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Helix Code Changes Name To Ximian
Ambrosius27 was one of a number of people who has sent the word that Helix Gnome is nada mas. It's now....Ximian - they've even got a name-change FAQ and everything.
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http://www.helixcode.com/desktop
Sarcasm is the recourse of a weak mind...
--
Not just because X's are cool. These aren't ordinary monxeys, but X-monxeys - genetically superior and posessing incredible powers.
Beaux No-Beaux: Able to play "She loves me, She loves me not" without a flower!
Eve Olution: Able to see far beyond what mere mortal monxeys can. This gives her a better Outlook on things.
G. Num Eric: Mathematical skills that are uncanny. Has been known to recalculate the impact of actions involving many variables. The rest of the team looks to him for quick decisions. He has a penchant for stupid names that often overrides his precision logic. This is his only weakness.
--
As a matter of fact, I am a lawyer. But I play an actor on TV.
Bad move indeed, at a software company i used to work for, the PHB's decided to switch everything to M$ because "i read in the paper that borland went bankrupted or something, they got buyed by some company named Inside or something similar, and we won't get any support or new versions from a bankrupt company".
--
1% APY, No fees, Online Bank https://captl1.co/2uIErYq Don't let your $$$ sit in a no-interest acct.
Really. Like BlueDraco says, job titles are meaningless, and the more pompous they sound the more certain you can be that the job stinks.
--
Information wants to be beer, or something like that.
Well, I'd like to have them named Crap Code, Inc. It will probably never cause trademark problems.
;-)
And no no no no no this is not because I think they suck, I use Helix Code all the time. It's just that I could see the humor of a "guaranteed trademark-free" name like Crap Code, Inc. and I think the name of Ximian is even more of an insult to the Good Stuff they write.
So H.C.: I'll give you 3 months time to pick up the name, with no response I might just start using it myself
It's... It's...
"We can confirm that Debian does *not* ship the version with the trojan horse. Our version predates it." [CA-2002-28]
Most of us have been using these things called "Bookmarks" for oh some time now.
SmithKline Beecham is actually now known as GlaxoSmithKline following their merger with Glaxo Wellcome
God Fucking Damnit
English is the the promiscuous Y chromosome of languages...all sorts of cruft accumulates in it... ;)
It's 10 PM. Do you know if you're un-American?
Bad monkey!
Someone may want to tell him his company changed names! :)
-Bob Zill
My very first Slashdot post!
Comment removed based on user account deletion
s/French/Latin/
--
Gnome's
Now
Owned by
Monkey
Enthusiasts!
Did they contact Namix? Should they have?
If a corporation is a personhood, is owning stock slavery?
"The genitalia of the Ximian red ape is quite visible between its legs, but don't attempt to disable it with a strike to that region. It has almost no nerve endings in its genitals, which additionally allows the red ape to make love for hours without orgasming. Instead, aim your blow for the sharp bone ridge above its eyes; the sonar organ located therein will ring with the force of your blow for many minutes, stunning the creature."
One of the stranger ones (in his first book; his second two books are exponentially funnier) was a letter to Shasta Soda about how he heard that they were changing their name to "Laarksvard's Hot Cream." (He also wrote to the Taj Mahal, saying that he heard they were being converted into a Staples Office Supply Chain Store...)
When I read this, all I could think of was "Shasta" and "Laarksvard's Hot Cream"...
________________________________________________
suwain_2
is there one guy out there, with some massive speech impediment who keeps coming up with these dumb-ass tech names:
Agilent
Itanium
Duron
Ximian
He must be stopped...
Love your autosig!
________________________________________________
suwain_2
$ which ximian-update
ximian-update: Command not found
Ok, NOW what? :)
www.HearMySoulSpeak.com
or Lucent,
or iBiblio,
or Agilent,
or any of the other "funky, trademarkable names" (translation: stupid, annoying, meaningless) that a lot of big companies have changed their name to over the last few years....
If only "common" sense was actually that common...
Big corporations blow millions and millions paying hipsters to come up with these rubbish words. It's insane.
