The fable of the astronomer and the computer company.
Feb 01, 2002
Tech companies, notably computer firms, have a history of code-naming their products, partially to protect from industrial espionage, but more out of a sense of whimsy. Each company follows its own theme: SGI (Silicon Graphics), for example, used the names of beers, and would get the company to donate free beer to SGI employee functions for the duration of the product’s development cycle. In the early 1990s, Apple computer would name its computers after individuals. This began when Steve Jobs named the predecesor to the Macintosh after his illegitimate daughter, Lisa.
In 1994, Apple began developing the Power Macintosh 7100. They chose the internal code name “Sagan”, referring to astronomer Carl Sagan. Sagan found out about the name, and objected — vigorously. With lawyers and everything. Change the name, he said. I don’t want people to falsely believe that I endorse this product, he said. It’s infringement. Disheartened, the folks at Apple Computer finally changed the name.
They called it “butthead astronomer”.
The moral of the story is: be careful what you wish for. You may get it.
Codicil:
Carl Sagan sued Apple for libel over the new name, claiming that it subjected him to contempt and ridicule. Sagan lost this lawsuit, too.
Other References
- Everymac: Apple Power Macintosh 7100 Specs
- Other codenames were Butthead Astronomer & Lawyers are Wimps.
- Wired: Lighten Up, Carl
- Remember when we reported on Carl Sagan’s new nickname over at Apple Computer (for your edification, it was “butthead astronomer.” Apple developers had code-named a secret new computer “Sagan,” only to be threatened by Sagan’s lawyers that the use of his name on a product, even in prototype stage, was infringement). Well, ol’ Carl’s now suing Apple for libel, claiming that the “butthead astronomer” moniker is defamatory and subjects him to “hatred, contempt, ridicule, and obloquy.” The Wall Street Journal pointed out that the outcome of the case will hinge on the definition of “butthead.” Thanks for helping us understand, Carl.
Watch out for meek mild mannered computer programmers. We are not nice people when pushed into a corner…
Keywords: | technology | public relations | nicknames | geeks |
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I don't think that word means what you think it means.
Jan 01, 2002
Mistranslations have been the cause of much personal angst, social upheaval, and boy bands.
But this one takes the cake.
I’m still trying to figure out which is funnier: that men didn’t use a little common sense, or that women took so readily to this myth. My my, whatever shall Cosmo do for its headlines now?
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A roundup of tech news for the month.
Nov 02, 2001
Google is thinking of adding thumbnails to search results. I wonder if this will interact at all with any spider-blocking that folks may have on their sites?
The Supreme Court for California has ruled that the descrambler code for DVDs, which has been on the internet for some time, can’t be barred from circulation because it counts as free speech. To rub salt in the wounds, the Copy Control Association could be forced to reimburse the defendant, programmer and webmaster Jon Bunner, for his apellate costs.
Last week’s MSN fiasco has cost the company directly and indirectly. Downloads and sales of rival browsers, including Opera, Amaya, and Konquerer, increased late last week and over the weekend. Breaking his customary restrained impartiality, the true father of the Internet (not that Gore guy) slammed Microsoft’s tactics in an email interview with online media portal CNET.
And since we’re in an economic downturn, we can’t let a week go by without some media giant doing a piece on the end of the free internet.
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It's amazing how small software can be when you put your mind to it.
Oct 21, 2001
Code bloat is insidious. It’s wasteful. It creates a poor product. Software can and should be written efficiently and effectively.
So why is it that the military-industrial complex is the only group to grok this?
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IBM apparently has a patent on web template tools. Suuuuuuuuuuure.
Oct 19, 2001
Well, it appears that Web “technologies” are going ahead full steam. To what detriment, I wonder. IBM has been granted the patent for Web template tools, for which it filed in 1998.
Okay, call me stupid, but didn’t this concept exist previously in the offline world? There’s a concept called “prior art”, which refers to widespread and/or common usage or knowledge of a thing. I guess this doesn’t apply any more. (I worked on web-based software that created whole sites using several predefined page templates in 1995 — Intranet Junction, which I almost doubt is still around any more. Or is it? Any sightings?)
Quick! Someone patent personal web sites!
Now here’s the rub: how will IBM enforce this patent? Realistically, it’s something of a bugbear. While they won’t go after individuals offering page templates on their site, they may go after anyone who creates software to generate a site using page templates.
That would set them head-to-head with all the apps and editors out there that bundle templates with their software.
Can you say “FrontPage”, kiddies? I knew you could.
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Webring is no longer part of Yahoo? Right. I'll believe that.
Oct 15, 2001
On 05 September 2000, Yahoo began its disastrous administration of the WebRing system, a five-year-old free online service and community. People left Y!WR in droves. Some headed to RingSurf. Some headed to the Bomis system. Many either installed RingLink, or signed up with previously-installed RingLink systems. Even with the mass migrations, there were still lots of rings using the Y!WR system…it seemed. As the months wore on, many of them turned out to be abandoned.
Now, apparently, WebRing is no longer part of the Yahoo conglomerate. I’m not really sure about this one, though. True, when trying to reach the Y!WR home, there are l-o-n-g delays and then a switch to this WebRing.com…but that might just mean that someone’s suborned the DNS information.
Other reasons for wondering about this:
- the page layout of this new WebRing is very similar to Yahoo. Wouldn’t new owners want to make more of a difference by changing the look and feel of the pages - possibly back to the old Webring colourscheme?
- the information on the WebRing.com pages is a little scanty-looking. I could create this content. It doesn’t really seem to reassure me that it’s genuine.
- the DNS record lists Yahoo, Inc. as the holder of the domain webring.com (and webring.net and webring.org) and has these domains listed as being on yahoo’s nameservers
- I can’t find any other evidence or news about this move other than the email I received and this scanty text on the web site
I think that WebRing is still owned by Yahoo - possibly even being administered by the same group of nimrods - but Yahoo is just trying to stem the hemmoraging of outgoing former members by pulling this switcheroo. So while I would welcome another ring hosting service (RingSurf was abandoned by its chief some months back, and while the various Guides do good jobs, there are a lot of duplicate rings, rings that are abandoned, rings that are really nothing more than links to someone’s home page [note: ring hosts are NOT search engines!], and in short, lots of noise, not a whole lot of signal. The Guides can only do so much — they can’t dictate policy or clean up dead rings or things like that. But…until I get some sort of confirmation that this new Webring is legit, and unless I see that those bloody NavBars are only an option and not the only way to create ring fragments, I’ll just stay with RingSurf.
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