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Washington State LUG to Hold "Nerd Auction"

Posted by ScuttleMonkey on from the no-one-really-free-until-nerd-persecution-ends dept.

elrous0 writes "As part of a PR stunt, a Washington Linux user group is holding a "Nerd Auction" and appealing to local sororities to exchange dates and makeover advice for their computer skills and homework assistance. 'The problem is that we're all still nerds. Let's face it, guys. If anyone's going to bid on us, we'll need some spicing up,' writes Washington State Linux Users Group president Ben Ford on the group's website. 'And who better to help with that than sorority girls who like nothing better than a makeover?' So far there has been no comment on how a Linux user group is going to help sorority girls with their Windows machines."

7 of 376 comments (clear)

  1. Optimistic by spleen_blender · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The sorority girls probably aren't going to bite. They know they can get nerds like us to work on their computer and homework assignments and have to give nothing in return. They just have to be... girls. This is sort of like people boycotting gasoline... it just won't work. They can hold out indefinitely since they have other sources of income (read: non-nerds sexing them up) where as we will sit there demanding cheaper gas (read: any sexing up).

    1. Re:Optimistic by Stringer+Bell · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Confidence is sexy, according to my wife and most of her girlfriends. Be nervous, introspective, self-conscious, and "girls don't like nerds" becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

    2. Re:Optimistic by Stringer+Bell · · Score: 4, Insightful

      You honestly don't know the difference between confident and cocky? Humility is part of confidence, but it's the opposite of cockiness.

  2. Re:How to help... by happyemoticon · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Yeah, and the superior stability of Linux means her computer will never get infected with adware, viruses, or even slow down on boot time. In fact, it'll never have any problems short of a hard drive crash, motherboard failure, or power supply failure. What good is that? You'll never get to see her again.

  3. Geek = Nerd? by krgallagher · · Score: 4, Insightful
    I have seen this reported in a couple of places in the last two days, and every time it makes my skin crawl. The reporters are all happy to make a joke out of it, and the LUG is too, so maybe I should not get upset. Still, I am proud to be a geek, but I do not consider myself a nerd. The quote that gets me in this article is "The idea is to trade their computer skills to sorority girls in exchange for a makeover and, possibly, a date."

    I can see a number of problems with this.

    • Just because I use Linux does not mean I can't get a date.
    • Using Linux might make me a geek, but it does not make me a nerd.
    • Why does the reporter assume the LUG members have the ulterior motive of getting laid?

    OK, I'll admit that most men have the ulterior motive of trying to get laid. Still, the tone of every report I have read is, "Look what the nerds will go through in an attempt to get laid." They are propagating a stereotype and no one seems to care.

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    1. Re:Geek = Nerd? by Hatta · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Why does the reporter assume the LUG members have the ulterior motive of getting laid?

      Because they're male.

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  4. Are they no female nerds? by destinyland · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Maybe the female college students are already smart enough to fix their own computers, and don't need a big strong man-brain to show them how. For that matter, aren't there any female nerds who'd like also to be appreciated for the technical skills? Can they auction themselves off to the highest bidder too? This story is demeaning to women and to geeks.