It's 10 PM. Do you know if you're un-American?
Does this mean that if I order the CDROM, version I'll get a "Barrel full'o'monkeys" game too?
When you apply for your free COMDEX pass, put your job title down as Redshirt, grunt, slave, meathead, Anonymous Coward, Karma Whore, or Peon. There's something fun about walking around a convention with a badge that reads
Patrick Draper
IBM
Galley Slave/Rower
If tits were wings it'd be flying around.
that's tianamin...not spelled like that but then I can't type chinese characters...Only Japanese
--------------------------------- Born Again Bourne Again Believer: New Life, GNU/Linux Be Free!
what's wrong boys lame.com was already taken?
Keeping
I know the asian kung-fu knock off movies are in style right now, but am i the only one asking how the hell do you pronounce that???
--aiee
That's a sure way to make sure that the domain name that you want has just been snapped up by someone else.
When you want to change your name, you first see what www.???.com isn't taken, and then use that. If you tell people your new name before you register your ???, then it won't be available any more.
Sad fact of life that the internet is full of arsehole squatters.
bahnaneh
I thought that Solaris was going to put Helix Gnome as one of their main X window managers? Is that still on??? Will it now be "Solaris shipped with Ximian"???
Sarcasm is the recourse of a weak mind...
--
Keeping
You misunderstood. I'm AGAINST inflated job titles. But I'm also against ridiculous job titles because they're just an evolution of the inflated ones. I'm glad my employer just brands me a "Programmer".
Don't believe me? Read between the lines here:
See? No further proof needed.
Information is the catalyst for revolution
I tried to search for Ximian with Google. Here's one of the results:
..."
h tm l
"... The genitalia of the Ximian red ape is quite visible between its legs, but don't attempt to disable it with a strike to that region. It has almost no nerve endings in its genitals, which additionally allows the red ape to make love for hours without orgasming. Instead, aim your blow for the sharp bone ridge above its eyes; the sonar organ located therein will ring with the force of your blow for many minutes, stunning the creature.
http://www.armory.com/~crisper/Fiction/lessons.
This is the kind of thing that happens when every damn domain name has been taken already.
Ximian. Great. Not be confused with the similarly spelled but equally meaningless Ximean, Ximeon, and Ximien. (quick, go grab those TLDs before some other bastard does).
We're really winning some "linux is easy" converts with that one.
W
-------------------
-------------------
This is my SIG. There are many like it, but this one is mine.
Hey, sounds like a soda-pop marketing strategy...
First we change our name... and everyone rushes out to by new tees... then because everyone complains about the new name... we'll switch back to the old name and everyone will rush out and buy new tees and hail us for going back...
"Helix Classic"
Followed immediately by Cro-Mag-Gnome.
Don't bother booing. I just cut my own ears off to teach myself a lesson for that, and I won't be able to hear.
--
--
"Outlook not so good." That magic 8-ball knows everything! I'll ask about Exchange Server next.
Western bread! WTF???
;-|
Ummm, now it all makes sense doesn't it?
Earl
From the FAQ...
Has anything else changed?
No
See subject.
- Have a picture
From the FAQ: Can I get a new monkey that says Ximian.com?
I'm fairly certain this question did NOT enter MY mind when I thought "Oh Helix Code is changing their name?"
In fact, I'd like to know who DOES think this sort of thing? And why they're asking it frequently. And more importantantly what the heck are they doing with the OLD monkey?
People who quote themselves bug the crap out of me -- Me.
Sorry. For future reference, I'll remember not to post when I'm dead tired- I may say some odd things in such a state.
To me it looks like they just want protect themselves from another future round of "cease and desist" letters. Don't go looking for conspiratory theories where none can be found. The sky is not falling.
--
Information wants to be beer, or something like that.
Hey... from what I've heard from conspiracy theorists "Lucent" stands for "Lucifer Enterprises" - i.e. they're a bunch of devil worshipers :).
But iBiblio really DOES mean something - 'Biblio' as in 'book', in other words "online library" (which it pretty much is).
