What's the Worst Acronym You've Ever Heard?

mmaddox asks: "As a software developer, I've consulted on many projects - projects conceived in the twisted mind of management and marketing and cursed with bizarre, often hysterically funny names. Of course, these names lead to the adoption of the dreaded acronym. Most recently, I've discouraged the name selections of a few clients, in particular, the Private Inline Security System (a silly "personal firewall" - the client didn't even THINK of using an acronym) and Cross-section Heads-Up Digitizer (an engineering bit for roadway construction - anyone remember the movie?). There must be millions of these things out there. What is the worst acronym you've ever had the *ahem* pleasure of dealing with?" And in typical Slashdot fashion, it just wouldn't be the same without taking a dig at Microsoft. If you click here and look at the #2 result (of 44), then you may see one of funniest acronyms I've ever seen come out of the corporate culture. Of course, if you click on that particular link it looks like someone at the Borg have recognized their error and is trying to rewrite history, changing the "tool" into a "utility". God bless the Google cache! If you think you've seen acronyms to beat this one, please share!

Comments

Telephone Network Administration

[battjt]

Telephone Network Administration, but everyone used the acronym without cracking a smile. Of course I laughed out loud on a teleconference. I no longer work there.

Joe

As usual, the military's responsible for this one

[Raetsel]

There are various types of officers in the military... Flag officers, Field Grade officers, etc. The Navy has (in addition to numerous other classifications) LDOs, or Limited Duty Officers.

So, courtesy of the United States Navy's Naval Nuclear Power Training Command (NNPTC), I offer you the...

• Direct Input Limited Duty Officer, or DILDO

I have to assume that they didn't acronym-ize it right off when they chose the name, they aren't that dense. It went into actual use, and there were some affected officers who were genuinely offended by the acronym. It caused the whole title to be changed very quickly.

If we're not limited to tech industry...

[Scooby Snacks]

...then I would have to say that my personal award goes to the USA PATRIOT act, not only for its cumbersome expansion ("Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required To Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism"), but also for calling one of the most un-Constitutional and rights-trampling pieces of legislation in recent years a "patriot".

Moderators, I leave myself at your mercy, but it just had to be said.

Courtesy of Red Dwarf...

[sab39]

Campaign for the Liberation and Integration of Terrifying Organisms and their Rehabilitation Into Society.

WinCE

[Imabug]

Windows Compact Edition
WinCE

From Webster's dictionary
wince: To shrink or start involuntarily, as in pain or distress

Re:And whats the deepest non-recursive one?

[pthisis]

GPCL = GTK Pattern Creation Lab
GTK = Gimp Toolkit (original expansion)
GIMP = GNU Image Manipulation Program
GNU = GNU's not Unix

Re:Hard to beat the military...

[david duncan scott]

"High Mobility Multi-Wheel Vehicle"? Is this so you don't confuse it with the Assault Unicycle?