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Anyone else have people that seem to constantly try to "prove" themselves to you in this weird, competitive way that only makes them seem... very annoying? I'll call him Bob here, but it's always something like:

Bob: Hi Almond, how's it going?
Almond: Ah not bad thanks, PSU blew up in the PC over the weekend though so that was a bit of a faff!
Bob: Ah no! How old's your PC?
Almond: Oh, like 7-8 years old now. I don't replace it often.
Bob: Really?! I replace mine completely every year.
Almond: Ah, cool.
Bob: Yeah, I'm a dev so I feel I need to. It's like my tool, you know.
Almond: Sure thing!
Bob: I actually spend quite a lot on it. I make sure it's got the fastest memory I can afford. Like, DDR5 stuff. That's really important, you know.

...etc., while I try to get out of said conversation for the next eternity.

Or:

(while in a conversation about a frontend bug I was looking at in Chrome devtools)
Bob: Hey Almond, you know Firefox actually had a plugin that did all this stuff before everything else?
Almond: Err, yeah, I think so. Used it back in the day.
Bob: It was called firebug. It was really good. Revolutionary.
Almond: Certainly was.
Bob: It was launched in January 2006 you know.
Almond: Right...
Bob: I used it back then.

...I mean damn, I'm all for being civil, but no-one cares you replace your PC every year, or that you know the year firebug was released, or that you once set up 5 identical PCs with different versions of Linux to run some benchmarks...

Comments
  • 1
    Sort of. For me though it's the exercise of having to prove my basal capability over and over again no matter how many dues I've paid.
  • 4
    In layman's terms, the PSU is the whole computer. The CPU also means the whole computer. The hard drive also means the whole computer.
  • 1
    I am glad I work from home. I can pretend I am not in front of computer.
  • 3
    Replacing the psu every year would be insane
  • 4
    Hey AlmondSauce. I insist, don't forget to upgrade your old PC. Man, how you can live with a 7 years old PC :'
  • 2
    @RANTSMCPANTS Don't forget the monitor. When you turn it off; layman's computer is off
  • 2
    @vane What is this 'computer' you speak of ? Never heard of it
  • 1
    @alexbrooklyn Sort of prophecy crystal ball that cause delusional disorder.
  • 2
    Bob seems to miss your social cues to stop talking and doesn't realize he is boring you. Try stopping him by kindly asking him to stop. "Hey Bob, can we please stop this conversation. I have work to do." (You can even interrupt by saying: "Sorry to interrupt. I have to ..")

    Don't rely on your non-verbal body language.

    It may seem that he is trying to "prove" yourself to you, and though I cannot tell from your story I experienced similar pattern with autistic people.

    You say one word, and suddenly an autistic person would just talk and talk about one subject and talk at length about it.

    Seemingly at random and at at surprising length. Waiting for them to stop is futile.

    My girlfriend is an autistic person. If I let her, she can monologue for 20 minutes and longer. She cannot tell if I'm interested in a topic or if her stories become to big just by looking at me. I have to explicitly tell her.
  • 1
    @k0pernikus That's a good point. I don't mind the conversation going on for a long time in and of itself - I have several autistic friends who I'll generally just happily let ramble (unless I've got something to be getting on with of course, in which case I do exactly what you suggest - politely but firmly end the conversation.)

    With this guy though, it's this seeming need to interject these seemingly irrelevant, yet showy-off statements ("I've got the best memory in my PC", "I know when Firebug was released", "I replace everything in my PC every year") into every other conversation, rather than the length that annoys me. Granted I'm sure part of it is another autistic trait, but damn, I have my limits.
  • 1
    I upgrade my PC when something is broken or its age is preventing me from doing work.

    No need to spend money on something that already works perfectly fine.
  • 1
    I fall while running with my laptop about once a year, so a bunch of components get replaced about that often.
  • 0
    @Lor-inc do you use public transport?
  • 2
    @electrineer Yes, but I usually fall while running down some indoors stairway at 7 floors per minute.
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