air-stir

if something isn't really pronouncable I usually "expand it".

While I understand your point, there's a long history of pronouncing abbreviations as they look rather than as their expansions. It's the problem of trying to communicate an exact sequence of letters that isn't a real word.

Say someone comes to me and asks, "this class has a method that returns the error but I can't remember what it is called, what is it?" If I answer "error string" he's likely to try using error_string(); I haven't been very helpful if the function is actually called errstr(). Sure, I might answer "EE-AR-AR-ESS-TEE-AR", but spelling things out makes for tedious communication (and is prone to its own sort of errors.)

Many abbreviations already have some sort of generally accepted pronunciation. Of course, scores of variations exist too; jargon isn't immune to dialect.

So, yes, /usr is usually slash-user, but do you call /etc slash-etcetera? You probably call it slash-et-see like everyone else. And tmp is "temp", not "temporary", right? Do you call var "various" or "var"? Is it "opt" or "optional"? How about "dev" or "devices"? While you probably pronounce "mnt" as "mount", I'd bet that you don't call /proc slash-process or /lib slash-library. And so on.

The same goes for common functions. The str in many standard C function names is, in my experience, generally pronounced "stir" and err as in errno or stderr is often pronounced as "air".¹

Here are some other examples of abbreviations that are often pronounced in their short forms rather than expanded. Of couse, I'm not claiming this list is definitive or authoritative in any way; these are just some examples from my experience:

• csh — seesh (rather than C-shell)
• ksh — koosh, oo like book (rather than korn shell)
• getc — get-sea (not get character)
• malloc — mal-luck (not memory allocate)²
• enum — ee-num (not enumeration)
• int — int (not integer)
• chmod — chuh-mod (not change mode)
• dir — dir (not directory)
• env — env or onv (not environment)
• sync — sink (not synchronize)
• umount — you-mount (not un-mount)
• ord — ord (not ordinal)
• lc — ell-see (not lowercase)
• eof — ee-oh-eff (not end-of-file)
and so on. . .

But, like the saying goes, "I say toe-may-toe; you say toe-mah-toe." It doesn't really matter as long as the right meaning is communicated.

1. I've heard stderr pronounced as "standard error", "standard air", and, infrequently, "stud air". I fall into the second category.
2. Is it just coincidence that the use of malloc() often results in "mal" (or bad) luck? You decide... :-)

-sauoq
"My two cents aren't worth a dime.";

"Air"? I pronounce them as in to err. stderr becomes "ess-tee-dee err" for me, and along the same lines I usually say "err st'(i)r" for errstr. usr I pronounce (roughly) "youz'(i)r", instead of the "youzah" that "user" corresponds to.

But I'm Greek (and grew up in Germany), so what do I know. :-)

Makeshifts last the longest.

Say someone comes to me and asks, "this class has a method that returns the error but I can't remember what it is called, what is it?" If I answer "error string" he's likely to try using error_string(); I haven't been very helpful if the function is actually called errstr(). Sure, I might answer "EE-AR-AR-ESS-TEE-AR", but spelling things out makes for tedious communication (and is prone to its own sort of errors.)

I completely agree with you. I was only pointing out yet another pronunciation; in this case, the way I pronouce it. When talking in conversation where people don't need to know exactly how it is spelled, just what I'm referencing, I'll usually say "error string" instead of "air-stir" (or some form of that). If it could easily be confused with something else or needs to be more exact, I'll say "air-stir".

but do you call /etc slash-etcetera?

Actually, I do say slash-et-cetera (although you nailed everything else). In any case, I get your point. In most cases, I'll pronounce abbreviations like they are, but I'm odd and will also expand (for lack of a better term) some abbreviations as well (such as /etc).

The same goes for common functions. The str in many standard C function names is, in my experience, generally pronounced "stir" and err as in errno or stderr is often pronounced as "air".

Personally, for most C (or other programming language) functions, I usually say what it stands for. So strcmp, when reading or (especially) subvocalizing it, becomes "string compare". But yet again, I'm weird and I'll pretty much randomly either use "error no" or "air-no" for errno for no particualar reason.

Here are some other examples of abbreviations that are often pronounced in their short forms rather than expanded.

Except for the first two, I say them as you have written. For csh or ksh, I'll say each letter. In the case of bash, I'll say "bash".

But, like the saying goes, "I say toe-may-toe; you say toe-mah-toe." It doesn't really matter as long as the right meaning is communicated.

Exactly. ++ for a great node about pronoucing abbreviations/acronyms.