Pronouncing 'Linux'

[shad0w]

I hear linux mispronounced ALL the time and it annoys the hell out of me. I've heard Linus Torvalds say Linux himself and it's pronounce Lin (as in 'tin') - ux. There is no long 'i' :evil:

[jwb]

I agree.

From the man himself:
http://www.paul.sladen.org/pronunciation/torvalds-says-linux.mp3

Now, how the heck do you say "vi"? ;-)

[jdong]

I agree.

From the man himself:
http://www.paul.sladen.org/pronunciation/torvalds-says-linux.mp3

Now, how the heck do you say "vi"? ;-)
I like saying the letters, V-I. I've heard people call it vi (rhyme with try)

Now, Vim is just pronounced like 'kim'....

[jdodson]

I agree.

From the man himself:
http://www.paul.sladen.org/pronunciation/torvalds-says-linux.mp3

Now, how the heck do you say "vi"? ;-)

i was looking for that few years ago and couldnt find it. thanks!

[piedamaro]

Mmmh... IIRC one of the first FUD from microsoft was: don't trust LIE-nooks beacause it lies to you!

[zenwhen]

lurmackes

[Magneto]

V I vee eye

V I V I ohhh
linux pronounced ph-uck-u-bill-gates

[jwb]

I like saying the letters, V-I. I've heard people call it vi (rhyme with try)

Now, Vim is just pronounced like 'kim'....

Wow! Was I ever wrong! I was pronouncing it "six".

Hahahahahahaha! :-)

[TravisNewman]

It took me forever to get one of my friends to stop saying Lye-nucks.

You say po-tay-to
and I say po-tah-to
You say lye-nucks
and I say lin-ucks.

[mr_ed]

Listen again. It's more like Lee-nux.

[TravisNewman]

Well yes, but I think that's because of dialect. He probably also pronounces Windows kinda like Weendows.

[oddabe19]

V I vee eye

V I V I ohhh
linux pronounced ph-uck-u-bill-gates

++

[HungSquirrel]

++
;

[Karnaugh]

Well, everyone knows its pronounced Debian :grin:

Personally I think Lie-Nux sounds less geekishly annoying to my ears. Really it doesn't matter though.

(Hi, by the way. Decided to see what Ubuntu is all about - some might recognise me...)

[TravisNewman]

Well, everyone knows its pronounced Debian :grin:

Personally I think Lie-Nux sounds less geekishly annoying to my ears. Really it doesn't matter though.

(Hi, by the way. Decided to see what Ubuntu is all about - some might recognise me...)
That brings up an interesting point. I think I read that Debian is named after Deb and Ian, the creators, right?

So is the Deb- in Debian pronounced as the deb in deborah? I've heard a lot of people (maybe including some on techtv) pronounce it Deebeean

[Karnaugh]

Good question.

I have a bad habit of just pronounce things phonetically as I see them, in the typical Durban - South African way at least, D - buy - ann. Most seem pronounce it Deb - Ian, like you said, and that is what the Debian mailing list archives indicate as well.

Another one is SuSE. Apparently its pronounced "Soo sah".

Someone should make a list of these :) I don’t think anyone would/should look "stupid" for miss pronouncing them though, unless it sounded ridiculous.

[TravisNewman]

Really? Hmm. I always thought it was just soose. You'd think phonetics would play more of a part wouldn't you? *LOL*

[Magneto]

there are many of these issues
like SQL - pronounced sequel or spelled out S Q L
deb and ian at least i was right there

soosah :|

[Karnaugh]

A quote from an SQL history page (http://www.itworld.com/nl/db_mgr/05142001/)


By the end of the System/R project, IBM had implemented a language that supported System/R's multi-table queries and multiple-user access called the Structured English Query Language (SEQUEL). The name later was shortened to Structured Query Language (SQL). Today, we still pronounce the abbreviation as "sequel" because of these early roots.

A very interesting subject indeed :)

[fng]

isnt it soe-zee ?

