Slashdot Mirror
Finally Geeks Available in Action Figure Form
Treebiter1 writes "Happy Worker, a specialty toy developer, has introduced a new action figure the "GeekMan Action Figure." Billed as the "a hunk o' hunk of nerdly love." His "super powers" include ungodly coding abilities; opposite sex repulsion; analytical reasoning; ability to create technical acronyms; less than ideal personal hygiene routine. This is kind of an oddity, perhpas I should say it is an oddity, but it might make a funny gag gift."
Microsoft came out with those action figures a while back... I don't think you can get them anymore though. There were three I think.
Does his super geek powers include the ability to frist post?
I.O.U One Sig.
But does it fart like RMS?
Where do I sue for unauthorized use of my likeness?
If they really want to be geeky, he's got to be the size of those retro floppy disks. Or 8 inches tall but then he couldn't live in a drive bay.
There is no sanctuary. There is no sanctuary. SHUT UP! There is no shut up. There is no shut up.
It'd be cool to be able to fight Darl McBride being Linus =)
Ive seen the Einstein action figure a while ago, including a belly! Wonder what HIS capabilities are?
This is just ... beyond words. As a geek with a decent sized figure collection (mostly Spawn and Anime figures), I might consider adding this for novelty. Then again, last time I bought a figure I couldn't see in person, I heavily regretted it...
The ability to code superbly? Hmm...
[SQL Error ID 10-T: This sig. is above your current threshold.]
or does GeekMan remind you of Bill Gates?
They might consider getting their very own GeekMan to make sure that their site renders properly in Gecko and Opera. :/
The link to "Buy One Now" just takes you to a list of store locations. That's not very geeky.
google cache
The glass is half-full. With poison. And there are cracks in the glass. The dirty, dirty glass.
All Phear 'Sedentary Man's' l33t 5ki115...
We apologise for the fault in this post. Those responsible have been sacked. -- Signed RICHARD M. NIXON
I love slashdot, but I'm starting to hate the growing number of product placements within stories. I'm beginning to suspect that "the slashdot effect" is being used as a marketing tool - but whom by is the key question. Is it rogue marketeers, or are the Slashdot/VA Linux bigwigs complicit?
Instead of some generic geek cheaply made action-figure, I'd rather see a high quality series of action figures that depict real geeks that we all respect, admire, like or... at least know of.
:(
The following, for starters:
RMS
ESR
Alan Cox
John "Maddog" Hall
Linus Torvalds
Capn'Crunch
Kevin Mitnick
And of course, more traditional scientific geeks like:
Linus Paulings
Albert Einstein
Charles Babbage
And famous literary or movie geeks from our favorite 80's and 90's films.
In fact, I kind of thought that's what the Action Figure in this article was going to be like until I went to the site...
When they come out with one that has god-like coding skills, that's when I'll get interested. Maybe.
Am I part of the core demographic for Swedish Fish?
Pray tell, what action would be accurate? Sitting in a cube staring at a debugger?
About having good hygiene and sex appeal in 3... 2... 1...
It says he's vulnerable to girls of the internet not repelled by them! Do I detect yet another case of one persons misinterpretation in order to justify their own leanings?
For goodness sake! Some people!
Theres always somebody who thinks techies getting root means something completely different.
Sigh! What is the world coming to?
As for the product in question, it is quite funny.
My hyperlinks aren't worth the paper they're printed on.
That's some savage stereotyping there. They made him as ugly as anything. Not all geeks are ugly. I am a geek, a girl geek and my list of superpowers does NOT include the ability to repel the opposite sex.
If Barbie was real she would be over 6 feet tall, have feet too tiny to walk and boobs so big she would fall over. Geekman, despite the unfair stereotype, is at least normal looking. In fact, if Geekman were real I would marry him.
He's a nerd, not a geek.
Bleeeeh. Stupid ninties tv show geek.
