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Subject:Re: Product names as adjectives? From:Matt Ion <soundy -at- NEXTLEVEL -dot- COM> Date:Tue, 3 Jun 1997 17:29:39 -0800
On Mon, 2 Jun 1997 12:29:51 -0500, geoff-h -at- MTL -dot- FERIC -dot- CA wrote:
> Cheryl Kidder wondered about whether it's kosher to use a
> product's name as a noun, or better to use it as an
> adjective.
>
> The answer, as always, depends.
An example that came immediately to my mind is Xerox. It's used
generically all the time, both as an an adjective ("Here, xerox these
papers for the boss...") and as a noun ("Take these xeroxes to the
boss...").
I don't recall ever hearing of the Xerox people complaining about this.
If nothing else, it's made their name a household term. Neither does
IBM seem to mind almost every other computer manufacturer, not to
mention almost every piece of media, referring to Intel-based and
similar PC-type computers, as "IBM compatibles", or even just as "IBM
computers" (a software review, for example, may state that a title is
"available for Mac and IBM" - indeed, some software packages themselves
use similar wording under their "System Requirements"). Again, it
makes their name far more recognizable in connection with computer
hardware.
Of course, there is the other end of the scale... such as Microsoft's
reported attempts a few years back to copyright the word "Windows". I
can just see their lawyers descending on building-supply stores
nationwide, demanding that these stores cease and desist from referring
to glass viewing panels as "Windows". :-)
Your friend and mine,
Matt
<insert standard disclaimer here>
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