Evolution of words in the Virtual World of Cyber Space

As time progress, words and language change their meanings through wide-spread use. Once it was only teenagers who drove everyone crazy, as they spoke a different kind of language, using words like, ‘Cool, wicked, hip mad and rad’. Now, however, even the older generations have had to come on board with current words creating a sub culture of language. This has never been more obvious than in the ethereal world of the Internet and Cyber Space.

Memory used to be something you lost with age. Now you can lose it if you press the wrong button. You couldn’t add to it either by a technician wielding a screwdriver
You filled in an application when you went to apply for something, like employment, a government benefit, or a bank loan
A program was a television show, or something they handed you at the opera, or ballet
A cursor was a swearer and to be totally avoided and ignored in well-bred company
A keyboard created music
A web was a spider’s home. Now the ‘web’ catches a different kind of animal
A postman was happy to deliver your mail no matter what the weather was like
A virus was just the flu that gave you a couple of days off work. Now it is to be avoided at all costs
A mouse was a little furry animal that made women want to scream and jump on a chair
Forums were places where noted speakers spouted their opinions at conferences
A net was used for fishing
A screen was used to help create privacy
A flat screen was where you printed a T-Shirt
A monitor was a South American iguana, or bossy kid at school
You used to put a film in a camera
Aero planes, boats and space ships used docking stations
Chips went with fish and tomato sauce
Language was vocal
A mother board was involved with washing and ironing
A CD was a bank account you safely deposited your money
A hard drive was usually a long trip down a rough road
A stick came from a tree
The source was the origin of something, not computer code
Social networking was something you spent time doing at parties
Information was collected from books at libraries
A blackberry was something you enjoyed eating, not miniaturized computer equipment
A computer was a large piece of equipment which sat on your desk, not a pocket size pen

As to numerous other mystical words that have become part of our everyday life, we think little about it. Terms such as CPU (central processing unit), PC,chat rooms, html, networking and search engine optimization. Then first came the 8 inch floppy disk, which was shrunk to a 5 inch floppy disk, before it evolved into a 3 ½ inch hard disk, which has now become a flash. Gone are the days when a flash was something you saw only at popular cricket or football matches.

We may need an interpreter to speak our own language, as time goes by, as has already been found out by the older generation who stumble to use the Internet.