Geekspeak Baffles Web Users

An anonymous reader writes to mention a BBC article on the technology buying public's continued frustration with 'geek speak'. Despite ever-increasing adoption of high tech gadgets in first-world nations, the terms used to describe what these new toys do often elude the people who buy them. From the article: "Acronyms in particular foxed users. 75% of online Britons did not know that VOD stands for video-on-demand, while 68% were unaware that personal video recorders were more commonly referred to as PVRs. Millions of people keep in touch via instant messaging but some 57% of online Brits said they did not know that the acronym for it was IM. 'The technology industry is perhaps the most guilty of all industries when it comes to love of acronyms,' said Mr Burmaster. "

Comments

OMG fp

[Anonymous Coward]

first fp...cool.

What a Bunch of n00bs

[omegashenron]

There are already too many n00bs who own a computer and are connected to the internet. Perhaps what is rather needed is not us changing for them but a "geek test" where in order to qualify for internet access you must pass a series of tests/exams like you do in order to get a radio license.

Until this time, the internet will continue to be littered with crap to entertain the vast majority of people who should not be connected.