Someone please start up a site called "www.f*ckedproductnames.com".
I was thinking something in between both of your's...Western Noodles :)
Here it is:
http://www.lexicon-branding.com/
You should really check out the different things they claim for naming, such as the Swiffer, the name Pentium for Intel's processors...
Believe me, "Helix Code" was just as weird at first..
A name just gets a meaning from things that are associated with it, it is just a "label" for a group of things. Ximian is pretty ok, it could be a lot worse, like gWhiz or something :o)
Well, the evolution of Evolution is unfortunately still hosted at Eazel, so their evolution is no Evolution. Ximian is an odd name, and I think Neanderthal Gnome might be better- after all, Neanterthals actually were stronger and had a slightly larger brain capacity than modern Homo Sapiens Sapiens, so perhaps the interface will be more intelligent than that of some early bacteria or primate.
Good luck to all involved in the Gnome/GTK+ efforts, no matter what they call themselves.
What they're saying is that they are a guaranteed source for verified, certified, known-good code. That is, to distinguish themselves from any potential forking going on. That's the business model.
Makes sense to me, regardless of how cool 'Helix Code' sounded and how dumb the new name sounds.
- Jeff A. Campbell
- Jeff
Ximian - (noun): A monkey that has drunk way to much "ZIMA." Usually followed by an urp-Xplat, which is the normal offspring of drinking more than one "ZIMA."
--
--
"Outlook not so good." That magic 8-ball knows everything! I'll ask about Exchange Server next.
It said in the FAQ that the reason they changed the name was to provide "trademark protection". Why not just trademark the, IMHO much better sounding, Helix Code name?
I think that it would be much easier to get people that have never used Linux to use something that says Helix Code than something that says Ximian. I mean, I can relate to Helix Code - I've heard of Helix (Double Helix DNA stuff) and I've heard of Code (Programming, Cyrptographic, whatever), but Ximian?? I had to double check the webpage to make sure I spelled it right! Are they sure they made the right move on this?
--
I dont know about anyone else, but Ximian sounds like an 80's computer game to me.
I can see a whole lot of emu freaks going "hmmmm, Ximian, yeah I remember that one! you had to shoot stuff or something, damn, that is one huge ROM"
Still, "Ximian"? Yikes.
first guess - Shell . Helix is motor oil.
You'll need to drive screws into the sides of your head, then, to keep your glasses from falling off.
but then people will start just calling it "the gnome". it won't be too much of a problem though, because 2 years after that nobody would talk about it at all.
The chief spokes-monkey declared the official communications protocol of Ximian to be the Infinite Monkey Protocol Suite. He then screeched, beat his chest and threatened to pelt feces at users of inferior protocols like SMTP.
MicroCADAM Inc. As in MicroCADAM Helix Design System. It's a CAD/CAM suite, and a very poor one at that! *grin* They've recently withdrawn from the North American market, but they still have a substantial instaled base and many international customers.
~wmaheriv
~wmaheriv
"Shema Yisroel- Adonai Elohenu, Adonai Echad!"
The company I work for has recently sold its Systems business along with the company name (Mitel) to a company owned by one of Mitel's original co-founders.
Those of us who work in the semiconductor side of the business await our renaming with trepidation.
If you owned a semiconductor company what would you call it?
Ximian, right?
Heh.. what do they call *you*, 'wheels'?
This is the stupidest thing I ever heard.
Gnome. Wanna get out of my way?
- It's been 15 years, traveling from place to place, hasn't it?
What is this place??
-- ATTENTION: do not read this sig. It doesn't say much.
Is it something to do with the apparent inability some of these people seem to have with pronouncing Ximian? Simian with a 'Z' sound instead of an 'S'. Surely not that hard.
Is it possibly because they somehow completely miss the simian connection? (Which again, I thought was pretty clear).
Sorry, but it seems like a perfectly good name to me. It has the guts of the company theme (monkey mascot/evolution etc.) and it's simple and easy to remember (providing you speak english, and have encountered the word simian at some point in your life).
What's with the necessity to criticise everything?
