by digdug

Wow

I don't think people realize that the photos they post on the internet can be viewed by some strangers bitching about anti-geek diatribes. Seriously, I, via intertron.org, then this site, then many posts, then a link in a reply to a post, have seen a picture of some lady with her touching tongues with another random dude.

Friday December 16, 2005 @ 07:24 AM (PST) Posted by Sam
I just read the entire Emily-blog entry for the first time, and I'm strongly reminded of a big conversation on Slashdot while I was in college. It was actually one of the final straws for me and Slashdot. It was about girls. I can't remember what the actual article was about, precisely, but the conversation was mostly about what geeks want in a woman.

Many, many of my friends in college, and some in high school, were computer geeks, and as far as I could tell, each wanted some variation on a geek-girl. Someone who shared at least some of his interests, who would play videogames with him and be absorbed in her computer when he was absorbed in his. I imagined rashly that that was the general rule. However, I discovered via Slashdot that the vast majority of programmers/general Slashdot geeks wanted a woman who would stay home, cook for them, stay out of the way when they were coding, and have sex with them. The order of importance varied. The content didn't much.

Maybe this is the other side of that coin. Maybe there are actually women who want to be fifties housewives and find their excuse by being with programmers like those. Maybe they like being put upon.

And seriously, who DOESN'T want a dual flatscreen display? DUDE!
Friday December 16, 2005 @ 01:08 PM (PST) Posted by Eilonwy
Post a comment

Basic XHTML (including links) is allowed, just don't try anything fishy. Your comment will be auto-formatted unless you use your own <p> tags for formatting. You're also welcome to use Textile.

Don't type anything here unless you're an evil robot:


And especially don't type anything here:

Copyright © 2002-2008 Ryan Grove. All rights reserved.
Powered by Thoth.