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New OS X names are too US-centric

This seems like the ultimate nit-pick. Apple could name them after landmarks in Greenland, and it would matter to me as much as the current names do (native Californian here). Anybody turned off by the naming scheme has other issues they ought to sort out first before spending money on a computer.

melman101 said:
Yeah I had no idea what Mavericks was. I live on the East Coast and have no idea about places in California.
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I live in California, and I had no clue what Mavericks was. It still sounds like a Top Gun reference to me.
 
Men, I don't care about the name, though I think it would have been cool if they would have moved to celestial objects.

OS X Orion
OS X Andromeda
Etc.
 
Agree with most people here. Apple is marketing its California Silicon Vally origins with the new naming system. It's not about being US centric per say, but rather an attempt to recognise, respect, and refer back to the company's roots.

It is probably no coincidence that this move was made in the wake of Steve Jobs' passing, and the leadership transition that followed, a public gesture to confirm their intention to not forget where they came from and not lose direction.

I also think celestial objects would have been awesome though. :)
 
skaertus said:
You may not agree with me, but, IMHO, the new name schemes for OS X became too US-centric.

Before Mavericks, Apple named their OS X versions with big cats. This was a wise scheme in my opinion, as these names connect to anybody. It is easy for anybody anywhere in the world to identify and connect to tigers, leopards and lions. In addition, each of these big cats live in different places worldwide, and the images of these animals always depicted a different place in the world, which is where such animals lived. It had worldwide appeal.

With Mavericks, Apple introduced a new naming scheme. OS X versions would be named after places. Mavericks was the first. Now, Yosemite. Both places in California. This naming scheme may have an appeal in the US, but not worldwide appeal.

Mavericks? Who outside of the US knows what Mavericks is, apart from surfers? Yosemite is at least more widely known, but still. Why not use worldwide locations instead?

I don't really care about the name Apple gives to the OS. However, I think this is a poor marketing strategy since it is alienating foreign customers, which are the ones Apple should be focusing at.
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Us living here know that the USA carries a bit of a stigma outside the US. However people that have a problem with the names will just need to get over their own prejudice. Many companies name their products with something to do with where they are from.

Honestly I think its medieval thinking to even entertain the idea of what you are saying. Maybe you've never been to Yosemite but they literally bus foreigners in to sightsee. Its still the same product no matter what its called, its a name.

Did you know the naming of system of much of IKEAs furniture is actually names of places. Matter of fact the type of furniture determines the name, for example hall furniture is named after a place in Norway, and Dining tables are named after a place in Finland.

None of the places used are American yet somehow college kids still have beds to sleep in and flimsy desk to work on.

No one of any significance is not buying Apple products based on the names they use.
 
mojolicious said:
The new naming convention is a bit septic-centric for my liking, but there weren't nearly enough big cats to go around...

Image

They should have moved onto cheeses. There are thousands of cheeses.
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Or Beers - very international.

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Partron22 said:
Apple: We're an American Brand

Nothing to be ashamed of there.
Although, if they wanted to, Apple could branch off into an OS name series based on Batholiths.
There are plenty of those worldwide.
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Or just Baths (Spas).
 
Just a name. It's not that serious. I had mavericks since day one. Live in Miami and have been to California. That said I didn't know that was a place in CA (nor did I care or care now for that matter).
 
Mlrollin91 said:
I don't agree with this. Why should Apple be focusing on foreign customers? I'm pretty sure Apple's biggest priority is the United States, where the company originated from. Also, its a name, I don't think its that big of a deal. When Mavericks was introduced, Apple said the next decade of names were going to be California based, where the company was created.
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That may be true a few years ago, but China's market is about the same and it'll get bigger than the US pretty soon.
 
I imagine they want to stick with names, since a generic reference to say a geographical feature might wind up with odd translations.

But I agree with the celestial objects suggestion, although I'll bet Apple would find that a bit too trite and Space Age-y.

References to computing pioneers might be cool though. Eg Babbage. Or Jobs....
 
pickaxe said:
Yosemite is a dreadful name and tons of people have no idea how to pronounce it.
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I guess you can take that up with the local native Americans then, since it the word is a transliteration of a local language. Apparently it's based on a native phrase of the Miwok tribe meaning, "they are killers", referring to the Ahwahnee tribe who inhabited the Yosemite valley and was often involved in territorial disputes. How you could be violent when living in a paradise like that, I have no idea. Some people are never content.

As for pronunciation, I'm a native Californian and everyone I know has always pronounced it: yo-SIM-eh-tee.
 
Friends here in the Czech Republic had never heard of Yosemite and pronounced it like a mineral found in rocks "Yo-sem-ite".
 
Australian here. I think it's great that Apple is paying homage to attractions local to the company. For me it raises an interest in a state and country I've never been to, but hope to visit some day.

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DesertNomad said:
Friends here in the Czech Republic had never heard of Yosemite and pronounced it like a mineral found in rocks "Yo-sem-ite".
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I was the same. I had never made the connection between Yos-ee-mite, as I'd always read it, and 'Yo-sem-i-te', as in Yosemite Sam. Hearing the name properly pronounced was a quite a d'oh moment.
 
ohbrilliance said:
I had never made the connection between Yos-ee-mite, as I'd always read it, and 'Yo-sem-i-te', as in Yosemite Sam. Hearing the name properly pronounced was a quite a d'oh moment.
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Heh, I had the same experience back in 1999, when Yosemite was the codename for the blue and white Power Mac G3.
 
The U.S. is the greatest nation in the world, which is why more people clamor to get here more than anywhere else in the world annually. It's not perfect but it's the best thing going. Apple is a US based company, and you know what, it's just dandy to have some pride in the homeland.
 
mojolicious said:
You mean that you don't just make up these names for the amusement of anglophones?!?
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Yup, those are all real words.

To be fair, even in Sweden half of these doesn't make any sense at all. They're selling table legs called 'Good morning', that black chair is called "Eurasian blue tit". Some products even have names of actual unrelated products (think selling a penn and calling it 'football').
I do like their more straight forward names though (toolkit called "fix it", bag called "carry it" and so on).
 
DeltaMac said:
OS X San Andreas Fault
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Yes, then the following release should be "OS X The Big One". ;)

I still think Apple should consider the following names:

OS X Mammoth
OS X Mt. Shasta
OS X Pacific Coast

I don't know why, but I seem to remember all the names of the OSes with no problem and the fact that they are naming the OSes after California landmarks makes it even easier to remember (SoCal native here).

For those who don't know how to pronounce Yosemite, in California (and I'm sure most of the OS) we pronounce it:

yoh-sem-i-tee
 
iamMacPerson said:
Yes, then the following release should be "OS X The Big One". ;)

I still think Apple should consider the following names:

OS X Mammoth
OS X Mt. Shasta
OS X Pacific Coast

I don't know why, but I seem to remember all the names of the OSes with no problem and the fact that they are naming the OSes after California landmarks makes it even easier to remember (SoCal native here).

For those who don't know how to pronounce Yosemite, in California (and I'm sure most of the OS) we pronounce it:

yoh-sem-i-tee
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In the UK, we pronounce it:
"yo-semit-ee"
(soft and nearly silent letter 't')
 
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BenTrovato said:
Part of saying something is too "something" is not appreciating for what it is. We had cats now we have places in California being showcased. It's just about appreciating what certain people are creating in the world.
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Good point. You never hear:
  • My burrito is too Mexican,
  • My pizza is too Italian,
  • My curry is too Indian,
  • My chop suey is too American!
(Well, actually, you might hear that last one ;))
 
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