Sun Communicators' Group Blog

You Googled My Blog?!?!?!

...But all you found was a Wiki?

A few years ago, the title to this blog entry would have been complete nonsense to us. 

But with the web, comes a lot of new words and phrases.  Words that are being embedded into our everyday language -- some words are even universal and understood to mean the same in many different languages (that in itself is amazing!)  

Google is a good example - especially since it now means so many things (it's a noun, it's a verb, it's a brand, etc), when just a few years ago,  the only reference to google was for phrases like "googly eyes." 

Another example is "Technoceleb" coined by one of Sun's most popular bloggers, MaryMary.

There's an interesting article in a recent Business Week called Keeping Up with the Web's New Lingo. 

It's a quick read.   I find it interesting how all of these new words are creating havoc for so many people -- including the editors at Merriam-Webster (the dictionary people.)  Figuring out which words will stick around (and if they are even spelled correctly!) must be a very stressful job these days.

As a communicator, I pay attention to these kinds of changes in our culture - it helps me to be better at my job and make the right recommendations to the executives whom I support. 

As a recreational Scrabble player, keeping on top of these new words can make a big difference in a winning score.  (and the best thing, a lot of these new words include letter tiles with high scores!)

BLOG = 7 points; VLOG = 8 points, WIKI = 11 points, CYBRARIAN = 16 points (DOGBLOG = 11 points!!)

Question: Can I really use these words in Scrabble (let alone in real-life communications)?  Are they valid?
Answer:  It depends!  Am I using the 'reference dictionary' (from pre-Web1.0 days) that is stored with the Scrabble board in my closet or am I using a browser to use Merriam's online dictonary?!?

Woohoo!  CYBRARIAN on a triple word square!!   I'll confirm that one online the next time I'm challenged.

Posted at 12:28PM Apr 17, 2007 by sandyb in Sun  |  Comments[0]