Name Changing

Words change as they are heard. When one word sounds like another they will tend toward each other. Shrinking vocabularies require that words blend meaning until two words become only one. The longer the language endures, the more ideas are attempted with it, the smaller the dictionary becomes. More words do less. Smaller vocabularies means easier commercial exchange.

Only 30 years ago the words “JIVE” and “JIBE” stood at opposite poles of meaning. “Jive” meant lie, fake, bullshit. “Jibe” meant agree, match up, accurate, true.

Jive software is the name of a well funded company that was founded in Portland with a recent move of headquarters to Palo Alto. Closer to their VC.

Nearer, My Gold, to thee

I wonder if the company will go public under any of these working titles: Scam, Scheme, Fraudster, ScamBook, TheftNet.

Tomorrow we look into “FaceBook” what it really means.

More Abund

How about a more fun thread with infrared?

What does this mean? Perhaps he means another thread, or does he mean that the current thread isn’t enough fun. Maybe it is fun, just not enough fun. but when we make few words do the work of many, this odd ironic misunderstanding occurs. By using only “more” and “less” to mean more and more, they actually provide less and less understandable meaning. We share less. Too bad that English has returned to deflate our vocabulary.