RE: It did happen on a Friday...

[eric -dot- dunn -at- ca -dot- transport -dot- bombardier -dot- com]

Zola <zola -at- zolaweb -dot- com> wrote on 02/24/2004 12:51:44 PM:
> Hmmm.... what about master/servant? That conveys the idea 
> that the second
> "follows the orders" of the first but isn't quite so loaded.

Perhaps. It's certainly the best alternative IMO put forward so far. But, 
it'll be a while until the dictionary changes. And Mirriam-Webster's 
on-line offers no synonyms for Slave when referring to "directly 
responsive" devices.

Seems to me it's the Slavs that should be expressing the most offence.

Main Entry: ser·vant
Pronunciation: 's&r-v&nt
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Old French, from present participle of 
servir
: one that serves others <a public servant>; especially : one that 
performs duties about the person or home of a master or personal employer

Main Entry: 1slave
Pronunciation: 'slAv
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English sclave, from Old French or Medieval Latin; Old 
French esclave, from Medieval Latin sclavus, from Sclavus Slavic; from the 
frequent enslavement of Slavs in central Europe
1 : a person held in servitude as the chattel of another
2 : one that is completely subservient to a dominating influence
3 : a device (as the printer of a computer) that is directly responsive to 
another
4 : DRUDGE, TOILER - slave adjective 

> I don't know, I find the whole application of PC-ness in 
> this case rather silly...

Too true ...

Eric L. Dunn
Senior Technical Writer