[Magneto]

A quote from an SQL history page (http://www.itworld.com/nl/db_mgr/05142001/)



A very interesting subject indeed :)
Ever tried to tell a recruiter you know "sequel" SQL and all they keep saying is S.Q.L.? lol a multifaceted debate brought on by ignorance and excessive use of abbreviations

look at this discussion of SQL http://discuss.fogcreek.com/joelonsoftware/default.asp?cmd=show&ixPost=62158


for some reason GUI being called gooey annoys me

[dataw0lf]

I got in an argument on teamspeak with some guy over the pronunciation of postgreSQL (POST GRES equel/Q-L). It lasted nearly an hour.
dataw0lf

[Magneto]

I got in an argument on teamspeak with some guy over the pronunciation of postgreSQL (POST GRES equel/Q-L). It lasted nearly an hour.
dataw0lf
im glad no one ever brought that up in convo - post greyskull? like the castle from he-man lol

[dataw0lf]

Magneto, offtopic, but everytime I see your avatar I shudder.
;)

dataw0lf

[Magneto]

Magneto, offtopic, but everytime I see your avatar I shudder.
;)

dataw0lf
pirates are scary

[dataw0lf]

I was talking more on the lines of Maddox (www.thebestpageintheuniverse.net), who, unfortunately, shares an ISP with me.
dataw0lf

[TravisNewman]

I was talking more on the lines of Maddox (www.thebestpageintheuniverse.net), who, unfortunately, shares an ISP with me.
dataw0lf
It sounds like there's a funny story behind that ;)

[Magneto]

I was talking more on the lines of Maddox (www.thebestpageintheuniverse.net), who, unfortunately, shares an ISP with me.
dataw0lf
why is it unfortunate? so are you in the great salt lake state too? lol id be permanently shuddering if I lived in utah
while I dont agree with some of maddox's stuff 98% is on point and alot of it will have me in tears laughing so hard

[dataw0lf]

why is it unfortunate? so are you in the great salt lake state too? lol id be permanently shuddering if I lived in utah
while I dont agree with some of maddox's stuff 98% is on point and alot of it will have me in tears laughing so hard
Oh, I appreciate his humor. It's just that everytime someone sees my IP they ask me if I know Maddox.
dataw0lf

[HungSquirrel]

Another one is SuSE. Apparently its pronounced "Soo sah".
Don't laugh too hard, but I pronounce SuSE like the name Suzy. ;)

[dataw0lf]

Don't laugh too hard, but I pronounce SuSE like the name Suzy. ;)
Heh, so do I.
I know a guy who actually pronounces PHP as 'pip' I have no idea where the hell he got this from.
dataw0lf

[Jspired]

I was at a conference last year, OS related, and the main speaker said this: "The word Linux is pronounced "Li-nucks." I personally don't care how you pronounce, as long as you're using and bettering it."

I thought that summed it up quite nicely.

[BWF89]

I pronounce it: Line-nex...

[zenwhen]

Half the time I pronounce it Limux because of a inside joke between some friends of mine and I. :(

[piedamaro]

Half the time I pronounce it Limux because of a inside joke between some friends of mine and I. :(
Luckily here in Italy, everyone pronounces it correctly, because in Italian the natural spell is "lee-nooks". Anyway, you always find some "I do speak English" wannabe that says "lie-nooks" ;)

[kiddo]

This is the same in French language :) everyone pronounces it correctly. I guess most latin languages can do the same. In English, however, you never know how to pronounce until a guru told you how ;) sorry for digging this old post

[TravisNewman]

Wow, its been a while since I've seen this one!

this is quite an oldie, but I loved this thread in its heyday.

[skoal]

It took me forever to get one of my friends to stop saying Lye-nucks. [...] and I say lin-ucks.

Me too. Although some of my ******* buddies like to throw an 's' in there. RMS has his work cut out for him too. I really enjoy his "new" (GNU) appilcations.

Hats off to the Linus mp3 link. That was such sweet music to my ears in the early RedHat install days. I knew I had my soundblaster working when 'ole Linus crackled through my speakers.

[TravisNewman]

Where do they throw the "S" in there skoal?

Slinux? Lisnux?

