How to say #phpbbmod?

[webmacster87]

On phpBB Weekly #021, when I mentioned the MOD Authors Convention happening in #phpbbmod, I pronounced it "pound phpbbmod", because in the United States, the # key on a telephone is named "pound." A few hours later in IRC, a number of team members got on my case because they said it was supposed to be "hash phpbbmod", and that supposedly everyone calls it that. To be honest, IRC is usually something that people type about, and if they're every talking about it, they refer to it as though someone already knows about IRC and don't have to get too detailed about the channel.

Anyway, I made fun of their insistence on proper naming on the next phpBB Weekly episode, and we've cross-referenced it a few times as a running joke whenever the team members offer a correction to something that I say that is relatively insignificant to the point I'm making. Very recently, in an announcement on the phpBB Weekly blog, I typed "forum software" and had some team members get on me for not calling it "board software."

Anyway, I'd like to ask you to share your opinion. What should #phpbbmod be called, or does any of this really matter?

[Forty-Two]

The people that were telling you that it was hash instead of pound need to get over themselves. Either works just fine.

[Sniper_E]

On my cell phone, or any phone for that matter.... when I call my bank or any number with an automated answering service, it tells you to enter your number followed by the pound key. I say pound = #

[John Hjorth]

Hi Douglas,

A quite funny question about the way to phrase something becomes - in my opinion - quite important for understanding the podcast, because of different media. Why not on the air call it "channel phpbbmod"? - Everybody on IRC knows that "#" is "channel", or they find out under first time hook up.

[webmacster87]

It's hard, because on the internet, many of us have developed a new jargon that is purely written down and would hardly ever be used in real life. How many times do you literally say "lol" or "rofl" or "omg" out loud? The #channel debate is similar to the correct pronunciation of things like MySQL or WordPress MU (which I'm told is pronounced "mew", not "emm you" or "mooo").

[Highway of Life]

They jumped all over me for saying "Sequal" instead of "Ess Que El" (S.Q.L.)
But upon further research, I discovered that both methods are equally correct to pronounce.
SQL was originally SEQUAL but they shortened it later to SQL for legal reasons. -- Most programmers and database engineers still call it Sequal, but both methods of pronunciation are widely used.

[A_Jelly_Doughnut]

The MySQL teams insist upon calling it My-ess-queue-elle. Microsoft produces what is commonly known as "Sequel Server."

I'm told that PostgreSQL is pronounced like this: Postgres - queue - elle

I've also heard someone who could not define "RDBMS" call it My-Squill (that's like the old pen with an S sound added to the beginning)

Really depends on what you are familiar with. I've always called it pound phpBB, but a music person might call it sharp phpBB, and a computer scientist (or a Brit?) might call it hash phpBB.

[Sniper_E]

I thing you're all nuts with coming up with "THE" way to pronounce a word a certain manor.

This word can be pronounced differently....
Some say tomato and some say tomato. They are both considered right.
This word can be pronounced differently....
Some say envelope and some say envelope. They are both considered right.

If you told me hash phpbbmod, I wouldn't know what you were saying to me.
I have never heard of that word for #

[CoC Chris]

£ <-- That is a pound.

# <-- That is a hash.

I'm not a computer scientist or a Brit - I'm English -

[Waleed]

They jumped all over me for saying "Sequal" instead of "Ess Que El" (S.Q.L.)

I've always pronounced it the way its written... SQL... "skull" without the "U"...

£ <-- That is a pound.
# <-- That is a hash.

I agree with this. I've never heard of a # being called pound...
A cousin of mine calls it the tic-tac-toe-thingie...

So I guess people will pronounce the way they want to, and that won't necessarily be the correct way to do it.