Jedidiah
Craft Beer Programming T-shirts
Example:
Borland - well known for its development tools - drops a few million on a bunch of otherwise unemployable English majors in an attempt to find a new name... hoping, for some bizarre reason, that this will change everything. The sun will shine again, Microsoft will be so blinded by the bright light of the "NEW NAME" that it will immediately give up and hand the development tool market back to "NEW NAME". Of course, the stupid fuckheads running Borland forgot one thing: Everyone knew Borland, and many people still had fond memories of the quality software - something they had obviously forgotten about when spending fortunes on picking names.
Spin on a little, and the language graduates return. And lo, they had spent months nonchalantly flicking through dictionaries, until finally one of them came up with:
INPRISE
A combination of INnovation and enterPRISE. Fucking cunts.
Even now Inprise will not completely dump this unbelievably stupid name because some manager would lose face.
And now a company with a seriously cool name (and product) makes a similar mistake in forgetting that IT'S THE CODE AND REPUTATION THAT REALLY MATTERS. I can only hope that you guys didn't pay anyone to come up with Ximian, 'cause frankly... it's shite.
Glad I didn't take that job with AC. Accenture is a lame name. But their CEO is right up there with Ransome Love for "coolest name in an exec", Joe W. Forehand.
--
One more drink, and I'll move on. --Dave Matthews Band
> reality is the only word in the english language that should ALWAYS be written in quotes
Shouldn't that be "reality" is the only word in the english language that should ALWAYS be written in quotes ?
--
rant
Just call me "Frank."
--
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"Outlook not so good." That magic 8-ball knows everything! I'll ask about Exchange Server next.
C'mon Miguel! Ximian sux. Bad name. Ximian!
Are all good names in the world taken? Zoot, Potato, Ximian...
Cesar Cardoso can be found at cesar at zyakannazio dot eti dot br (or at least I believe so)
Actually, I'd call something a work of my own after I had sat down and created it, just as Miguel has done. Thanks for playing though, jackass.
...my Helix Code monkey?!
Signed,
Miffed Gnome User
If it ain't broke, you need more software.
for the life of me, I can't pronounce "Ximian." Help, need assistance.
The same genius who came up with Xinerama?
Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum viditur.
It probably has something to do with Helix Educational Software.
This sig intentionally left blank.
As if helixcode wasnt a bitch to type out as a URL... Now how the hell am I gonna remember this?????
I'd buy a Ximian for a dollar.
'EVERYTHING FOR ONE LOW PRICE'
Karma dropping faster than a whore's panties on valentines day.
"Someone should spike Britney et al with a few drops of acid and see what their next single sounds like." Oops the walls are melting again?
its one thing to point to facts that discredit a post and say that. Its outright bizarre to point to a site that proves the point, but still disagree.
Read the bottom line
oh I get it...
Bush 2000 got more votes then Clinton 1992. Does that help?
all those early 90s demo crews had cooler names
razor1911, supplex, mohoney and cactus etc... they rocked.
The worst part of this is that I can't remember the stupid name, let alone pronounce it. Everytime I wanted to go to it today, I had to go to /. just to get the name... and how the heck do you SPELL it?!
-Brandon
Inprise.
Everybody remember when Borland changed their name to this? Everybody remember how stupid it was? What's their name now?
Yeah.
Go with the second one ;-)
ChodaBoy
- The preceding statement is the product of a deranged mind and the sole property of the voices in my head.
I know, my dad is one of them
God Fucking Damnit
Let's hope this doesn't go the way of OpenSales after they changed their name to something strange (Zelerate).
I really wish they'd stop wasting time on ridiculous things like this, and update some of the packages that they originally released with helixcode.
Mike Roberto
- GAIM: MicroBerto
Berto
Uh. Helix Gnome has been the _only_ version of Gnome in Debian for months.
--
Obfuscated e-mail addresses won't stop sadistic 12-year-old ACs.
Win dain a lotica, en vai tu ri silota
A lot of people (including me) have lamented the name change from the cool-sounding Helix Code, but look at this from the FAQ:
I guess since Helix Code is a scientific term, it's not trademarkable. Too bad, I liked it.