What geek nowadays uses pens? A modern geek would have an USB stick and/or other memory thingies sticking out of his breast pocket. And he/she would at least wear one Bluetooth headset and contact lenses instead of these Clark Kent glasses.
The glass is half-full. With poison. And there are cracks in the glass. The dirty, dirty glass.
now of available on thinkgeek?
Come on, Torvalds and McBride action figures? Does anybody not want these? Maybe a Stallman action figure to muddy the waters with periodic confusing rants.
WWJD for a Klondike Bar?
but I'm to lazy to do anything about it. The "opposite sex repulsion" I can deal with but the "less than ideal personal hygiene routine" is just insulting. In 22 years I haven't met a techie/geek who's personal hygiene was questionable. Dubious interpersonal communications skills, yes (it can be hard to interface with the humans). An over abundance of pompousness, sure. But we don't stink.
--
If I actually could spell I'd have spelled it right in the first place.
He seems more the old nerd/geek as shown in jock movies. Not the nerd/geek as they are in real life but rather as tv would like to show them.
MMO Quests are like orgasms:
You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.
Sorry if this sounds a little off, but don't you think it's better to have less negative stereotypes circulating around about geeks?
I'm sick of technical types being portrayed as losers. It's just not funny any more.
By summer it was all gone...now shesmovedon. --
Do not buy a Geekman!!
Since receiving mine for Xmas, I've had nothing but trouble with him!!!
In January, I got a subpoena from the RIAA, saying I was sharing music online (bunk,.. it was Geekman!)
In February, he got sued by SCO for infringing o some kind of pocket pencil holder device!!
In March, he locked himself in my office for a week and a half,... and took my Xbox in there with him!
In April, my family woke up to find all our network logon passwords changed, and we couldn't get online for days.
And, so far, in May, my coffee bill has tripled!!!
This Geekman is nothing but trouble,.. don't buy one!
(... or so I'm told ...)
Seeing bad movies only encourages them. Watch responsibly
He's clearly not a UNIX geek. He's missing the requisite long scraggly beard.
How does it fart in Root Mean Squared?
Hey, you can upload pictures to that site! Upload link
been here for long, have you?
I have discovered a truly remarkable sig which this 120 chars is too small to contain.
Now that would be a cool 'Inaction Figure'...
BTW, I thought nerds/geeks were actually really proficient with the opposite sex, just a little slower to 'interface hardware and software'...
We apologise for the fault in this post. Those responsible have been sacked. -- Signed RICHARD M. NIXON
"Filthy Geeks Available in Action Figure Porn"
Maybe its my cutting back on caffine but thats what I first read. Oh dear.
I don't know whether to be flattered or offended. This thing looks just like me except for the glasses.
Really who will buy this toy ... will he be defined as a "geek" after he buys this toy ?
...
Striving to be common
Striving to be common...
I can't be the only one who noticed that the people selling this don't even know what a notebook computer is... they actually have it propped on his lap with the hinge VERTICAL! (like a book)
- Preferences: Solaris 10 (servers), Ubuntu (desktops), Solaris 11 (personal servers) -
Nerd: Too smart for this planet. Too smart to know it. His/her intelligence interferes with normal daily activities (social relations, sex, walking and chewing gum at the sametime). Seeks perfect solutions to all (interesting or not interesting) problems. Related terms: Propeller-head, Freaking Nerd
Geek (Originally referred to the lowly circus performer who bit the heads off of small animals for the shock value to the audience): Anyone overly enthusiastic about ANY one area (i.e. music geek, astronomy geek, computer geek). Usually extremely technically skilled. Usually extremely clever, seeking out clever solutions to interesting problems (i.e. Hacks). Usually extremely intelligent. Driven by their passion for the subject to the point of obsession. Related terms: Uber-geek, Alpha-geek
The communication skills of engineers never cease to amaze me. They tackle complex issues unambiguously and unhindered by gender, race/culture, and even very strong accents. They evaluate ideas without judging the people behind them and they almost never take anything personally. They tackle complex systems involving many people at all levels. They also have an intuitive understanding of how to communicate what they need to to both techs and managers, understanding the differences in perception and priority of both these groups.
