The Geek Code is a series of letters and symbols used by self-described "geeks" to inform fellow geeks about their personality, appearance, interests, and opinions. The idea is that everything that makes a geek individual and different from all the other geeks in the world can be written down (encoded) in this very compact format. Then other geeks can read the geek code and work back from that to discover what the writer looks like, what interests s/he has, and so forth. This is deemed to be efficient in some sufficiently geeky manner. Professor Frink from The Simpsons, a stereotypical science geek. ... Personality psychology is a branch of psychology which studies personality and individual difference processes - that which makes us into a person. ... In common speech, the word individual most often refers to a person, or, by analogy, to any specific object in a group of things. ... For other senses of the word code, see code (disambiguation). ... In computer science, efficiency is used to describe several desirable properties of an algorithm or other construct, besides clean design, functionality, etc. ...

The Geek Code was invented by Robert Hayden in 1993 and is defined at geekcode.com. The idea has subsequently been extended to many other occupations and groups, such as goths or furries, and even the Schlock Mercenary webcomic, but the geek code is the original such code. Gothic girl, medieval style, with spikes and piercings This article is about the contemporary goth/gothic subculture. ... Look up Furry on Wiktionary, the free dictionary Furry is slang often used by members within the furry fandom which may refer to: A character or artwork depicting anthropomorphic or zoomorphic characeristics. ... Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Schlock Mercenary Schlock Mercenary is a webcomic by Howard Tayler. ...

In some parts of the net, it was once common practice to use a geek code as one's signature, though those times are now long past. One of the consequences of being so old in such a fast-moving field is that much of the geek code now looks rather dated. The World Wide Web is described as "relatively new and little understood" - while the latter may still be accurate, the former certainly isn't. Creating a geek code for yourself is almost like nostalgia for nerds. A signature block (often abbreviated as signature, sig block, or just sig) is a block of text automatically appended at the bottom of an e-mail message, Usenet article, or forum post. ... Graphic representation of the World Wide Web around Wikipedia The World Wide Web (WWW, W3, or simply Web) is an information space in which the items of interest, referred to as resources, are identified by global identifiers called Uniform Resource Identifiers (URIs). ... Nostalgia currently describes a longing for the past, often idealized and unrealistic. ... , as a stereotypical or archetypal designation, refers to people of above-average intelligence whose interests (often in science and mathematics) are not shared by mainstream society. ...

Once created, geeks can use their geek codes anywhere they please. Previous places include emails, websites, letters, art, programming language comments, and even T-shirts. Nowadays, personal websites are the most common breeding ground, particularly any "about me" sections. E-mail, or email, is short for electronic mail and is a method of composing, sending, and receiving messages over electronic communication systems. ... The front page of the English Wikipedia Web site. ... Look up Letter on Wiktionary, the free dictionary A letter is a written message from one party to another. ... Resources ArtLex. ... A programming language or computer language is a standardized communication technique for expressing instructions to a computer. ... T-Shirt A T-shirt (or tee shirt) is a shirt with short or long sleeves, a round neck, put on over the head, without pockets. ...

Robert Hayden's own geek code is:
-----BEGIN GEEK CODE BLOCK-----
GED/J d-- s:++>: a-- C++(++++) ULU++ P+ L++ E---- W+(-) N+++ [[Internet Oracle|o+]] K+++ w--- O- M+ V--
PS++>$ PE++>$ Y++ PGP++ t- 5+++ X++ R+++>$ tv+ b+ DI+++ D+++ [[Geek Code|G++++]] e++ h r-- y++**
------END GEEK CODE BLOCK------ (See also List of types of clothing and Clothing terminology) Humans nearly universally wear articles of clothing (also known as dress, garments, or attire) on the body. ... Human anatomy or anthropotomy is a special field within anatomy. ... A British pensioner, 2005 Ageing or aging is the process of getting older. ... Originally, the word computing was synonymous with counting and calculating, and a science that deals with the original sense of computing mathematical calculations. ... It has been suggested that List of Unixes be merged into this article or section. ... Perl, also Practical Extraction and Report Language (a backronym, see below), is an interpreted procedural programming language designed by Larry Wall. ... Tux, a cartoon penguin frequently featured sitting, is the official Linux mascot. ... The GNU Emacs interface, running in a graphical environment. ... Graphic representation of the World Wide Web around Wikipedia The World Wide Web (WWW, W3, or simply Web) is an information space in which the items of interest, referred to as resources, are identified by global identifiers called Uniform Resource Identifiers (URIs). ... Usenet is a distributed Internet discussion system that evolved from a general purpose UUCP network of the same name. ... KIBO is an acronym for Knowledge In, Bullshit Out. ... Microsoft Windows is a range of operating environments and operating systems for personal computers and servers. ... OS/2 is an operating system created by Microsoft and IBM and later developed by IBM exclusively. ... The first Macintosh computer, introduced in 1984. ... OpenVMS (Open Virtual Memory System or just VMS) is the name of a high-end computer server operating system that runs on the VAX and Alpha family of computers developed by Digital Equipment Corporation of Maynard, Massachusetts (now owned by Hewlett-Packard), and more recently on Hewlett-Packard systems built... Look up Politics on Wiktionary, the free dictionary Politics (disambiguation) Democracy History of democracy List of democracy and elections-related topics List of years in politics List of politics by country articles Political corruption Political economy Political movement Political parties of the world Political party Political psychology Political sociology Political... The cypherpunks (from cipher and punk) comprise an informal group of people interested in privacy and cryptography who originally communicated through the cypherpunks mailing list. ... Pretty Good Privacy (PGP) is a computer program which provides cryptographic privacy and authentication. ... http://www. ... Babylon 5 is an epic science fiction television series created, produced, and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. ... The X-Files was a popular American television series created by Chris Carter. ... A role-playing game (RPG) is a type of game in which players assume the roles of fictional characters. ... Television is a telecommunication system for broadcasting and receiving moving pictures and sound over a distance. ... Look up book on Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Always Postpone Meetings With Time-Wasting Morons, an early Dilbert book Dilbert animated series, episode 212 Dilbert is a popular American comic strip. ... Doom (or DOOM) is a 1993 computer game by id Software that is among the landmark titles in the first-person shooter genre. ... Wikibooks Wikiversity has more about this subject: School of Education WikEd is a MediaWiki set up specificially for educators and education research. ... Home is a place where a person lives, perhaps spends much of the time, or where a person is comfortable to be. ... For the song by the California punk band Pennywise, see Society (song). ... Look up Sex on Wiktionary, the free dictionary A sex is one of two specimen categories of species that recombine their genetic material in order to reproduce, a process called genetic recombination. ...

