Hipsters? In my nerdery?

[Strazdas]

Sigh. This again. It people would at least learn what Nerds are....


Nerds are not culture nor are they identy. Nerds is an insult. as in, the word itself is a derogatory term to insult geeks. geeks are the people you want to talk about here, not nerds. Saying "nerd culture" is like saying "****** culture".

P.S. your first image is what hollywood thought nerds looked in the 90s, not what they actually looked.

And amazingly, that pic paints a more negative picture of nerds than any outside group could ever do.

Is that really how you view nerds? Because literally, the image on the left was the one that used to piss us off. Now we're actually fighting over it?

Good. Nerds are a negative word. Its a derogatory term used to ridicule people.

Also what do you mean "We"?

 

[Grumpy Ginger]

This hits me as absurd Hipsters are nerds because think about what Hipsters are. Think about it what would you get when a bunch of white middle class nerds try to recreate punk and being cool from the ground up. Either slavish imitation or adding things that nerds like. Watching bad movies: but since they are trying to be cool they only do it "ironically", victorian stuff: steampunk for nerds bushy beards and old school sailor tattoos for hipsters, being gatekeepers if you don't know enough about whatever uber specific thing the person is devoted to: self explanatory, merchandise: figurines special editions etc for nerds and vinyl albums and overpriced shirts for hipsters. You get the idea

 

[Zontar]

Yes, yes, we liked it before it was cool, therefore the outsiders must be shunned.

It's less "we liked it before it was cool" and more "we actually like it", since when one looks at the stereotypical hipster and their interest in virtually anything related to nerd culture it's often hard to say the interest seems genuine. One shouldn't have to ironically enjoy anything, and there's nothing endearing about someone who joins the party after something gets popular and then berates those who where there first for no reason, as many hipsters tend to do.

 

[Imperioratorex Caprae]

Meh, I just laugh at this. Don't get your brains fried by trying too hard to fit people into little boxes. I dislike hipsters personally, but rather than be all "get out of my fandom douchebags" I just laugh and walk the other way or ignore them completely. Just like anyone else who fits in the category of people I dislike. Even saying dislike is kind of pushing it because I really don't care. But it is funny all the same to see people fighting, verbally or physically, over the ownership of a vague term that is sometimes used as a derogatory remark and sometimes used in a completely opposite way.
I personally believe there are all sorts of nerd-types out there. Gearheads are automotive-based nerds, sailors = boating/ship/fishing nerds, and so on. You could peg just about any hobby as someone's nerdy habit. So its honestly a shitty word to try to claim any ownership from.

 

[Phasmal]

Yes, yes, we liked it before it was cool, therefore the outsiders must be shunned.

It's less "we liked it before it was cool" and more "we actually like it", since when one looks at the stereotypical hipster and their interest in virtually anything related to nerd culture it's often hard to say the interest seems genuine. One shouldn't have to ironically enjoy anything, and there's nothing endearing about someone who joins the party after something gets popular and then berates those who where there first for no reason, as many hipsters tend to do.

And you're the authority on who actually likes things, are you?

I dunno, I've never been `berated` by people who ironically like games, in fact I don't think I've ever met anyone who ironically likes games. This is one of the other things I dislike about people who identify as gamers, they seem to think everyone has to like things in pre-approved ways.

I always get told `oh well they don't actually like it` - how do you know? I'm supposed to believe you just know?

 

[Silence]

I lacked social skills before it was cool!

Also, I have heard people using hipster as insult and nerd as ... not an insult, so I guess nerds have won?

 

[Hoplon]

wut? nope

yeah cos this is a new thing. also ignore Zontar, just because the PBS digital stuff is great and he is wrong.

 

[Sleepy Sol]

I have like 10 different colors of color-y pants to choose from but I hardly ever go outside or even bother to wear them while I'm busy playing games. Where do I fall on this nerd-to-hipster scale?

Really, though, it's petty to really care about this sort of stuff. It's not grounds to be a dick to somebody because they have less knowledge of nerdy culture than you, or wear different clothes, or whatever. Honestly, it's just nice that more people are interested in this sort of stuff in the first place, and that it's easier to be open about it without facing any problems since so many more people are visibly involved in gaming or other "nerdy" pursuits.

Besides, I think it's rather obvious when someone is actually being a 'poseur'. Like my one friend who insists MMOs are a genre of games that require no effort or skill and also regurgitates thoughts and opinions verbatim from some Youtuber (of many) I happened to show him.