If it ain't broke, you need more software.
I really had high hopes for Helix Code making the Linux desktop as easy to use as Windows, but I'm not going to use it if the people behind the project pull this kind of crap.
You've lost at least one software sale from me, Ximian!!!
"Who is General Failure and why is he reading my hard disk ?"
stuff
There seems to be a lot of sucky name changing going on lately. Ximian??? What's that? A monkey that knows how to run a photocopier? This is almost as bad as the one Andersen Consulting did. Now they're... umm... see? It's really bad and I can't even remember it.
For all intensive purposes, "whom" is no longer a word. That begs the question, "who cares"?
And I thought Borland -> Inprise was bad...
I don't care what the hell Helix Code calls itself. If it calls itself MicroHard (tm), I'll still call it Helix Code. If it suddenly decides to change markets and become a pr0n site, I'll still call it Helix Code
:P
they should pick a funky little symbol, and change their name to "The Gnome Previously Known As Helix"
--------------
And when?
I like the name helix better. I'm surprised they aren't changing there logo also
Apparently, it's "zimm-eee-ann". Accent on the ZIM.
...phil
...phil
"For a list of the ways which technology has failed to improve our quality of life, press 3."
Why is it that the first thing that popped into my head was "Itanium?"
--
--
"Outlook not so good." That magic 8-ball knows everything! I'll ask about Exchange Server next.
not that we had perfect imagination :)
my faves: complex, fairlight, razor1911, andromeda... and all the great crews.
once we (bronx) released a discmag called "Auschwitz" and flamed badly for doing nazi propoganda. I'm still not sure why we'd picked that name :)
--exa--
...in their evelution. They went from just a couple of helixes to simians. The next thing we know, we'll have Neanderthal GNOME.
I've been using the Helix desktop for a while, and really like it, and respect the work these guys have done. But Ximian is such a bad name!
Wouldn't it be possible to use some other variation of Helix such as "HelixTech" or "HelixSoft" or heck, even "Helux" ??
x is pronounced like a zz sound isn't it? i don't about this, i like the old name better.
when you told people you use helix code, they'd be thinking... oh, that sounds complicated and scientific, and yet somehow fascinating...
so now when you tell them your using ximian, they'd be like... what the hell are you talking about?
oh well
my $.05
Nar, just noting the similarities in the names, that's all. Hell, after my comment I checked out the HOWTO again to see if I could have a shot at it now that I've bothered to go to XF4. :)
Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum viditur.
Poop. You know, I forgot about that. That's exactly the sort of shoddy fact-checking that's gonna get me fired one of these days.
(Actually, SKB/GSK is a huge employer of tech folks in this area of PA. I really should know this.)
Uh, no. GNOME 1.2 has been/is the version of GNOME in woody/sid. Helix GNOME is based on GNOME 1.2, hence your confusion.
That's actually sort of a nice, off-beat, off-kilter, etc etc. name.
...
...
Ximian? Lunacy. Sheer Lunacy. Ximian would be a bad name *anyway* (sounds a little like perhaps a gaming company, maybe it would work for that), but "Helix Code" was the greatest name in recent computer industry history! Helix Code embodied many cool things -- good logo, clever word play which extended into the name of the product Evolution
Ximian? "Hi. We're apelike, but we can't spell. Would you like us to install some software for you? No. Yes, of course we're serious."
Oh well.
I hope they do well, I do I do I do! But whoever thought of that name needs to atone publically for it. Miguel, please say you were sleeping at this meeting, or in the bathroom or something
simon
"Hey Carlito, r'membah me? Benny Blanco from the Bronx!"
