bugGNU Octave - Bugs: bug #40543, Change name of GNU Octave to...

 
 

bug #40543: Change name of GNU Octave to something unique

Submitter:  None
Submitted:  Mon 11 Nov 2013 03:44:59 AM UTC
   
 
Category:  None Severity:  3 - Normal
Priority:  5 - Normal Item Group:  None
Status:  Invalid / Not an Octave Bug Assigned to:  None
Originator Name:  Joe Walter Originator Email:  -email is unavailable-
Open/Closed:  * Closed Release:  * 3.6.4
Operating System:  * GNU/Linux Fixed Release:  None
Planned Release:  None
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Thu 14 Nov 2013 06:41:24 PM UTC, comment #9: 

John,

The last paragraph in your comment is exactly
right.  I hoped you would say it. Might have been
somewhat better to make the commitment for a
substantially longer period. Suitably talented
people should have some sense of stability.

Michael

Michael Godfrey <godfrey>
Group Member
Thu 14 Nov 2013 05:34:21 PM UTC, comment #8: 

funding is not the complete answer to "dominating the market" either, apparently.

The other FOSS project whose name ends in *LAB
is spending a substantial amount of money for "hiring talented
developers"...

Carlo de Falco <cdf>
Group Member
Thu 14 Nov 2013 05:04:00 PM UTC, comment #7: 

There is already a FOSS project with a *LAB name that doesn't aim for Matlab compatibility.  Yet it is not dominating the Matlab market.  Why not?  Apparently, it is not just the name or the freedom for innovation that not "just aiming for Matlab compatibility" allows.  So there must be more to it than these things.  My guess is that part of the problem is funding.  We might be able to make more awesome progress if the project had sufficient funds to hire some talented people to work on Octave full time.

Who would you be asking at Google, and why?  What advice are you looking for there?

I'm not really interested in changing the name of the project, but hey, if you can arrange for significant funding for the project (say, $10e6/year over a minimum of 5 years or so) then you can call Octave whatever you like.

John W. Eaton <jwe>
Group administrator
Wed 13 Nov 2013 02:15:19 AM UTC, comment #6: 

If you really want to continue this discussion this is not where you should do it anyway, this is definitely NOT a bu.
I am locking the thread to make sure no more posts are added.

Carlo de Falco <cdf>
Group Member
Tue 12 Nov 2013 06:28:23 PM UTC, comment #5: 

Ya, so changing a name like GNU Octave is not something that happens overnight. An announcement is made months in advanced. People are assigned to change all references in the code, documentation, and marketing (websites). We will probably need to assemble a team to scour the web and tag any applicable threads with the new name.

Obviously there will need to be a budget for this. And a strong argument as to why changing the name will generate more use and donations. We will probably assign someone like me to raise the money to cover the change.

We will probably need to maintain reverse compatibility with warnings until a major release like 4.0.

I will get some expert advice on the impact of changing the name from people at Google.

For what MATLAB is and its use in education it should be open source. We shouldn't just be aiming for MATLAB compatibility, but for dominating the MATLAB market.

Anonymous
Tue 12 Nov 2013 06:31:28 AM UTC, comment #4: 

I do not think it is useful to continue this
on any list.

A change of name to one that only you would
know would be a very minor help to you and a great
inconvenience to thousands of other people who
have used GNU Octave for many years.

I can assure you the name will not be changed.
If GNU Octave is too difficult for you, you should
probably find another system whose name you like.

Time to close this report.

Michael Godfrey <godfrey>
Group Member
Tue 12 Nov 2013 05:42:43 AM UTC, comment #3: 

It is not meant to be a joke. The Mordor bit was, but to me changing the name seems obvious.

Google probably works for you because the only context you use octave in is gnu octave.

Octave is a mathematical concept of multiplying a frequency by two. Further GNU Octave is a math program so any searches for GNU Octave solutions are dilute. Aka needle in hay stack, and discouraging for beginners.

Even changing the spelling to something more unique like Octuv would help users find and post GNU Octave specific solutions tenfold.

I didnt know where to post "suggested enhancements". On other projects I have worked on it was within the bug tracking system. I will bring this up on the maintainers' mailing list if that is the appropriate place. Thanks

Anonymous
Mon 11 Nov 2013 03:41:07 PM UTC, comment #2: 

There is no realistic possibility of changing the name.
So, there is no point bringing it up elsewhere.

For me Google handles searches without problems.

Michael Godfrey <godfrey>
Group Member
Mon 11 Nov 2013 10:31:25 AM UTC, comment #1: 

I don't think this can be considered as a proper bug report,
is it meant to be a joke?

I am closing this report and marking it as invalid, for the moment.

If IT is not a joke and you really mean to suggest a name change, you can try to bring up this topic on the maintainers' mailing list.

Carlo de Falco <cdf>
Group Member
Mon 11 Nov 2013 03:44:59 AM UTC, original submission:  

Hello, I work with in signal processing, and I have found it difficult if not impossible to Google for help with GNU Octave because word octave is common.

Simply changing the name of GNU Octave to something unique would help GNU Octave build an online community separate from MATLAB. Because often MATLAB solutions are not compatible with GNU Octave.

I suggest something that starts with an M, like Mohrlab, because every time I start a gnu octave project it is an adventure through Mordor.

Anonymous

 

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    Follow 4 latest changes.

    Date Changed by Updated Field Previous Value => Replaced by
    2013-11-14 jwe Discussion LockLocked None
    2013-11-13 cdf Discussion LockNone Locked
    2013-11-11 cdf StatusNone Invalid / Not an Octave Bug
        Open/ClosedOpen Closed

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