EDIT: OOOOHHHH LinSux. Sorry, I'm slow.

[benplaut]

Where do they throw the "S" in there skoal?

Slinux? Lisnux?

EDIT: OOOOHHHH LinSux. Sorry, I'm slow.
i was wondering that, too :) ... i guess LinSux is the only way it works...

[somuchfortheafter]

funny the novell guys i talked to said it was S U S E ... thats it... also i pronouce debian as deb...ian mainly because it sounds better to me and i dont know the real way to say it... so how do you sai ipod jk

[TravisNewman]

Debian is named after the founders, Deborah and Ian. So I'd assume it sounds like Deb-Ian.
Deb-ee-an.

[Sionide]

I'm English so it's like this;

Linn-ucks (not Lye-nucks, I hate that!)
Soo-zee or Suzy
Deb-ian (not Dee-be-an)
GUI, is Gooey, sorry :P

Oo-bun-too

[nautilus]

In the office here we say "Rhinux" as in 'rhino' and 'linux' put together, but with a hard H sound... almost like, a throaty spit. sometimes, it's appended with 'x0r', to become: Rhinucksxor ('rih-nucks-zor')

Fun times.

EDIT: One more: "DAEMON" is actually pronounced... well, "Demon".

I still say "Day-mon", and I'm aware of the correct way of saying Debian, yet, I still say "Dee-bee-an". Reminds me of 'deviant', too.

[james_mad]

This is one confusing thread. I seem to pronounce linux the same way that Linus guy does, so I am happy \\:D/

[kiddo]

funny the novell guys i talked to said it was S U S E ... thats it... also i pronouce debian as deb...ian mainly because it sounds better to me and i dont know the real way to say it... so how do you sai ipod jk
As panickedThumb said (urgh, I'm too late! :)), debian is pronounced because of the name of the founder, and his wife, Deborah. Here's what you can squeeze out of Wikipedia:
Debian was founded in 1993 by Ian Murdock (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Murdock), then a student at Purdue University (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purdue_University), who wrote the Debian Manifesto (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debian_Manifesto) which called for the creation of a Linux distribution to be maintained in an open manner, in the spirit of Linux and GNU. He chose the name by combining the first name of his then-girlfriend (now wife) Debra with his own first name "Ian", forming the portmanteau (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portmanteau) "Debian", pronounced as the corresponding syllables of these names are in American English (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_English): /dɛbˈiːjən/.

And for the Novell guys, thanks for the info :) I was pronouncing Su-say (not Susie, or Sue...XD or worse, like my uncle pronounces it, Sooze ^^)
For the explanation, I believe it's mostly because they want to keep pronouncing it like in the old days. I don't really know how to say this. Hmm... SUSE Linux was known as S.u.S.E. Linux then, as some of you may know. It's an acronym, for "Software und System Entwicklung" (Software and system development).



In the office here we say "Rhinux" as in 'rhino' and 'linux' put together, but with a hard H sound... almost like, a throaty spit. sometimes, it's appended with 'x0r', to become: Rhinucksxor ('rih-nucks-zor')Haha, I just tried this, and it sounded like a coughing fox. Real loud. lol. Or more like a yapping. RHHHHHHinux!

[23meg]

in the movie Revolution OS (http://www.revolution-os.com/), where the Stallman vs. Torvalds thing is quite forefront, this subject comes up, and Torvalds is asked how he pronounces it. he says it's always been "lee-nix" for him, and everyone around him, and there's no doubt to it, this is the way it has to be. seconds later we hear Stallman pronounce it stressedly as "lee-nux" :-? ;-)

[Brunellus]

Pronunciation. So tiresome!

Yes, I say "lye-nucks," since Lucy van Pelt's smarter younger brother is not generally called "LEE-nus".

LIN-ucks may be more 'correct,' (whatever that means) but has this unpleasant sound and feel in my mouth--kind of like spitting out phlegm after I've had a coughing fit.

'course, as other people on the thread have noted, if it's in Latin, it'd be LIN-ucks, since the name is, LIN-us, after all. Which got me to thinking--what would have happened if the originator had a different name? Chrysogenux*? h'mmm.