Even then, it's more just slightly annoying than anything worth getting upset about.

 

[woodlandkammo]

I think there is a bit of similarity, in that there are elements of society that still consider 'nerd' to be insulting. In response, a lot of 'nerds' own the label and take pride in their outside status. So i can kinda see how nerd and hipster can overlap naturally.

 

[JoJo]

I don't know if I count as a geek or a nerd or a hipster, and I honestly don't care, this clique shit should be left in the schoolyard where it belongs. If someone wants to play games or take part in any other hobby with honest intentions, then it doesn't who they are, they're welcome to have a seat by me.

 

[briankoontz]

pic still related​

And amazingly, that pic paints a more negative picture of nerds than any outside group could ever do.

Is that really how you view nerds? Because literally, the image on the left was the one that used to piss us off. Now we're actually fighting over it?

That's not true. Nerds were proud of how they looked - they wanted to distinguish themselves from mainstream society and they succeeded, if their mockery by that society was any indication.

It was only the third-generation nerds, those who wanted to hop on the cultural (and economic) bandwagon when computerization took over the world and the nerds inherited the earth who were ashamed of how nerds looked. This was the beginning of "nerd cool" that we have lived with for far too long.

Original hacker culture was unwashed, unshaven, dirty - an absolute pit of hygiene not because they were opposed to hygiene but because such trivial things as washing was unappealing - a waste of time compared to developing The System that became computers and the internet. Socialization in general was also unappealing except insofar as that supported the development of the system.

These original nerds looked much more like devoted monkish engineers than the stereotypical nerd - it was the fashion of the second generation nerd in the 1980s that gave us the "classic" look, leading many who gain their understanding through fashion to believe that they were the original nerds.

An important part of nerd culture prior to the third generation was keeping society out of their work. It's hard to believe in the modern day, but regular people before the global domination by computers in the 1990s used to mistrust, fear, and sometimes oppose the process of computerization that the nerds were engaged in. In other words, the mainstream was a *threat* to the work of nerds, a real, actual threat, not the Jack Thompson/Anita Sarkeesian nonsense of today. That's partly why Revenge of the Nerds resonated with people in the 1980s - there was a cultural battle taking place over whether or not to computerize the world. Much like in the movie, the nerds won.

Nerds wanted to be unappealing to the mainstream - they *wanted* to be shunned, so that they would be left alone to work in peace. It was only after all the hard work and struggle was over, only after the nerds had won, that "nerd cool" began and some rather pathetic humans decided that they were nerds but they were the cool kind. In other words, they were the kind who wanted all the cultural and economic benefit of what the nerds had achieved without doing any of the work or taking any of the risk involved. This has devolved into the modern day.

 

[Souplex]

In other news. Those old gameboys are sodding indestructible, I found the old GBA that my mate gave to me when he got a GBA SP (Tribal) ((We were 10 and 11, piss off)). I remember playing football on tarmac with it when I got my own GBA SP for Christmas... It STILL works perfectly. Even managed to beat Pokemon Yellow (the best one) again on it!

...More than you know.

The Gameboy SP while overall hardy, was the first Nintendo system where the shoulder buttons would eventually stop working for no real reason. This trend continued until the DSi put a stop to it.

 

[elvor0]

EDIT: oh i almost forgot, what do you mean by:

But it's certainly known that hipster culture has partially merged with nerd culture and has been pushing the image of nerd culture away from being proud of obscure knowledge and different passions and into being proud of having obscure knowledge and different passions.

English is not my native language so sorry for that

The difference is in the word "having", it should be italic in that sentence, that's why it sounds weird. Even if English was your first language, it could still sound weird if you read it slightly too fast.

What he means is, one group is proud of the knowledge itself, whereas the other is proud of possessing the knowledge just for the sake of being different or without actually understanding it. Essentially, "Wow, that thing is amazing, check this out!" vs "I know something you don't know!" *pokes tongue out*

 

[Eclipse Dragon]

I don't think I've ever encountered one of these "hipster nerds".
"Geek culture" is so large and diverse, how can someone even begin to identify an outsider?

I have always liked dragons, I filled my room with dragons, bought dragon toys, read books about dragons, when How to Train your Dragon created a giant following of people who like Toothless, I didn't go "I liked dragons before dragons were cool, you only started liking dragons when this movie came out, therefore you're not a true dragon fan!" I went "Oh cool! More dragons! More people to share my enthusiasm for dragons with!"

