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Alphabet's Jigsaw Wants To Explain Tech Jargon To You, Launches Sideways Dictionary (cnet.com)

Posted by msmash on from the sideway-dictionary dept.

It might sound obvious, but the thing about tech is that sometimes it can get really, well, technical. From a report on CNET: So Alphabet wants to help make nitty-gritty tech jargon simpler to explain to the masses. On Tuesday, Jigsaw, a tech incubator owned by Google's parent company, launched a website called the Sideways Dictionary that takes jargon and puts it into terms normal people would understand. Jigsaw partnered with the Washington Post to build the tool.

13 of 66 comments (clear)

  1. Dictionary? by peetm · · Score: 2

    What's that?

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    @peetm
  2. Re:Link is ? by tehcyder · · Score: 2

    Blank page

    Kind of. You're presented with a blank page, it then takes 4 or 5 seconds to load the text "Sideways Dictionary" at the bottom of the page. Not wildly impressed.

    Content seems to be largely snippets worthy of BadAnalogyGuy.

    --
    To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
  3. The jargon file by GuB-42 · · Score: 2

    Anyone else thought about The Jargon File?
    It is not that at all.

  4. So far it sucks. by pecosdave · · Score: 4, Informative

    I went there looking for a geekanese to normie dictionary, instead I find an Urban Dictionary analogy list. I was going to share this with my users, as for now, I think I'll pass.

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    The preceding post was not a Slashvertisement.
    1. Re:So far it sucks. by AmiMoJo · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Indeed.

      Ad Blocking:

      "Itâ(TM)s like vandalizing outdoor posters. A legitimate form of protest against adverts that have invaded public space. Or criminal damage to private property."

      "Itâ(TM)s like fare dodging. If one person dodges their bus fare, it wonâ(TM)t have any great effect on the viability of the service. But if everyone does it, the bus company runs out of money and cancels the service."

      "Itâ(TM)s like music piracy. Some people say ad blocking is to brands what music piracy was to music companies. You can see it as an existential threat, or a wake-up call."

      Ironically I had to disable my ad-blocker to see that. Even without it, I can't seem to log in and add my own definition.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
  5. im sure the redundancy was noticed. by nimbius · · Score: 3, Funny

    internet: we already have this, its called wikipedia, and simple wikipedia. its much more complete and open.
    Alphabet: ah yes well but did you know this version came with a name that was determined by a focus group, and is funded by a team of people who think caviar tastes different on Yachts than it does on private jets?
    internet: but we dont need this...
    Alphabet: Thats what we thought about yacht caviar but that turned out spectacular even though its almost the same as resort caviar.

    --
    Good people go to bed earlier.
  6. Re:Link is ? by AmiMoJo · · Score: 3, Informative

    Doesn't work in Chrome with uBlock and Privacy Badger. Disabled uBlock, could see definitions but could not log in. Gave up.

    Does not load at all on IE10. My work PC won't install IE11 for some reason.

    I have not seen a site this shitty for a while. Normally something at least kinda works.

    --
    const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
    SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
  7. Re:Too many bad analogies by R3d+M3rcury · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Okay, so the idea is that we have these analogies that "regular people" can understand. Then I look at an analogy for "Hackathon"

    It’s like a cosplay convention.

    Okay, let's go look up "cosplay." Nope. Not there.

    So much for "regular people" understanding...

  8. Re:Too many bad analogies by SharpFang · · Score: 2

    It has absolutely dumb algorithm of finding synonyms.

    Asking about LED takes me to "Cryptography."
      "File": "Internet Service Provider"
    "Script":"Backend"
    "WWW": Domain Name Servers.

    It's beyond useless - it's actively harmful.

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    45 5F E1 04 22 CA 29 C4 93 3F 95 05 2B 79 2A B2
  9. Re:Piece of by K.+S.+Kyosuke · · Score: 2

    Well, they already say that IP packets are like postcards, so once you encrypt, you logically can't use IP anymore. Perfectly non-confusing explanations!

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    Ezekiel 23:20
  10. Re:Piece of by pr0fessor · · Score: 4, Insightful

    At this point it's more a joke than anything else... I like the ransomware.

    "It’s like taking a hostage. As the name suggests, it’s a form of kidnapping, where your data is taken hostage (often using a virus) and a ransom demand follows. In the more sophisticated cases, even Liam Neeson can’t help you."

  11. Like the Foldoc? From 1985? by Beeftopia · · Score: 2

    This site: http://foldoc.org/

    Here's a wiki entry about it.

    "What has been will be again,
            what has been done will be done again;
            there is nothing new under the sun." -- Ecclesiastes 1:9

    Goes twice for technology.

  12. Re:These are pretty bad by Hognoxious · · Score: 2

    If your analogy makes them shut up and do what you say it's as correct as it needs to be.

    --
    Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."