The Correct Way to Pronounce “OS X” [Video]
By Daniel Miessler on October 24th, 2007: Tagged as Apple | Geek | Language | OS X
With Leopard coming out this week I thought it would be a good time to talk about how OS X is correctly pronounced. There seems to be some confusion, with most people either saying “Oh Es Ex” or “Oh Es Ten“. So which is it?
At the center of this issue is a simple concept that you either accept or you don’t: when an authority for a particular product or movement explicitly states how that thing is pronounced, that pronunciation does in fact become the correct one.
Examples of this include Linus Torvalds clearly stating that Linux is to be pronounced “linicks” ( Video ) and Ubuntu Linux’s creators giving an exact phonetic breakdown of how to pronounce their product [oo-boon-too] ( Ubuntu.com ). The point is that if the creator is still alive (and they offer an opinion on the matter) we can use them as the ultimate authority.
OS X
With OS X many people point to the fact that Steve Jobs clearly says, “Oh Es Ten” when he says the name. That’s fairly convincing, but it turns out there’s an even better illustration: we can ask the operating system itself how to pronounce its own name. OS X comes with a built-in program called say which literally “says” anything you tell it to.
[ Video Demo ]
Why debate it when we can go right to the source? The trick is that if you tell it to say the letter “X”, it says “Ex”. But if you tell it to say, “OS X“, it says “Oh Es Ten“. (See Video)
me@computer me $ say “X”
Ex.
me@computer me $ say “OS X”
Oh Es Ten.
gg.
We were just told precisely how to say “OS X” by the best possible source — the operating system itself.:
I tip my hat to you, sir. Too many are walking around saying “Oh Es Ex”. It does matter in the grand scheme of things as it helps me be less annoyed around people I have to correct ;)
Comment by Sebastiaan de With — 10/24/2007 @ 3:13 pm
@sebastiaan de with:
or… you could live and let live and not be a douche and find something more meaningful to be upset or bothered/annoyed about.
Comment by -gd — 10/24/2007 @ 3:31 pm
I don’t know. I still prefer the literal reading ‘Ossix’, well that is if I were ever to actually talk about a Mac operating system. Which I really can not recall ever doing since the early nineties.
I still think though that you mispronounce Zebra, Data, Router, Process and the last letter of the alphabet. But if I talk to you about these things I would try and use your pronunciation so as not to confuse you.
The first test for English usage must always be this: What will communicate clearly, and what will confuse? Do you really think of something else, like say cabbage, if I say ‘Oh Es Ex’? Or are you just using pronunciation to obscure a lack of deeper knowledge or maybe a respect for the person with whom you are communicating?
I mean what would you do if Steve Jobs flew you to South Africa and Nelson Mandela said ‘Os Es Ex’? Would you not know what he was talking about? Would you make a point of correcting him? Steve Jobs may say it one way but when you are with Nelson Mandela he is the authority.
I have set up systems for many remote people who use really bizarre names for computer parts and usually those terms are actually more descriptive. Would you have the gall to look a tribal chief in the eye and tell him, “no it’s not a tv, it’s a monitor.” Or would you place more emphasis on tact and understanding and just use his term and help him feel comfortable in the discussion?
Comment by Bill B — 10/24/2007 @ 3:46 pm
How about a post on how to correctly pronounce “Miessler.” You know, for those of us who don’t know. I’m guessing the ‘I’ is silent.
Comment by Ryan — 10/24/2007 @ 3:57 pm
I agree with the importance you give the point, and I think it’s good to share how OS X should be pronounced.
Dan, you know this story ’cause you were there for it…
I once owned a Porsche, and I was pedantic (really, an ass) about how the name should be said.
“Porsh-ah,” I would correct people.
“I’m going to my Blaze-ah,” replied a friend who didn’t miss a beat.
I did this for a couple of years until I watched a video of the president of Porsche, who I’m sure was German, pronounce it his way.
“Porsh-ee.”
Never, ever, was I going to try to convince anyone of that. I dropped my point, and now shift between the more common “porsh” and my old habit of “Porsh-ah.”
There’s probably a footnote in the history of every society that, when the revolution came, pedants were the first against the wall. It’s just good measure.
Comment by Jason Powell — 10/24/2007 @ 4:21 pm
It’s even more confusing to talk about the point updates.
Consider Leopard it’s OS X 10.5 and I’m sure soon will be OS X 10.5.1
Do you pronounce both ‘tens’?
To be honest I don’t care because after the way Apple treated iPhone unlockers I will never be a customer again.
Comment by Jason Sares — 10/24/2007 @ 5:32 pm
How bout them there Winders computer.
Comment by j — 10/24/2007 @ 6:27 pm
I can’t believe you used “gg.”