Go to ebay.com . Click on the "Antiques" category, then the "economic fallout" subcategory, and click on "dotcom clearing house". There will be approximately 2,938,032,238 belly-up dotcoms there. Search for "open" AND "source" AND "helix" AND "code" AND "linux" and "GNOME" to narrow the choices down to approximately 2,300,323,232. From there, click on the "mascots" drop-down menu, scroll down through "jumping man" "happy runner" "skydiver" and so on, and about 281 scrolled pages through, between "monsters" and "gazelle" should be a selection titled "spidermonkey". Double click that, then click on the 543rd item on the following page. Here, you will be able to buy helixcode's old domain name and identification. Read the fine print, because in doing so you will learn that the only assets you gain are the domain name and company identification, and you will be assuming all of helixcode's tax burden for the year 2000.
...this just in: we've spoken Miguel de Icaza personally who has denied this vicuous hoax. Reportedly, Helix will continue to be the name, they didn't really mean it.
translation: the slashdot audience hates the name, we can just claim it a hoax and keep the old name.... keep thinking of a better one.
Or, is this just to compete with Xaero - upon startx the little monkey will do a backflip and shoot you with his rail gun....
- passion
What genius thought of that?
the same one that came up with "verizon," i bet.
--saint----
Helix Move; Helix Vista; Helix Tea; Helix Width; Helix Pop; Helix Align; Helix Open; Helix Order; Helix Visual; Helix Range; Helix Power; Helix Bone; Helix Eve; Helix Desk; Helix Build...
Any of the above would have to be unique and distinctive because the combination of "Helix" and any other term would be sufficient to avoid confusion with other current trademarks. Moreover, Helix and another term would not result in a dilution dispute because no trademark with the term 'Helix' is famous and distinctive. For these reasons, the Helix Code attorney may have went to the extreme.
Anyone notice a trend with these name changes? They get less and less pronouncable with each iteration.
Examples:
DivX (pronouncable) -> 3ivX (WHAT THE HELL?)
Sunsite (pronouncable) -> Metalab (pronouncable) -> ibiblio (Eye Bible Oh? Eye Bibley-Oooh? Ih Bible Oh?)
Helix (pronouncable, even sounds cool) -> Ximian (only thing I can think of is monkeys)
Can we continually fork each release of Ximian and name it Helix again?
The faq states that the name change is to 'provide trade mark protection for our work'. Does it means that the previous name didn't?
I thought a name change would cause quite some confusion, 'Helix' do sound more generic and is prbably easily marketable... Ximian is more of the of a word play. One wonders if that name would roll off the tongue of the customers easily or the audiences that HelixCode is pitching its services to.
Not an individual, but a company called Lexicon, I quote from CNET (this was the first reference to them I could find)
They are the ones responsible for this weird name trend, I can't seem to find their website though, can anyone help me out?
"Me and my girl named bimbo . . . limbo . . . spam" - Captain Beefheart.
CrapFlinger.com
You'll notice the monkey logo now shows the arms in opposition to the previous pose. A clod of brown decay projected into the ether.
While our software is open source, and we encourage you to share and redistribute it, trademark protection means that you know where your software is coming from.
Are they saying that they want to own the code now? Why wouldn't I trust another source? It's just a diff away.
Dancin Santa
From the FAQ:
How do you say Ximian?
ZIM-ee-un, to rhyme with "simian."
This is incorrect. The correct pronunciation (read slowly):
St-oooooooo-pid.
The best way to accelerate a windows box is at 9.8 meters per second square.
That's the stupidest name I ever heard. What genius thought of that?
(It's not flamebait; it's my opinion.)
signed,
a Helix Gnome user
sweet, now there'll be a new t-shirt for history of technology told in t-shirts...
:-P ]
and just when i was about to buy a helix code... t-shirt from thinkgeek
[in case i didn't say t-shirt enough: t-shirt, t-shirt, t-shirt, t-shirt, t-shirt
my $.05
I'm confiscating their crack pipes!
I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?
Nat and I arrived to the name "Helix Code" (which was the name under which we incorporated our "International GNOME Support" company) after much debate.
The project began By the end of the summer we were still using IGS as our name, and we had been talking to a lot of people about IGS. Although we did not like the name, and we started looking for a new one.
Nat had picked up the name Hopscotch, which I did not like. The name also had problems because some company owned the trademark for the name, so we had to look for another one. The debate for the name had created so many constraints that we were uncapable of agreeing to the suggestions that the other one did.
