Eh, I thought it was funny :D

Most of my friends are not in the software industry; they're busy Googling how to operate their AOL subscription, not the nitty gritty of JVM internals.

I was joking, but we are speaking about taste, not interest. Since you usually make friends in the social circles you inhabit, it would be likely that your friends share similar if not the same interests.

On the flip side, not every one who is kind and decent will be a good friend to you.

This is terrible advice. Kind and decent people are usually boring to talk to, and it's especially bad if you have no interests in common with them.