Comment by xabbott — 10/24/2007 @ 7:45 pm
[...] have a problem. I hate when people mispronounce things. It pains me to hear “line-ix”, “oh-es-ex”, or [...]
Pingback by dmiessler.com | This is How You Pronounce Ubuntu — 10/24/2007 @ 11:55 pm
I think everyone KNOWS is “Oh-Es-Ten” - after all, the Operating System before it was OS 9, right?
But there’s something about “Oh-Es-Ex” that makes it sound better. I’m thinking “Deus Ex” reason here.
Comment by imbeta — 10/25/2007 @ 12:21 am
hey bill…read the ubuntu comments, someone already got the dictionary (gasp!) and showed you the way to pronounce those words. you are not correct.
get over it.
Comment by Russ — 10/25/2007 @ 2:13 am
This is not an argument about regional accents, alternate pronunciations of common words, British vs. American English, or any of that. It also isn’t an argument that we should fight to keep all language static. Everyone knows that language evolves over long periods of time. The key difference here is that the things in question were created in our recent memory, and their creators are still here to guide us.
Comment by Daniel Miessler — 10/25/2007 @ 8:13 am
They may have created it, but now it’s not theirs anymore.
It’s evolved. There is no longer one right answer.
Saying Oh Es Ten is so nineties it’s as bad as wearing ironic trucker hats or thinking Britney Spears is hot.
Whatever. Like get in your Eddie Bauer edition SUV and go to the mall and get a clue.
Comment by Bill B — 10/25/2007 @ 1:42 pm
Surely there are bigger issues than this one, but let’s be clear. The OS is called OS X not entirely because it is the one after 9, but because it is the one that is based on UniX.
Hmmm …
Uni = 1, X = 10. So, UniX is …One Ten … now is that 110? Or is it 1 times 10? Do we have videotape of someone authoritative explaining this?
Comment by Carl M — 10/25/2007 @ 3:02 pm
The UNIX part is secondary; the main definition is the version number. That’s why the OS itself pronounces it as “ten”.
Comment by Daniel Miessler — 10/25/2007 @ 3:06 pm
“The UNIX part is secondary; the main definition is the version number. That’s why the OS itself pronounces it as “ten”.”
Yeah, yeah, yeah .. we know. But, Apple has joined those who have brought silly redundancies into the world. (Raise your hand if you’ve heard of the SAT test or an ATM machine.) OS X Version 10.4.10 (which is on my machine at the moment) is NOT actually the 10th version of OS X. It’s the 10th upgrade to the 5th version of OS X. (10.0 was the first version.) So there is a redundancy in the name OS X Version 10.x.y.
Rather than believe that Apple is capable of such silliness, people assume that the X must not be a redundant “ten” and so pronounce it “X.” So, rather than just telling people that they’re wrong, you should say something like “Apple was being redundant. Silly, I know, but true nonetheless. Internally they pronounce it “Oh Ess Ten,” so if you want to sound like a real Mac lover, you should pronounce it that way too. Think of it like knowing a secret handshake.” That way, people will thank you for bringing them into the secret world of “Oh Ess Ten”ers rather than wondering why this bothers you so. :)
Comment by Carl M — 10/25/2007 @ 6:05 pm
Hey Russ, I read the comment. They got the American dictionary for their pronunciations, not the English one.
Travel the world a bit. American is not English, just a weird dialect with a big military; thus a separate language.
On a similar note:
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/blogs/content/shared-blogs/palmbeach/miamidolphins/entries/2007/10/24/crowderdiscovershewontneed.html?cxntfid=blogsinsidethe_dolphins
Comment by Bill B — 10/25/2007 @ 7:44 pm
For the record, Leopard also says “Oh Ess Ten.”
Comment by Carl M — 10/27/2007 @ 12:58 am
I really don’t care if the Jobs pronounces it “Ten”. If I was talking to him I might call it OS Ten, but if it is written “x”, then I will pronounce it “eks”. How did the romans pronounce “X” in their language? Did they pronounce it “ten”? Did they pronounce it “X”? Neither. So, that means we have to go to the evolution of the English language, which renders it “ten”. Seriously, it’s one thing to make up words, I’m more than happy to allow cool new netspeak, but another to completely redefine pronunciation of a letter. “I play the ten-olophone.” “I had a ten-ray at the doctor’s office today”. “The movie was rated triple ten”. Come now. Don’t use arabic numerals, switch to roman numerals, make your company successful based off perceived ease of use, and then resort to some backwards reasoning where it suddenly isn’t user friendly. Write down “OS 10″ next time. Or when OS 11 comes out, then all will be good. Seriously, if they come out with OS XI and pronounce it 11, I don’t care what’s happening, I’m selling my apple stock.
Comment by Leo Told Whom? — 5/7/2008 @ 6:20 pm