******** Date: Sun, 08 Jul 2001 21:06:56 -0400 Subject: Microsoft-English Dictionary (Article) From: Richard Forno <rfornoat_private> To: <declanat_private> CC: <politechat_private> Declan - hope you had a good 4th of July weekend holiday, rain notwithstanding here in DC. At least from Arlington the view of the national fireworks was really good!! This is my latest commentary/missive that - if you think appropriate - is humbly submitted for POLITECH. If you don't think it appropriate, feel free to delete it....I couldn't sleep the other night and to fight insomnia, you know I usually start writing. :) ttyl rick infowarrior.org / incidentresponse.com ---------- For his novel "1984" George Orwell developed "Newspeak", a modified English language using ambiguous or deceptive words, metaphors, or euphemisms to influence public opinion on various matters - a common business practice refined to an exacting science by news media, marketing companies, and corporate PR departments. Nowhere is Newspeak more perfected than in the halls of the Microsoft Campus in Redmond, Washington - a place where legions of well-paid spin-meisters attempt to morph the reality of their company's business, legal, and product information into innocuous -sounding, politically-correct, calm-inducing statements when released to the public. Naturally, this has a confusing effect on the general public who is unfamiliar with this particular form of language. As a public service, this article contains a helpful list of terms used by the company and what, in reality - not Newspeak - such terms actually mean. It's my hope that such insight - culled from personal experience and the input of other technology professionals - will cut through the Newspeak fog and assist readers in determining for themselves what Microsoft is really saying in its public statements. The Microsoft-English Dictionary is organized into four sections: (1) Legal, Marketing, and Internet Community Terms; (2) Security-Oriented Terms; (3) Product-Related Terms; and (4) Miscellaneous Terms. Article Found at: http://www.infowarrior.org/articles/2001-04.html ------------------------------------------------------------------------- POLITECH -- Declan McCullagh's politics and technology mailing list You may redistribute this message freely if you include this notice. To subscribe, visit http://www.politechbot.com/info/subscribe.html This message is archived at http://www.politechbot.com/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------
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