Spam, SPAM, Windows, and the Uses of English

Let’s see. I post a glowing bloggino (a small blog entry) about some software brewing over at SpamSubtract. Doc clicks on the link and his Linux-loving heart goes cold when he he reads the first sentence of their survey: “What kind of connection does your Windows PC have to the Internet?” So, the lead guy there (hey, lead guy, am I allowed to use your name?) writes to Doc, makes the Windows-only-ness of it more explicit and less assumed, and posts a brief, frank and unsurprising explanation. I like the explanation if only because it’s written by a real person in real language without bullshit. So, I check back at the SpamSubtract homepage to see how it’s been modified and notice some unrelated language in tiny print at the bottom of the page:

“We are not associated with “SPAM” ©; we’ve never eaten their fine luncheon meats and we certainly don’t want to suggest that you need to subtract them. We think they are cool guys, or, at least their lawyers seem reasonably cool, well, at least as far as lawyers go.”

So, I follow the link to the SPAM company’s statement about the use of the word “spam” in the email sense. And it’s more than “reasonably cool.” It’s very cool. Not only are they not assholes about asserting their sole right to those four letters, they actually talk to us like human beings. It’s clear, reasonable, friendly, helpful. And, in case you’ve forgotten the difference between how normal people talk and what lawyers sound like, they provide a link to their legal and copyright information.

Two company sites (SpamSubtract and SPAM) in two minutes, and both of them sound like human beings. Is the world going insane???

Categories: Uncategorized dw