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dsabanin

I just googled Mastodon, and I think you're right. Now I'm going to go tweet about it.

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Even when 'google' as a verb was brand new, I don't remember it sounding awkward.

The difference is that "google" and "tweet" are something the general public is used to, whereas "toot" is not.

and "go ogle" actually has the approximate meaning that "google" took on as a verb (phrase).

I don't find “to toot” sound any stranger than “to tweet”.

"toot" means "fart" where I'm from. Imagine a social network where they referred to posts by users as "farts".

"Your fart was shared by 230 of your followers."

"This fart is NSFW"

"This fart has been promoted"

"Pin this fart to the top of your feed"

It does seem like a poor choice of words. Tweeting on the other hand didn't have a negative connotation until Twitter became what it is today and gave it a negative connotation.

fun fact: that was kind of the plot of a letterkenny episode, called "Fartbook", from season 1. it's really good!

https://letterkenny.fandom.com/wiki/Fartbook

That’s a Texas-sized 10-4 buddy!

There is a concept, on forums, of shitposting.

There are common expressions such as "chatting shit" for unverified speculation or "shooting the shit" to mean talking about nothing and everything.

I suspect most of the content on Mastodon, like twitter, is shit. The choice of words seems appropriate.

Toot is a sophomoric word for passing flatulence in the US. So hearing “to toot” summons the mental connection of farting which any marketing person on here will probably tell you people don’t want to be associated with their product.

Indeed. This isn't a question of maturity as some rather bizarre comments in that issue claim. The word is just phonetically and pragmatically asinine. Pick a word that isn't associated with comical bodily noises like "choochoo". Would anyone join a service where you "choochoo" at people? It sounds stupid and infantile. "Tweet" is bad enough. "Toot" goes further.

In the US, “toot” is not only a word used for something you might do with a horn. It also means “a fart.”

A hilariously bad name if your humor is like that of a child. (Mine is)

My wife, exasperated at our two teenaged boys, asked me if men ever outgrow fart jokes. I laughed, said maybe, then asked her to pull my finger.

Though when primed with the word Mastodon, I did think of the large trunk and a cartoon-like trumpeting of that trunk. Right after thinking how my grandmother would call her farts toots.

Fart jokes have always been found funny at all age and maturity levels. Even Martin Luther made fart jokes:

"When the argument that the Christian is without the law and above the law doesn’t help, I instantly chase him away with a fart."

Don't forget Mozart. He even went further with his shit jokes (it was a family affair).[0]

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mozart_and_scatology

The oldest known recorded joke, from ancient Sumeria, is a fart joke.

A horn played badly also sounds like farting, so perhaps that's where the second meaning came from.

I actually just finished twatting about it. Talk about naming things in a cringey - these folks should think through all the verb tenses first.

The past form would be tweeted, no?

For a while I believe that there was a push by twitter for it to be "twittered" but it's a made up word so we can craft our own tenses. To most english speakers tweet having a past tense of twat is perfectly reasonable (unless you're british but enjoy how quickly you speeded over this comment). Companies use BS word creation as a way to get around trademark collision and validity concerns but I strongly dislike the habit of making new words up so you can get an easy registration. I think it's perfectly legitimate to counter their BS with our own BS shaming them over their easy out and I'd encourage other folks to follow in suit. So, until the end of time, the name of that console is the X-Bone.

When you're naming a thing you should be careful and deliberate in your process - generally coincidences will work against you, though you might get lucky and pull a Kit-Kat[1].

1. https://thediplomat.com/2019/08/the-kit-kat-in-japan-a-trans...

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