Eventually, we came up with two lists of suggestions, and Nat said `Ok, remove the ones you dont hate from my list, and I will do the same to yours'.
And we ended up with two empty lists.
So we were in this Evolution kind of mood (because of our product, and our recent interest in evolution), and Nat suggested finally `what about Code Helix?' and given our previous frustration, we quickly agreed on it. We later that day changed our minds, as we thought that Code Helix would make people think `They do developer tools' (I do not remember what was the thought process that followed here), but we changed the name to `Helix Code'.
Now, this was not a final name, it was just a temporary name that we would use to incorporate the company, and we would change it as soon as possible. Neither Nat nor I liked the name originally, so every time we told a friend "We are starting a company!" when the question about the name came in, we would explain for five minutes why it was not such a great name and so on.
We began the work to find a new name almost in march 2000, when we were told by our lawyers that it would be very hard to avoid other companies to produce Helix products (like this complete copy of Helix Code that is not associated with us: Helix Code UK).
A temporary name that Jacob liked was "Loolix Bode" which was what the ATT 411 service guessed when we called for information about the company once.
The process of the name change had been going for a number of months and many names were suggested. Both Nat and I experimented extreme frustration and lack of imagination after countless meetings to change the name. Jacob to this day calls the company "Loolix Bode 2000". And Ian still calls the company "Mr. Rupert's Quality Software Group" (mr rupert being the Helix mascot).
After a year, I am very attached to Helix Code, but the name and products we would produce would be pretty much unprotectable, and there would be no guarantee to customers that they were purchasing software or services from us. And too many companies already had Helix-prefixed products that were in similar domains.
There were a lot of nice sounding names, and various names we scanned from various countries, towns, cultures, languages, but most of the ones I liked were at least taken on the DNS.
There are even more details to the story, but they are quite boring.
The Ximian name fits nicely with our monkey logo and with our monkey culture and with the evolutionary theme that has been in the company since we started it.
Best wishes,
Miguel.
In a related story, Siemens announced that it would be changing its name to Xiemens. Also, Smith-Kline-Beecham will become Xmith-Kline-Beecham, Sony will become Xony, and this reporter, formerly known by the name Sammy Baby, will become Xammy Baby. All of the aforementioned organizations also announced plans to introduce new logos with lowercase letters, sans-serif fonts, and neat swooshes, kinda like the Nike logo.
MA MA MA MASK
MASK! Always riding hot on Venom's trail
Come see the laser rays (something something)
I'm pretty sure that's it but it's been years, and much of my memory lies in the bottom of a pint mug...
'EVERYTHING FOR ONE LOW PRICE'
Karma dropping faster than a whore's panties on valentines day.
Ximian -> naimiX -> Name Ex / X
It is a metareference to the fact that they had to change the name.
Or I read too much Internet.
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Men with no respect for life must never be allowed to control the ultimate instruments of death.
GW Bu
Sure, it's a horrible name. But so are Pentium, Inspiron, Duron, Inprise, and all the m/.+ent$/ names.
BUT WE GET USED TO THEM and eventually we can say them and spell them without hardly thinking about it.
They'll do fine.
fyi, English is a Germanic language
God Fucking Damnit
Oddly enough, there's a well known naming corporation called A Hundred Monkeys. You have to wonder. Simian conspiracy?
I can't imagine what the person who thought of this name was thinking at the time. What a stupid stupid choice, "Ximian" .. geezus, shame to Helix. shame.
I bet this name choice will impact users.. noone wants to use a desktop with the name "Frilly Red Panty GNOME", Ximian is worse.
Ximian Gnome doesn't sound as cool as Helix Gnome. Also "Zimian" was confusingly similar to the KDE team's beverage of choice for coding (sorry couldn't resist a KDE crack).
On an unrelated note Ximian is a REALLY stupid name while Helix Code was actually kind of cool...
.technomancer
.technomancer
But could this change be the thing hodling the Debian project from including Helixcode Gnome in their Distro?? According to the list there was some copyright issues....
Gorkman