ArchivedLogs:First-Nerd Problems

First-Nerd Problems
Dramatis Personae Doug, Samuel	2013-06-07 Doug meets one of his geek heroes.
Location <NYC> Columbia University
Situated in the Morningside Heights neighborhood, Columbia University is one of the most prestigious universities in the nation. This Ivy League school is the oldest university in New York, and attracts students from all over the world to study in its halls. With a generous sprinkling of Greek life and a Manhattan campus, Columbia students need not sacrifice anything by way of social life for their rigorous academic pursuits. Session H is exactly one weekend from its start, which means that the window for getting books ahead of the rush is rapidly dwindling. So is the window for getting a jump on the course objectives that were emailed out a couple of days ago. Booking a terminal in one of the computer labs isn't exactly /necessary/ for the completion, but there are plenty of people like Doug who've decided to take some of their weekend time to be one of those busy little ants. Screw the grasshoppers. Dressed in jeans and a red-and-white baseball jersey, the blonde sits at a terminal near the door, a lidded drink with a straw on the desk and his own laptop opened up next to the fancy-looking (and remarkably high-end, based on the specs) school unit. The screen on the laptop scrolls by with lines of text moving too fast to read, and the university terminal seems to be in the middle of some sort of meltdown. Or would be, if Doug's fingers weren't on the keys, clearly in control of what's happening. A pair of earbuds keep outside distractions to a minimum, although the tinny sound of Daft Punk can be heard by those sitting or passing nearby. Samuel had been here to speak to a class. And with that out of the way, he'd been invited to see the facilities. He smiles faintly as he strolled through the computer labs. His own time in university had been a good time for him. He had after all been able to pass with virtually no effort. For him computers are purely intuitive. He gives little mind to the information flowing through the air here. It's nothing to particular interest to him. He does however smile at the computers. Considering one of the screens closely for a second as he approaches. Of course many of those in the room recognise him. He's well known in certain circles. He wears a simple white shirt, a dark blue tie and black pants. He straightens the tie almost unconsciously as he looks at the computer. Doug doesn't seem to notice the presence of the older man, at first, slumped in his seat and focused on his computer screen. The information that flows from this particular terminal might sound strange, to a cyberpath. As if this machine was having a one-sided conversation. Doug's own fingers barely skim the keyboard, or maybe they're moving so fast that they look slow. Still, occasionally his lips quirk into a smile as he goes about arranging nodes and moving file clusters around, a process that's somehow actually visible on the monitor. Perhaps it's Samuel's proximity, or the way he adjusts his tie when he leans in that catches Doug's attention, and he jumps guiltily, pulling the earbuds from his ears even as he reaches out to close his laptop. "Oh, gosh, I'm sorry. Is my time up already? I was in the zo --" he breaks off as he turns to actually /look/ at who's next to him, and he blinks. "You're Samuel Griffith," he blurts. "Like, /Samuel Griffith/." Just in case he wasn't aware of that fact. The work catches his attention. It's not what he'd expected. He pauses for a moment, his attention turning to Doug as he speaks. He offers a slow nod. "Yes, so I've been told." He smirks faintly offering a hand to the other man. "I'm afraid you have me at a disadvantage." Doug flashes a wide grin, and ducks his head a bit sheepishly. "Oh, yeah. You'd know that, wouldn't you?" He chuckles, and pushes to his feet, holding out his hand. "I'm Doug Ramsey," he says. "I'm an underclassman, taking a major in Computer Science." He waves a hand at the university machine. "I was just getting a jump on the syllabus for the next session." He continues to grin at Samuel as he looks at him in sort of the same way a person would regard an A-list celebrity they'd just run into at the supermarket. "It's a real honor to meet you, Mr. Griffith. I'm a big fan of your work." Leaning against a desk so that his fingers brush one of the keyboards. Sam nods slowly to Doug. "Good thinking, I did the same when I was in college." He sighs quietly. "It never hurts to get ahead." He then smiles brightly. "Well, I'm glad to see that I've got a fan. Hopefully you'll be impressed with my next couple of projects." He shakes his head. "But I shouldn't get ahead of myself." Doug nods. "It frees up a lot of time in the labs," he says. "Which is always a good time to catch up on personal projects." He leans over to tap a few keys on the school terminal, pausing the current process. "Next couple of projects?" he echoes as he shifts back into his seat and turns his attention back to the older man. "That sounds juicy. I can't wait to read about them. And you've got plenty of fans," he says with a furrow of his brow. "Among the nerd herd, I mean." He grins. "There are heated debates online about whether you or Stark have the better software. Spoiler: It's pretty much dead even." Grinning Sam shrugs a shoulder. "There's always a next project. That's the nature of the business." He looks at Doug, his expression thoughtful. "Stark's systems are good. But then he's got a bigger budget and a good few years on me." He offers a wide grin. "I doubt I'll be besting him any time soon." He doesn't deny his software's as good though. "So, what do you plan to do once you're out of the school. Do you have a field that's caught your attention?" "Oh, man. If I had Stark's budget..." Doug rolls his eyes, and his grin goes lopsided. "But you'll get there," he predicts. "Your stuff is insane, for the numbers you bring it in for." Clearly, someone has been reading the techiest of the tech mags. The question gets a thoughtful tip of his head. "Well, I was originally thinking about going into gaming software, but lately I've been thinking about moving into A.I. programming." He grins, and wrinkles his nose. "I know it's not exactly a /new/ field -- Doctor Doom was exhibiting some top-notch stuff at his Expo -- but when I started researching A.I. for my current game project, it really sounded challenging." Nodding Sam smiles faintly. "I've considered AI myself." He shakes his head. "The code isn't an issue." Sam says that as though the code's little more than an after thought. "The hardware though... That requires a budget and someone who really knows their stuff. I've got a few ideas, but nothing I plan to implement too soon." He shrugs as he sighs. "If I had Starks budget... Well lets say I'd use his resources in a different way to how he does." Doug nods. "Yeah. I can't figure out how to get hold of a processor that won't burn out in a day, or I'd already be screwing with it." He places a hand over his heart. "Had to lose a man to discover that. Thought I could do a rudimentary caveman sort of thing, and blew out the poor guy's innards." He grins. "So to speak. And yeah. With Stark's budget, I'd have a whole different agenda, I'm sure. Although, you have to admit he has a certain sort of style in the way he markets himself." Doug offers a cheesy grin, and finger-points. Shaking his head Sam smiles. "I suspect you'd need to design something yourself. And even then you'd likely need to spread the strain across multiple systems to expand operating life." He sighs as he looks at his watch. "I however shall have to be going." He reaches into his pocket removing a card. "If you're ever looking to discuss your ideas further." He offers a wide smile. "It's good to meet someone who thinks along similar lines to myself." Doug wrinkles his nose, affecting a look of mock-dismay. "Oh, no! Building my own tech? Anything but /that/!" His eyes crinkle and he nods. "Yeah. I think I've got a couple of ideas, but I need to work on them a little more." He stands when Sam begins to take his leave, taking the proffered card with another fanboy sort of grin. "Oh, heck yeah," he says. "I'll definitely give you a call. None of my geek friends get me." Then he's extending his hand once more. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Griffith. I look forward to speaking with you again." Shaking the offered hand, Sam grins to Doug. "I think we could do some impressive work together." With that he makes his way out of the computer lab, planning to head back to his workshop.