computer geek

The word geek is a slang term, noting individuals as "a peculiar or otherwise dislikable person, especially one who is perceived to be overly intellectual". Formerly, the term referred to a carnival performer often billed as a wild man whose act usually includes biting the head off a live chicken, bat or snake. The 1976 edition of the American Heritage Dictionary included only the definition regarding geek shows. The popular saying that geeks are mentally challenged in various ways.
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<jargon> (Or "turbo nerd", "turbo geek") One who eats (computer) bugs for a living. One who fulfils all the dreariest negative stereotypes about hackers: an asocial, malodourous, pasty-faced monomaniac with all the personality of a cheese grater. The term cannot be used by outsiders without implied insult to all hackers; compare black-on-black usage of "nigger". A computer geek may be either a fundamentally clueless individual or a proto-hacker in larval stage.
See also Alpha Geek, propeller head, clustergeeking, geek out, wannabee, terminal junkie, spod, weenie.
[Jargon File]
(1997-06-26)