# Worst name for Computer Software? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 1, 2007, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414 "2007-02-01T15:04:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2007, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414/21 "2007-02-01T20:46:51Z")
[QUOTE=Ethilrist] Microsoft Works. [/QUOTE] Heh. I use a piece of CAD software called Pro/ENGINEER. No problem, right? Except the last three releases, instead of giving Release versions or the year for identifying it, have been “Wildfire (Rev #)”. Great, name your software after a natural disaster, especially when it is an appropriate metaphor for the recent releases. Better yet, they’ve named their PDM system “Windchill”. What’s next, Earthquake? Tsunami? Hurricane? I think Sinkhole would make a nice name for one of their products, considering how much of my time it sucks up. I’ve name the various computers under my aegis after characters in _Hamlet_ (but not Hamlet itself). Someone asked me who Hamlet was supposed to be…it’s me, of course, being driven mad and unable to make decisions because of the actions of these other characters. And I’m half inclined to toss ophelia in a puddle of water sometimes, the bitch. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2007, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414/22 "2007-02-01T20:52:07Z")
I’ve heard accounts of Point of Sale system software with really unimaginative acronyms… ---
**Author:** ![Noone\_Special](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/noone_special/32/2863_2.png) [@Noone\_Special](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Noone_Special)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2007, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414/23 "2007-02-01T20:58:47Z")
Not software but mostly hardware – the new MicroSoft media player, _Zune_, when pronounced “Britishly” as “Zyun” sounds EXACTLY like the Hebrew word for “a fuck” (the noun.) It’s already famous… :dubious: (haven’t seen anybody actually **buying** one, though. Just **asking** to see it!) ---
**Author:** ![FatBaldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecd19e/32.png) [@FatBaldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FatBaldGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2007, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414/24 "2007-02-01T21:00:44Z")
Once upon a time there was a company named ViaGrafix that offered computer courseware. I understand that more than one purchase request was turned down because TPTB didn’t see why their company should pay for a Viagra Fix. ---
**Author:** ![KlondikeGeoff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3e96dc/32.png) [@KlondikeGeoff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KlondikeGeoff)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2007, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414/25 "2007-02-01T21:30:37Z")
[QUOTE=Sunspace] T…four-colur-printing-style dots, [/QUOTE] Just FYI, those are called Benday dots. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2007, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414/26 "2007-02-01T21:42:12Z")
[QUOTE=KlondikeGeoff] Just FYI, those are called Benday dots. [/QUOTE] Can I claim the fact that I do 99.9% of my work in black and white as an excuse? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2007, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414/27 "2007-02-01T23:00:04Z")
And I thought our SPLAT was bad. (Syndicated/Participated Loan Administration and Tracking - something for managing those enormous real estate deals that are so big they’re done with multiple banks) ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2007, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414/28 "2007-02-02T03:09:55Z")
Some NetWare 2.x versions came on several floppy disks (18 IIRC), the first of which was labelled OS-EXE-1 but universally referred to as Oh, Sexy One! ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Knig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@Typo\_Knig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Knig)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2007, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414/29 "2007-02-03T02:30:45Z")
[QUOTE=ILovCoffee] ::whooosed:: Is WORD an acronym? [/QUOTE] Sorry - a feeble attempt at humor. Let me explain. IMNSHO, MS Word can handle letters, and even individual words just fine. It does less well for sentences, paragraphs, chapters, and larger compilations. ``` [crickets] ``` Yeah, nobody laughed, and the frog died. There’s a reason my dopername is Typo Knig and not Humor King. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2007, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414/30 "2007-02-03T20:02:32Z")
Not a name, but still counterimpressive - the very expensive (hundreds of dollars a month for one user) computational fluid dynamics package called “Fluent” gradually fills your desktop with icons that are labeled “Kill Fluent”. I’ve asked the maker why, and they just shrug and say, “Oh, that…”. ---
**Author:** ![Declan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2007, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414/31 "2007-02-03T23:01:08Z")
[QUOTE=Ethilrist] Microsoft Works. [/QUOTE] That and WinCe Declan ---
**Author:** ![susan\_foster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@susan\_foster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan_foster)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2007, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414/32 "2007-02-04T00:20:58Z")
When a friend of mine and I worked for a certain (unnamed) company, she had to write a program that sent emails to users. The users had the ability to ask for and stop the emails (and yes, this ability actually worked), but she still was against the practice. So, she named the program: (company) - name started with **S** **P** ersonal **A** ffininity **M** arketing Tool Of course, you know what we called it… Susan ---
**Author:** ![According\_to\_Pliny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e7dd6/32.png) [@According\_to\_Pliny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/According_to_Pliny)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2007, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414/33 "2007-02-04T00:34:46Z")
I think Godaddy is the stupidest name on the web. ---
**Author:** ![TroubleAgain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e480ec/32.png) [@TroubleAgain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroubleAgain)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2007, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414/34 "2007-02-04T00:46:05Z")
[QUOTE=Typo Knig] Sorry - a feeble attempt at humor. Let me explain. IMNSHO, MS Word can handle letters, and even individual words just fine. It does less well for sentences, paragraphs, chapters, and larger compilations. ``` [crickets] ``` Yeah, nobody laughed, and the frog died. There’s a reason my dopername is Typo Knig and not Humor King. ☹ [/QUOTE] well, if it makes you feel better, I got it and smiled. ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2007, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414/35 "2007-02-04T00:57:04Z")
[QUOTE=Angua] On a slightly related note, we have an image manipulation program called ds9. Supposedly named because its predecessor was TNG… [/QUOTE] In a similar vein, the broadcast automation software we (and many others) use is called NexGen. ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2007, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414/36 "2007-02-04T01:26:26Z")
[QUOTE=Typo Knig] Yeah, nobody laughed, and the frog died. There’s a reason my dopername is Typo Knig and not Humor King. ☹ [/QUOTE] Woah! I never even noticed that until you mentioned it :o How’s about the NES emulator “Nesticle”? ---
**Author:** ![catsix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e19b73/32.png) [@catsix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/catsix)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2007, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414/37 "2007-02-04T01:30:26Z")
Windows CE. Only Microsoft would name one of their own products WinCE. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-name-for-computer-software/390414.md?page=1)