Yet time and time again, there is this stereotype the Engineers don't know how to communicate, or don't know how to communicate with others. That is not how modern engineering works. Teamwork is a constant everyday activity for engineers much more so than artists, architects, and most laborers.
Mike
I'm only interested in cmdrTaco doll if it comes with a tiny 17' Powerbook...
Mol éng Kéier wou Lëtzebuerg eppes maache kann (t'fehlen jhust zwou Stëmmen fier d'SoftwarePatenter ze blocken... souvill Stëmmen wéi Lëtzebuerg huet...) an dann verpenne mer et och nach!
...a Goatse doll is just around the corner.
Table-ized A.I.
Geek-Mans secret love can be found here.
"Sic Semper Tyrannosaurus Rex."
It's not enough that popular culture bashes geeks, but to have geeks wholeheartedly embrace the stereotype is just plain perverse.
Shouldn't we embrace the notion that geeks come in both genders, all sizes, and with a wide range of characteristics, hobbies, and non-geek pursuits?
Read the EFF's Fair Use FAQ
Reynold the Cheat Commando!
What's the problem here? Please, make Barbie six feet tall!
When I can get a happy-time harry doll?
You might mod me as troll for this, but I swear to god this is true. Sometimes fact is weirder than fiction; and if you can't accept this, then your loss, I guarantee you.
Back when I was in high school, there was this devilishly attractive girl, real cute, that never seemed to end up dating anyone. I always wondered about that... now she's gone to Hollywood, by the way.
A few years later, a close mutual friend revealed to me Jessica's big secret: she had an intense nerd fetish. In fact, all those high school years apparently she had been swooning over Tyler, the nerdiest dweeb in school. Tyler once tripped and fell down a freakin' hill while chasing after the school bus. And his voice was really, really funny.
OK, so here's my point: some (really hot) girls love nerds. Even the seriously nerdiest guys could pick up hot chicks. Weird huh? An action figure like this could actually turn on some ladies.
http://www.happyworker.com/geekman/geekdom/ - An error occurred on the server when processing the URL. Please contact the system administrator.
Stop posing about like a superhero and fix your damn site, Geekman!!!
I'm 35 now, and I've met quite a few stinky geeks. Some were go bad you didn't even want to enter their office.
It may not be true of all geeks, but there are some out there.
Been having problems coming up with a unique hero for my City of Heroes account, and someone just posts it to Slashdot. YES!
They'd call them INaction figures.
Clearly, geeks just don't know how to sell themselves...
Thats a NERD!
...you can buy *glasses* from what sounds like some sort of discount department store? How does this work? Please elaborate.
Pretend that something especially witty is here. Thanks.
I'm a 350lbs fat guy with bad personal hygiene and no social skills. I am very repulsive to the opposite sex, but you sound attractive and you are not of the opposite sex, so perhaps you will take me. Please, please, please? I'm really smart, but I just can't get any love.
Anthony Giddens and Michel Foucault action figures
Quote:
Keenly aware of the fluidity of social identities, this 6.5" Michel Foucault waves his baton in poststructuralist style at all challenges. Shrouded in a special removeable French cloak and with a built-in thoughtful head movement, this superb action figure is essential for both professional philosophers and junior postmodernists.
"I think it would be a good idea" Gandhi, on Western Civilisation
...I'm not a white male!
Think about it for a minute before you relgate this to "Troll". Perception is one of the biggest barriers to advancement of minorities. What's the stereotype for Asians? Now think about the stereotypes for Blacks. This affects not only society as a whole, but the individual as well.
According to experiments done by Steele & Ambady, 2003, asian women do better on math tests if they are reminded of the Asian stereotype versus another pool of asian women who are not reminded.
Perception is the Biggest Barrier
Bah Inspector Gadget and Lex Luthor cleaned up the market years ago.