Format

The Geek Code Block formatting, which is optional (though not in Robert Hayden's opinion), is a parody of the output produced by the encryption program PGP. Within the Geek Code Block there is a line specifying the version of Geek Code being used. The next line starts with the letter G (for Geek) followed by the Geek's occupation(s): GMU for a geek of music. Then we get into the geek code proper. For geeks with multiple occupations, a slash or slashes is or are used: GMD/TW, for instance, for a geek of medicine and technical writing. There are 24 occupations that can be represented and 4 special indicators: Wikibooks Wikiversity has more about this subject: School of Music Look up Music on Wiktionary, the free dictionary Wikisource, as part of the 1911 Encyclopedia Wikiproject, has original text related to this article: Music MusicNovatory: the science of music encyclopedia The Virginia Tech Multimedia Music Distionary, with definitions, pronunciations, examples...

• GO - Geek of other, for occupations that can't be represented normally.
• GU - Geek of undecided.
• G! - Geek of no qualifications.
• GAT - Geek of all trades, for those who can do anything.

Categories

There are a number of letters in the geek code, each of which represent a category. So, the lower-case letter t represents Star Trek. The geek code's author has this to say about Star Trek: http://www. ...

"Most geeks have an undeniable love for the Star Trek television show. Because geek is often synonymous with trekkie, it is important that all geeks list their Trek rating."

Meanwhile, the lower-case letter r represents relationships. Geeks are less associated with relationships than they are with Star Trek, and the geek code says this about them: Trekkie (or Trekker) is a term that in recent decades has been used to describe a fan of the Star Trek science fiction franchise. ... An interpersonal relationship is some relationship or connection between two people. ...

"While many geeks are highly successful at having relationships, a good many more are not. Give us the gritty details."

The geekcode website at geekcode.com contains the complete list of categories, along with all the special syntax options. The choice of categories (from version 3 onwards) reflects what geeks consider important. Appearance takes up three categories, computers - thirteen, computer-related politics - two, general politics - two, computer-related interests - six, other interests - three, lifestyle and sex - four. A computer is a device or machine for processing information from data according to a program — a compiled list of instruction. ... Look up Politics on Wiktionary, the free dictionary Politics (disambiguation) Democracy History of democracy List of democracy and elections-related topics List of years in politics List of politics by country articles Political corruption Political economy Political movement Political parties of the world Political party Political psychology Political sociology Political... The missionary position is the most common position for sexual intercourse in humans The cowgirl sex position is a position frequently combined with kissing, caressing, and embracing of the paramour . The Doggy position is thus named because canines, as well as most other mammals, use this position. ...

Category-specific modifiers

Although some categories have special syntax, generally each category is followed by a series of + or - signs showing how much the geek agrees or disagrees with the category. For example, t+++ indicates a geek who thinks this about Star Trek:

"I know all about warp field dynamics and the principles behind the transporter. I have memorized the TECH manual. I speak Klingon. I go to cons with Vulcan ears on."

On the other hand, someone who puts r--- in their geek code feels the following way about relationships: The Enterprise-D goes into warp. ... The Klingon language or Klingonese (tlhIngan Hol in Klingon) is a constructed language created by Marc Okrand for Paramount Pictures and spoken by Klingons in the fictional Star Trek universe. ... Convention has at least two very distinct but related meanings. ... Vulcans are a humanoid species in the fictional Star Trek universe who reside on the planet Vulcan and are noted for their attempt to live by reason and logic. ...

"I'm beginning to think that I'm a leper or something, the way people avoid me like the plague."

Modifiers

The meaning of each category can be changed in subtle or not-so-subtle ways using punctuation marks as modifiers. For example, an @ after a category means that the geek's feelings on this category are not very rigid and can change with time, while a dollar sign implies the geek is in the enviable position of being paid for their work in this category. Punctuation marks are written symbols that do not correspond to either phonemes (sounds) of a spoken language nor to lexemes (words and phrases) of a written language, but which serve to organize or clarify written language. ... The dollar (represented by the dollar sign: $) is the name of the official currency in several countries, dependencies and other regions. ...

Decoding a Geek Code

While the original way to read or write Geek Code is by hand, some people feel they have more important things in their life, like changing that r--- to a happier state, so Joe Reiss wrote an Ungeeker for them to use. There is a similar program by Pete Williams available.

See also

• OmniCode
• Hacker Key

OmniCode is meant as a more comprehensive successor to the defunct Geek Code. ... The Hacker Key Guide was created using the Geek Code as a basis. ...

External links

• Official web site of the Code of the

Geeks.

• The Generator for the Code

of the Geeks v3.1

• The Geek Code Decoder translates the

geek code into English.

• The OmniCode is an effort at

providing a modern-day Geek Code, since the Geek Code has not been updated since 1996.

• Guide to Hacker Key.