Likewise, I've only very recently been introduced to the board game scene at my local comic book shop, I was not shunned for my lack of knowledge in everything board game related, they welcomed me with open arms and were more than happy to explain how to play.

The "culture" is so large IMO, it would be impossible to be involved in every facet of it, so how do we identify someone as a "poser" when maybe they're just an anime geek rather than a tabletop geek?

While I don't believe I've ever encountered a "hipster nerd", I have encountered a rare few people who felt the need to quiz me, but that gets into "fake gamer girls" territory and we've been down that road before.

I don't understand why someone should ever be opposed to the mainstreaming of "geek culture", for me, it encourages more people to love the things I love and that gives us a conversation topic when I'm talking to people I don't know well. When in doubt, I'm sure we can have some kind of conversation about the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Game of Thrones or Zombies.

Also from a slightly selfish angle, more people loving the things I love = more companies making the things I love = more to love.

 

[Simonism451]

pic still related​

And amazingly, that pic paints a more negative picture of nerds than any outside group could ever do.

Is that really how you view nerds? Because literally, the image on the left was the one that used to piss us off. Now we're actually fighting over it?

[snip]

You might view the picture on the left as more "negative" because it associates social awkwardness and not being conventionally attractive with liking nerdy things a lot. That association is of course annoying on one hand if it leads people to make (potentially) false assumptions about your character because you're really into Star Trek, on the other hand, if you actually happen to be socially awkward and not very attractive, it also tells you that it's okay to be those things and that there's a group of people out there who will accept you despite that.

 

[happyninja42]

Oh lighten up. It's kids dressing/acting trendy for their generation.

EVERY generation has done this, and you eventually grow out of it. Seriously this hipster hate reminds me of grandpa from the Simpsons, yelling at clouds because he's just and old bastard.

 

[Something Amyss]

That's not true. Nerds were proud of how they looked - they wanted to distinguish themselves from mainstream society and they succeeded, if their mockery by that society was any indication.

That's never particularly been true of "nerds" as a general body. Yes, you can point to selective parts of the culture as you've done, but that's not particularly reasonable.

 

[Something Amyss]

if you actually happen to be socially awkward and not very attractive, it also tells you that it's okay to be those things and that there's a group of people out there who will accept you despite that.

Except it doesn't say that. It sets up a wall around "real nerds" and nothing else. It says nothing about acceptance (and honestly, nerd comm unity can be more exclusive and cliquey than the dreaded "jocks").

The irony, though, is that it exemplifies hipster" behavour.

 

[Something Amyss]

I don't think I've ever encountered one of these "hipster nerds".

I doubt anyone has. People just tend to see someone who is attractive or socially functional or something and decide that they're not really a nerd because they don't fit some stereotype that should really be beneath them. They're literally doing the same thing as the people who portray nerds as virgin basement dwellers and such.

And when an "outsider" does that....

The funny thing, to me, is that it's not the "hipsters" who cred check me. It's the self-proclaimed "real nerds."

Also, you don't really like dragons. You clearly like cat people, since your avatar is one. >.>

But yeah, I'm with you. More people liking the stuff I like is a good thing. I don't really care about motive. Odds are, most of the people in this thread got into nerdy things by something that was pretty mainstream. Hell, most Trek (TOS) fans became so not because of the poor reception of the original run, but because of either the syndication run or the movies.

Oh lighten up. It's kids dressing/acting trendy for their generation.

EVERY generation has done this, and you eventually grow out of it. Seriously this hipster hate reminds me of grandpa from the Simpsons, yelling at clouds because he's just and old bastard.

And in every generation, it's totes different because reasons, and in every generation, it's the worst thing ever.

 

[happyninja42]

Oh lighten up. It's kids dressing/acting trendy for their generation.

EVERY generation has done this, and you eventually grow out of it. Seriously this hipster hate reminds me of grandpa from the Simpsons, yelling at clouds because he's just and old bastard.

And in every generation, it's totes different because reasons, and in every generation, it's the worst thing ever.

Exactly. I remember when I thought the Grunge look was the coolest thing ever, and now looking back I don't really get why I thought that. Why wear that much clothing if it's all frayed and tattered? Did I really need that many layers of shirts, long sleeves under short? It's a trend, they are trendy, that's kind of the point. And they eventually fade away into history and nostalgia outfits 20 years later.

As Harry Dresden put it when commenting about Molly's outfit to her father. "Let he who has never stone washed his jeans, cast the first stone."