Thread: [DOCS] inappropriate word 'victim'

[DOCS] inappropriate word 'victim'

From
devguy.ca@gmail.com
Date:
The following documentation comment has been logged on the website:

Page: https://www.postgresql.org/docs/9.6/static/manage-ag-dropdb.html
Description:

I am sure this would be reword

"...while connected to the victim database."

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Re: [DOCS] inappropriate word 'victim'

From
"Joshua D. Drake"
Date:
On 10/03/2017 12:38 PM, devguy.ca@gmail.com wrote:
> The following documentation comment has been logged on the website:
> 
> Page: https://www.postgresql.org/docs/9.6/static/manage-ag-dropdb.html
> Description:
> 
> I am sure this would be reword
> 
> "...while connected to the victim database."
> 

Victim seems to be an appropriate word for what is happening but I guess 
I can see an argument for "subject"

"while connected to the subject database" or something else.

JD


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Re: [DOCS] inappropriate word 'victim'

From
"David G. Johnston"
Date:
On Tue, Oct 3, 2017 at 12:53 PM, Joshua D. Drake <jd@commandprompt.com> wrote:
On 10/03/2017 12:38 PM, devguy.ca@gmail.com wrote:
The following documentation comment has been logged on the website:

Page: https://www.postgresql.org/docs/9.6/static/manage-ag-dropdb.html
Description:

I am sure this would be reword

&quot;...while connected to the victim database.&quot;


Victim seems to be an appropriate word for what is happening but I guess I can see an argument for "subject"

"while connected to the subject database" or something else.

​My first inclination was "target" though I suppose its not that much closer to the supposed neutral position on this subjective scale than "victim"​.

Subject didn't sound right either (marginally).  Maybe "named" - "...while connected to the named database."

Given that, aside from 3 release note instances, we never use the word "victim" in the docs leads me to want to change this if just for internal consistency.

David J.

Re: [DOCS] inappropriate word 'victim'

From
"Joshua D. Drake"
Date:
On 10/03/2017 01:28 PM, David G. Johnston wrote:
> On Tue, Oct 3, 2017 at 12:53 PM, Joshua D. Drake <jd@commandprompt.com 

> ​My first inclination was "target" though I suppose its not that much 
> closer to the supposed neutral position on this subjective scale than 
> "victim"​.
> 
> Subject didn't sound right either (marginally).  Maybe "named" - 
> "...while connected to the named database."
> 
> Given that, aside from 3 release note instances, we never use the word 
> "victim" in the docs leads me to want to change this if just for 
> internal consistency.

Named is probably the best middle ground.

JD


> 
> David J.
> 


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Re: [DOCS] inappropriate word 'victim'

From
Erik Rijkers
Date:
On 2017-10-03 21:53, Joshua D. Drake wrote:
> On 10/03/2017 12:38 PM, devguy.ca@gmail.com wrote:
>> The following documentation comment has been logged on the website:
>> 
>> Page: https://www.postgresql.org/docs/9.6/static/manage-ag-dropdb.html
>> Description:
>> 
>> I am sure this would be reword
>> 
>> "...while connected to the victim database."
>> 
> 
> Victim seems to be an appropriate word for what is happening but I
> guess I can see an argument for "subject"
> 
> "while connected to the subject database" or something else.
> 
> JD


I find 'victim database' admirably clear in conjunction with DROP 
DATABASE.

Let's not change it.


Erik Rijkers



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Re: [DOCS] inappropriate word 'victim'

From
"Jonathan S. Katz"
Date:

On Oct 3, 2017, at 4:29 PM, Joshua D. Drake <jd@commandprompt.com> wrote:

On 10/03/2017 01:28 PM, David G. Johnston wrote:
On Tue, Oct 3, 2017 at 12:53 PM, Joshua D. Drake <jd@commandprompt.com

​My first inclination was "target" though I suppose its not that much closer to the supposed neutral position on this subjective scale than "victim"​.
Subject didn't sound right either (marginally).  Maybe "named" - "...while connected to the named database."
Given that, aside from 3 release note instances, we never use the word "victim" in the docs leads me to want to change this if just for internal consistency.

Named is probably the best middle ground.

If you click into the documentation for DROP DATABASE [https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/static/sql-dropdatabase.html] you get: 

"Also, it cannot be executed while you or anyone else are connected to the target database."

So there is a precedent for using “target” for this command.

Jonathan

Re: [DOCS] inappropriate word 'victim'

From
Tom Lane
Date:
"Jonathan S. Katz" <jkatz@postgresql.org> writes:
> So there is a precedent for using “target” for this command.

I wouldn't object to substituting "target" for "victim"; they're both
pretty specific, and there's little risk of misunderstanding which
database is meant.  I don't know if that amounts to much of an
advance in political correctness, though.

I'm less happy about substituting vaguer words like "subject".
Particularly for non-native English speakers, that seems like it
could be confusing --- eg, if you know the distinction between
subject and object of a sentence, you might think it means the
DB where the command is being issued.
        regards, tom lane


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Re: [DOCS] inappropriate word 'victim'

From
Stephen Frost
Date:
Tom, all,

* Tom Lane (tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us) wrote:
> "Jonathan S. Katz" <jkatz@postgresql.org> writes:
> > So there is a precedent for using “target” for this command.
>
> I wouldn't object to substituting "target" for "victim"; they're both
> pretty specific, and there's little risk of misunderstanding which
> database is meant.  I don't know if that amounts to much of an
> advance in political correctness, though.

Based on my review of what 'dict' returns for each, 'target' is
distinctly more appropriate.  Both definitions in WordNet for
'victim' refer to a 'person' and other dictionaries definitely
refer to 'person or living creature' more than not.

The definitions for 'target', on the other hand, more generally refer to
a goal or something which is being shot at and the references to
'person' in those definitions appears more in the vein of "covering all
bases" as it relates to 'person, place, or thing'.

> I'm less happy about substituting vaguer words like "subject".
> Particularly for non-native English speakers, that seems like it
> could be confusing --- eg, if you know the distinction between
> subject and object of a sentence, you might think it means the
> DB where the command is being issued.

Agreed.

Thanks!

Stephen

Re: [DOCS] inappropriate word 'victim'

From
Oleg Bartunov
Date:
On Wed, Oct 4, 2017 at 3:17 AM, Stephen Frost <sfrost@snowman.net> wrote:
> Tom, all,
>
> * Tom Lane (tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us) wrote:
>> "Jonathan S. Katz" <jkatz@postgresql.org> writes:
>> > So there is a precedent for using “target” for this command.
>>
>> I wouldn't object to substituting "target" for "victim"; they're both
>> pretty specific, and there's little risk of misunderstanding which
>> database is meant.  I don't know if that amounts to much of an
>> advance in political correctness, though.
>
> Based on my review of what 'dict' returns for each, 'target' is
> distinctly more appropriate.  Both definitions in WordNet for
> 'victim' refer to a 'person' and other dictionaries definitely
> refer to 'person or living creature' more than not.
>

As a non-native English speaker I associate 'victim' with a person, so
'target' sound more neutral and enough informative.

> The definitions for 'target', on the other hand, more generally refer to
> a goal or something which is being shot at and the references to
> 'person' in those definitions appears more in the vein of "covering all
> bases" as it relates to 'person, place, or thing'.
>
>> I'm less happy about substituting vaguer words like "subject".
>> Particularly for non-native English speakers, that seems like it
>> could be confusing --- eg, if you know the distinction between
>> subject and object of a sentence, you might think it means the
>> DB where the command is being issued.
>
> Agreed.
>
> Thanks!
>
> Stephen


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