OT: Noob vs Newbie, etc

[Squirrelloid]

Originally Posted by 13lackGu4rd

well Squirrelloid, the fact that you don't realize that there is a difference beyond mere "spelling" between the 2 terms is your problem. it doesn't make the difference any less real... instead of arguing about it you should perhaps try to understand it.

let me give you another example, a lot less "politically correct". the N word is considered very offensive. however the original term, with the same spelling, simply meant "black" in Latin. however nowadays its usage is only in an offensive manner. a lot of people don't know Latin, and were not aware that it was actually a real word, however their unawareness doesn't make it any less truthful...

First of all, you might want to try actually giving a true example. The 'N word' might be derived from latin 'niger', but its not the same word. Even if it were, you're now talking about a word in english and a word in a different language. n00b is not from a different language, its an alternate spelling of a word in the same language. It'd be like saying 'gray' is offensive but 'grey' is not.

Second, how is your understanding of the word any better than mine? I've seen its use in a multitude of communities over 19 years, and its varied from being an insult to just a general descriptor of skill/familiarity (as has 'newbie' and other spellings, I can't actually think of a community I've been part of that has thought 'newbie' was anything other than an alternate spelling).