When did Trekkers jump the shark?
ｻ Sci-fi rant: When did Trekkers jump the shark? | Geekend | TechRepublic.com
He argues with the publication of The Klingon Dictionary, which, I'm embarrassed to say, I owned a copy of. (And might still own. I think it's in a box in my parent's attic.) Fortunately, in my case, as puberty took hold (and the first season-plus of The Next Generation turned out to be so awful), my interest in Trek lessened to the point where I'm sad about the time I wasted on it, and too many other science fiction shows to mention.
I can't comment on the accuracy of his selection of the dictionary as the tipping point, since that was when I was coming of age at that time, so I'm not aware of how Trekkers were perceived before that. I only remember them being viewed as freaks.