"latex is pronounced 'lay-tek'"

WELL YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE SPELLED IT WITH AN X THEN SHOULD YOU

(yes yes I know it's a not-english-language thing but ugh just let people say "latex" it's fine)

@gsuberland yes from that famous non-english language, american

@dysfun the "X" is actually χ which is Greek

@gsuberland lalalala can't hear you

@dysfun yeah ikr, I'm just gonna say latex

@gsuberland yeah like why call it that if you don't want it to be called that lmao

@mrsbeanbag @gsuberland (Do you want the actual answer? I know the history of this)

@Canageek @gsuberland oh ok go on then rofl

@gsuberland does anyone else now pronounce "goretex" as "goretek" just because of this?

@gsuberland

This is related to the longstanding practice we have in the computer community of always choosing the most self-destructive way of saying any acronym. Remember the "Small Computer System Interface?" It's acronym, "SCSI" would have just as sensibly been spoken as "sexy" as it was to use "scuzzy." But we never make ourselves look cool. It's only when artistes in black buy the consumer version of what we make that anyone thinks what we do is cool.

I blame ourselves.

we had the perfect computer-stuff name with PCMCIA

"People Can't Memorize Computer Industry Acronyms"

and we just let it go

CC: @gsuberland@chaos.social

@khm @gsuberland

Oh, that IS artistic. Never heard that one before, and now it's too late for anything but stories about Back In The Day.

Forty years ago, I worked on the "SubMarine Advanced Reactive Tactical Training System," aka "SMARTTS." A company game was finding alternative deconstructions. One was, "Some Managers Are Really Taking This Seriously." My own personal best was, "Salaries Must Adjust Relative To The Situation."

Oddly, we were asked to stop doing this...

@khm @gsuberland

Gracious, I Googled this old project and found, of all things, one of our coffee cups for sale as a collector's item. I actually still have mine.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/163993336474