mindgraffiti

‘Why can’t tech people just say what they mean?!’ I often heard this from relatives while fixing their computers. I never commented about it because I always thought to myself, ‘well I understood what they said perfectly.’ This was before I realized I was a tech junkie. My TV was permanently set on TechTV and my homepage was Google before it was cool. I had a hotmail account back when you could get strawberrygirl as a username, with no numbers or symbols attached after it.

Yesterday I was talking to my better half and in a single sentence, managed to lose him: “I wish we could implement Ruby on Rails, but I suppose AJAX will have to do, since the IS department has already made the decision for us, declaring ASP.net as our future. Ugh! Do they know how difficult that makes the web department’s job?!”

He is a fairly tech-savvy guy, well read and keeps up on the latest in tech news. He may not have a degree in computers, but he can easily tear apart any computer code and wrangle it to fit what he wants it to do in a single afternoon. When he said, “You lost me.” after a single sentence out of my mouth, I realized how much these words were hindering my communication skills rather than helping.

I began to think back on my relatives’ question in earnest.

So why can’t tech people just say what they mean?

1. We are saying what we mean…exactly what we mean. Such specific detailed minutiae, in fact, that it appears we are saying filler in between the normal words. That is where the problem comes in. Other nerds, geeks, gearheads, etc. will understand because we made such a particular emphasis, but it is an unnecessary distinction for a general audience.
2. We are lazy. It takes less brain power for me to use an acroynm or some sort of technical term than it is to say the entire set of words. Otherwise, I have to process what I want to say and then translate it, which takes effort.
   
3. It’s a form of competition. Think of it as the proverbial form of dick-waving in the tech world. As token female 1 of 2 in an advanced computer programming class made up of 40, I quickly learned that it is the equivalent of cursing in a bar to get a pushy guy to back off…and when you are in an 80% male dominated field, showing that you know your stuff tends to garner respect.
4. It’s fun. Do you really think kids type in l33t because it is easier? Some use it as a power trip, falling under the same adult annoyance factor as saying “ain’t” as often as possible.

While acronyms and web terms might make it easier for me to pinpoint specific details, I realized it does not necessarily help me get the important points across to my significant other. I should have said: “I wish the web department was free to use the technology we prefer instead of the stuff our parent company’s technical support team picked out. We have completely different demands to fulfill with our customers- did they ever stop to think about that?!”

Why tech people should say what they mean:

1. It shows respect and humility for others. I do not intentially or consciously use terms I think others will not understand. I sometimes forget the world does not revolve around my little cubicle. By speaking in a manner that everyone understands, it shows that you are putting yourself in their shoes. (But please do excuse me while I hold nothing back in my technical arsenal when wrapped up in a heated debate with the IS department.)

2. It displays an ability to connect with others. As the Internet opens doors to a global audience, communication has become important even for us traditionally less articulate types. Show off your skills of interpretation and give others confidence that they too can understand complex technical issues, even without the vocabulary.

3. In the long run, it takes less time. A common question from friends and family is “What’s the best computer to buy?” Personally knowing of their habits and hobbies, I could give them a quick run-down of the specs they should ask for in a computer. The only problem with it is a focus on technical terms.

If I say “You’ll need 256 MB of RAM, an NVIDIA gForce Graphics card, a 120 GB hard drive and make sure to get the 16x DVD±RW too.” Next thing you know, suddenly the myth of more is better pops into their heads, and you find yourself in a long discussion where they are asking for all the latest specs for an over-powered computer. In reality what I should say in plain terms would include: “I know your photography hobby borders on professional, so make sure to get a good graphics card, a decent sized hard drive, and oh- you will probably want a DVD burner too, so you can back up all your work. If you want specs to take in to a computer store let me know.”

Some tips to get your techie to speak plain English

1. “Huh? Sorry you lost me right after Mega Bytes.”
2. “Again. Only in English, please.”
3. “Umm…what does RAM do again?”
4. “Yeah, well, I gobbledy-gooked the doodle-snapper and all it gave me back was a snarfackle. How about you?”

Do you have any good tips to get someone to speak plainly? Post it in the comments!