I spent some time with a few colleagues yesterday and came to the conclusion that true enthusiasts gravitate toward talking shop with one another. This is true even of casual situations. I’ve had plenty of “getting to know you” and “let’s just hang” social situations with other geeks where we might start out talking about any old thing but end up having an enthusiastic exchange about computers. I don’t view this is as negative. On the other hand,  plenty of mailing lists and other communication media devoted to discussions of specific topics end up going “off-topic” as people socialize more generally. Fine, so it goes both ways. It’s good to love what you love and even better to share it.