I attended OxenteRails 2009, Rails Summit 2009, CearáOnRails 2009, and now OxenteRails 2010. It became clear that a new nerd culture is spreading faster and faster. I call this new nerd culture Nerd 2.0.
The key point is that you can no longer spend all your time in front of the computer (Nerd 1.0). Now a nerd has to be sociable and balance a love of technology with interpersonal relationships, whether with friends, at work, or elsewhere (Nerd 2.0).
Technology is important, of course, but it should always serve people, never the other way around.
During OxenteRails 2010, one of the booth babes told me she was surprised by the attendees, because they didn’t isolate themselves. There was always someone asking them a question, asking them to put Post-its on the feedback board, inviting them to play video games, or taking pictures—in other words, people were always interacting. She added that her distorted idea of the antisocial nerd had completely changed. :)
Another account came from the SEBRAE representative, who arrived at the event wondering: How am I going to explain the resources I can offer in a place full of nerds? But as time went by, she soon realized that there were consultants, teachers, and developers there—in other words, sociable and productive nerds.
The event itself was organized to make interaction between people easier. The Ignite OxenteRails, which began on Thursday, is a great example. Ignite is an informal mini-event where people give five-minute talks, exchange ideas, and make friends. On August 6 and 7, after the official program ended, attendees gathered at a local bar. This other mini-event is called #horaextra.
Some of the Nerd 2.0 attendees at OxenteRails even had artistic talents. In that regard, I’ll mention Cukier, who won the best-voice award with Forró do Elomar, as well as Banda Plataformatec, which performed vocals and guitar in a PlayStation game.
I’ll quote Henrique Bastos now: This kind of social atmosphere lets us do more than expand our network of contacts. It makes it possible to create a network of trust, which is far more meaningful for the community and for each participant.
A collection of very meaningful ideas that represents this new vision can be found in the Small Acts Manifesto, with its slogan: Small acts make great revolutions. Anyone can sign up and join this manifesto.
I couldn’t leave out another point: women’s participation in the event. Although the vast majority were men, we had Cecilia Fernandes speaking about agile methodologies, Tahis Camilo showing what her day-to-day work at Hashrocket is like, and finally Gleide, who spoke about Green IT at the unconference. So Nerd 2.0 can no longer say that technology is a man’s thing. The women, though small in number, did a great job!
So, what are you waiting for? :)
If you’re spending too much time at the computer and forgetting the importance of socializing (Nerd 1.0), here’s your warning: Git clone this new way of looking at the world of technology and upgrade your Nerd perspective to version 2.0.
Bonus: If you’re still having a little trouble upgrading to Nerd 2.0, don’t panic. You can make the change gradually. So if this idea has made you worry, try to relax a bit. To do that, visit the nerd comic-strip site: hacktoon.
Bonus 2: Be sure to check out the post by Alexandre Gomes too: Manifesto 2.0
If you have a story about this topic, feel free to leave a comment here.
Take care, and see you in the next Nerd Talk!