There was a day when the pocket-protecting geek was the butt of all cruel jokes.  He walked down school hallways with his head down, avoiding eye contact with those who passed him by.  Others looked upon his D&D playing ways with disgust, and laughed out loud at his elaborate collection of electronic gadgets.

However, when the Internet reached mass popularity in the late 1990s, the geeks among us realized they were not alone.  In fact, they were often the successful leaders of the net generation.  With this newfound pride came the desire to, finally, wear geekiness like a badge of honour. 

If you’re a proud geek heading back to school this fall, you now have access to a wide range of uber connected clothing.  From hi-tech t-shirts to geek belt buckles, the only looks you’ll be getting from your classmate will be looks of sheer envy.

Wi-Fi Detector Shirt
Sometimes opening up your laptop just takes too much effort.  For the always connected geek, this ThinkGeek Wi-Fi detecting t-shirt (approx. $20) will make finding wireless access a cinch.  Throw on the tee in the morning and whenever you’re in a Wi-Fi zone, your shirt will light up with pretty blue bars (that fluctuate depending on the Internet signal strength).  Don’t worry, although this gear runs on three AAA batteries, you can remove the battery pack from inside the shirt so your techie tee can endure a wash.

Pac-Man Belt Buckle
Just because you love the latest technology, doesn’t mean that you can’t go retro now and again.  With the A91 Pac-Man Belt Buckle, you’ll be able to sport one of the most famous icons from the arcade video game world.  This product is available on Amazon for less than $20 (buckle only, which is 3 inches in diameter).  Now you can show your true geek colours (which in this case, is bright Pac-Man yellow!). 

iPod Clothing Solutions
A couple of weeks ago I wrote about tech to help you get in shape and lose weight.  Within the column I mentioned the SCOTTEVEST (SeV) Performance T-Shirt. When you dig further into the SeV website, you realize that there are unlimited choices of clothing that offer secret pockets for your favourite devices.  For back-to-school, the Ultimate Hoodie Microfleece will give you a place to stash your gadgets and keep you warm.  With 11 specially-designed pockets for MP3, cellphone, and other tech toys, this US$70 sweatshirt is a cozy pick for wired students.