I’ve been thinking lately how the internet seems to have brought a candidness to business that I don’t see paralleled elsewhere. It seems that the Age of the Internet has become in parts an Age of Sillyness. Especially when it comes to company names, identification, and other things involving names.
Companies like Google and Yahoo for instance. Two of the most influential companies online today, publicly traded and all. I can’t think right now of any companies before who have had such strange names and have not been niche market type companies. What about HotBot? That admittedly didn’t last long in the limelight though… or BigFoot. How about Red Hat Linux, or anything Linux really. What about Skype? Napster even.
Similar is accepted forms of ID. I called Xbox Live Customer Support a few days ago to cancel my membership. I was immediately asked what my gamertag was; I felt a little funny having to say - and spell - RancorDeath. But it could have been worse! Ipwnnewbs, for instance, or W0lfT1t$. Or any of these:
ViewtifulVirus
Splinter21
bendak
DazedNConfuzed
GrumpyMicrobe
sinisterDonkey
Divine Tyrant
StormHawk
CureYouAllMen
WastedAdvance
SittingDuck85
Clawgrip
DJ Doubledown
Frankie
I could go on forever.
What made it acceptable for an adult male to say RancorDeath to another adult male, without one of them laughing? The Internet I say… and maybe it was a good thing too.
Dude, that is so way true…WEIRD!!
Our generation is confusing…or maybe we are just confused…I don’t know, but we are definately silly on that of the web…we usually wouldn’t be recognized in personality when on the webster…yup, it is morphing and CONFUSING us I SAY!!!
You mind rocks!
;o) B1
paahahaha sinisterDonkey is the best!!
whatever I’m silly with or without the internet. i love you puddley-poo.
muah guess who?
I guess… the wife!
why’d you cancel the membership?
**whip**
Because, idiot, it’s too expensive and our internet is too slow.
Hmmmmm…I don’t think it’s necessarily just the internet. You have to keep in mind, a) the internet is a very geeky thing, mostly, and geeks are silly, b) “Gen Y”’s population on the internet has *exploded* in recent years, they use it for all kinds of communication, and we all know teenagers are silly, and c) the internet economy has always prided itself on being different than all the other business models; it was built by renegades who set out to create a revolution in the way we do things; so how do you differentiate yourself from the “shackles” of the very serious, very dry corporate world? You name your company Yahoo instead of Search Engine Systems Limited. Or Amazon instead of Barnes and Noble.
Tangent: the “niche” market thing is quickly disappearing. Google is getting into everything these days, and Yahoo owns Flickr and Konfabulator, Ebay bought Skype and Amazon sells tons of stuff. Some of those crazy named companies are definitely not so niche anymore.
The anonymity (sp?) of the web allows for people to act silly/stupid (and one might argue, sometimes more openly and honestly) when there’s no fear of a real world rejection or admonishment. Indeed, you could even say you receive validation because you’ll eventually meet other people who don’t think you’re stupid but actually think you’re a comic genius.
Another thing to consider is the speed of e-mail and instant messaging. We think nothing of forwarding on silly little videos or flash animations, which has given rise, especially recently, to the sickening amount of novelty that’s going around these days, all of it pretty silly.
At any rate, I think it’s telling that you had to give your gamer tag over the phone to a real live person. :) I’m sure it will make all of us gamers think twice before naming our virtual alter egos “Damtura, the Light Bringer”.
Actually, re-reading my argument, I should have started off with “It’s not necessarily the Age of Sillyness”, it’s just the internet that’s silly. The rest of the world is too serious.” :)