Avoiding tech jargon
In his New York Times blog David Pogue writes about Tech Terms to Avoid:
Why tech writers use so much jargon, I don’t know. Maybe it’s self-aggrandizement; they want to lord their knowledge over everybody else. Maybe it’s laziness; they can’t be bothered to fish for a plain-English word. Maybe it’s just habit; they spend all day talking shop with other nerds, so they slip into technospeak when they write for larger audiences.
In any case, I’m making available to all, for the first time, my list of pretentious pet-peeve words to avoid. I used to consider plain-English writing a competitive advantage, so I’ve never leaked this list to potential rivals. But at this point, forget it; any tips that might contribute to clearer writing deserve to be free.
I certainly agree with Pogue about the overuse of jargon. But some terms on his list like RAM and USB are so commonly understood that they wouldn’t be on my own list of words to avoid. Also he leaves out buzz words like “mashup” and “cloud” that I think are more likely to leave ordinary home PC users wondering. What are some of your choices for tech terms to avoid?
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I just read the article. I hope he is over 60 (minimum age for curmudgeon posts). I mean, do terms like “the little rectangle doohickey that plugs into your computer” really clarify more than USB? Is he writing for newbies or computer users?