*(the name of St. Chrysogenus also occurs in the same Litany where St. Linus' name is often mentioned: Linus, Cletus, Clemens, Sixtus, Cyprian, Cornelius, Crysogenus...)

[TravisNewman]

have you ever heard Linus Torvalds pronounce his name? His accent makes it sound like "lee-noos" so I imagine its "lee-nucks" but sped up, so it SOUNDS like "lin-ucks"

[Fidelitas]

According to a gent I know who's been with SuSE nearly from the start, it's pronounced zoo-zuh. I guess S's in german are pronounced like Z's. Cheers!

[TechSonic]

(LA)IN(UH)KS
Linux

Most people I hear say it as (LI)NU(KS)

[fuscia]

torvalds pronounces it 'LEEnucks'. assuming that's a combination of unix and his name, the proper americanization of it would be a combination of however you pronounce his name in combination with however you pronounce unix. imltho, if your meaning is made clear, pronunciation doesn't matter.

[endersshadow]

Per LinuxWorld the past couple of years:

Linux = Lin ux
MySQL = my es queue ell
PostgreSQL = postgres queue ell
Debian = deb ee an (though, I still say deebeean, only because it just makes more sense to me)

What really got my goat was when I was listening to a project about Sun, and the guy giving it says, "Solaris uses Nome as the GUI, and it's released under the GPL, or new public license." It's gah-nome and gah-new. I'll even let the fact that he didn't cite GPL as the GNU General Public License slide...ugh.

And I can't bring myself to call GUI gooey....

[fuscia]

am i the only one who refers to URL as an 'earl'?

[Sirin]

Hello, this is Sirin, and I pronounce Ubuntu, "Oo-BUN-TOO". :D

[dabear]

Hm, why do everybody pronounce GNU and GNOME with a soft «g» (gah-new as an example)? I've always said Gnew, with a hard «g» sound.

[endersshadow]

Hm, why do everybody pronounce GNU and GNOME with a soft «g» (gah-new as an example)? I've always said Gnew, with a hard «g» sound.

Dunno, but that's always been the way that I've heard it pronounced at conferences and the like :-|

[Piggah]

I'd like to know how 'Ubuntu' is pronounced. xD

I don't know if it's 'oo' or 'yoo' or 'uh' :(

[endersshadow]

I'd like to know how 'Ubuntu' is pronounced. xD

I don't know if it's 'oo' or 'yoo' or 'uh' :(

oo-boon-too is the official pronunciation. If done quickly, it sounds like "oo-bun-too"

[Piggah]

That's how I thought it was, I was just never sure. :P

[skierkegaard]

Linux in all the college communities I've been around is two short i's like 'li-nicks.'

But as for Ubuntu, I was at a church Youth gathering, with the theme "Ubuntu". They taught us to say 'ooboontoo'. I have no tolerence for any short u's like "bun" in there.

[DirtDawg]

What really got my goat was when I was listening to a project about Sun, and the guy giving it says, "Solaris uses Nome as the GUI, and it's released under the GPL, or new public license." It's gah-nome and gah-new. I'll even let the fact that he didn't cite GPL as the GNU General Public License slide...ugh.


Gah-New makes sense, I've always said that. But Gah-Nome!? When you cut something, do you use a Kah-Nife? ;) I always say Linux with an "i" like "lift", but I also pronounce the "u" as a sort of "i". Linix, I suppose. Also, I pronounce "vi" as "vee". I always assumed these were correct pronunciation. Now I have doubts.

[skierkegaard]

Someone said that to me yesterday:

him: What text editor are you using, "vee"?
me: What? Oh, V-I?

[picpak]

I always pronounce everything wrong.

Linux - Lye-nucks
SQL - S-Q-L
SuSE - like Dr. Suess
Debian - Deebeean
Ubuntu - Oobuntoo
Gnu - New, Gnome - Gnome...anything where the G's pronounced as gah

I always thought gooey was a joke name for GUI, I didn't know it was the real one :???:

[xequence]

lin (like win) ux (like pucks)