techno-fiend

In information technology, a techno-fiend is someone who is addicted to finding out and knowing how things work in one or more aspects of cyberspace . Techno-fiends frequently know about and consult the places where you can find out. (See "Selected Links" below.) Some techno-fiends also frequent Usenet or other online discussions. Techno-fiends usually suspect that there's some place or someone with information that they should know about but don't.

Subjects that compel the attention of techno-fiends include: Web site design and browser behavior, Web server installation and management, any new emerging standard (a techno-fiend will read the main standard and even some of the ancillary standards), and any new technology, especially hardware technologies.

In general (with some exceptions), techno-fiends tend to be lay people rather than experts (whose motivation for understanding how things work is professional and somewhat economically motivated). A techno-fiend is less dedicated to a subject or a technology than a geek or a hacker , who both tend to be among the professionals. However, you can be an expert in one area and a techno-fiend in another.