vacuum cleaners vs hoovers

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is it wrong to call vacuum cleaners hoovers, because other companies e.g. dysons might get kind of upset?

what about breville?

― ken c (ken c), Friday, 9 December 2005 08:00 (twenty years ago)

magic markers

― thor heyerdahl (Jody Beth Rosen), Friday, 9 December 2005 08:02 (twenty years ago)

Coke. But that might just be a southern thing.

― Erick Dampier is better than Shaq (miloaukerman), Friday, 9 December 2005 08:03 (twenty years ago)

post-it notes

― thor heyerdahl (Jody Beth Rosen), Friday, 9 December 2005 08:04 (twenty years ago)

ziploc bags

― thor heyerdahl (Jody Beth Rosen), Friday, 9 December 2005 08:04 (twenty years ago)

Xerox is the odd case of a brand-name that remained synonymous with the product even after it lost its dominance in the market for that product

― *Jazz Douchebag* Berman (Hurting), Friday, 9 December 2005 08:14 (twenty years ago)

don't people say "copier" now anyway?

― thor heyerdahl (Jody Beth Rosen), Friday, 9 December 2005 08:22 (twenty years ago)

I wouldn't know. I have no co-workers.

― *Jazz Douchebag* Berman (Hurting), Friday, 9 December 2005 08:31 (twenty years ago)

TANNOY

― Rumpie (lil drummer girl parumpumpumpu), Friday, 9 December 2005 09:03 (twenty years ago)

Beanbag, apparently.

― Trayce (trayce), Friday, 9 December 2005 09:15 (twenty years ago)

google

― jim p. irrelevant (electricsound), Friday, 9 December 2005 09:35 (twenty years ago)

Tipp-Ex

― ailsa (ailsa), Friday, 9 December 2005 09:49 (twenty years ago)

fucking portakabins, people! does nobody read "private eye"?

in all seriousness: there have been instances where newspapers have got into deep shit by using trade names. the guardian, IIRC, referred to someone dying on an "outward bound course" ... what it didn't realise was that Outward Bound is a trademark, and the course on which said dude had carked it was something entirely different.

there might have been a similar thing involving Rollerblades/inline skates. or did i just use that as an example once to put the fear of god into a sub? hmm.

either way: some companies take this shit very seriously, and have deep pockets.

― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Friday, 9 December 2005 12:23 (twenty years ago)

the guardian, IIRC, referred to someone dying on an "outward bound course" ... what it didn't realise was that Outward Bound is a trademark

*smacks forehead*

you mean to tell me NOBODY caught this?

― thorstein veblen (Jody Beth Rosen), Friday, 9 December 2005 12:44 (twenty years ago)

Haha, the Guardian's corrections column is FULL of stuff like this now (I've just started re-reading it recently so have no idea if they've been that bad for a while)

― ailsa (ailsa), Friday, 9 December 2005 12:48 (twenty years ago)

from the grauniad sylet gduie:

outward bound
We have been sued twice by the Outward Bound Trust when we have reported that people have died on "outward bound" courses that were nothing to do with the trust. Use a safer term such as outdoor adventure or adventure training

in fairness: for a long time i didn't know that "outward bound" was a trademark either. but then for a long time i wasn't a working editor :)

― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Friday, 9 December 2005 12:48 (twenty years ago)

twice?? what the heck do people think "outward bound" means?

― thorstein veblen (Jody Beth Rosen), Friday, 9 December 2005 12:50 (twenty years ago)

intending to head in the direction away from the centre?

― ken c (ken c), Friday, 9 December 2005 12:55 (twenty years ago)

y-y-yeah b-b-but it's such an awkward way of saying "adventure" (or whatever)! it SOUNDS like a trademarked name!

― thorstein veblen (Jody Beth Rosen), Friday, 9 December 2005 13:00 (twenty years ago)

in the UK a lot of people use it generically.

a lot of people, of course, are fucking mooks.

― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Friday, 9 December 2005 13:07 (twenty years ago)

they're all scopers

oops!

― ken c (ken c), Friday, 9 December 2005 13:12 (twenty years ago)

Jello
Kleenex
Band-Aid

― tokyo nursery school: afternoon session (rosemary), Friday, 9 December 2005 13:18 (twenty years ago)

Sellotape
Durex
Jeep

― NickB (NickB), Friday, 9 December 2005 13:19 (twenty years ago)

Rizlas.

― NickB (NickB), Friday, 9 December 2005 13:20 (twenty years ago)

Not to be too British, but "Tuxedo"

― Craig Gilchrist (Craig Gilchrist), Friday, 9 December 2005 13:33 (twenty years ago)

Branston pickle

― Come Back Johnny B (Johnney B), Friday, 9 December 2005 13:38 (twenty years ago)

biro (i believe i fell foul of that one at the times)

― foxy boxer (stevie), Friday, 9 December 2005 13:54 (twenty years ago)

Tampax (am I allowed to say that?)

― Rumpie (lil drummer girl parumpumpumpu), Friday, 9 December 2005 13:57 (twenty years ago)

I hear Kotex more often used to refer to all female sanitation products. I don't believe though that Kotex makes pads. hmm.

Hoovers are just vacuums over here.

― Miss Misery xox (MissMiseryTX), Friday, 9 December 2005 15:01 (twenty years ago)

Walkman/Discman

― Big Loud Mountain Ape (Big Loud Mountain Ape), Friday, 9 December 2005 15:08 (twenty years ago)

frisbee!

― ken c (ken c), Friday, 9 December 2005 15:12 (twenty years ago)

Interesting how some products seem to lend themselves to this, even as the trade name differs:

Wite-Out = Tipp-Ex
Scotch Tape = Sellotape

― Paul Eater (eater), Friday, 9 December 2005 15:24 (twenty years ago)

Aspirin
Heroin

― Paul Eater (eater), Friday, 9 December 2005 15:27 (twenty years ago)

Oil of Olay/Ulay

― ken c (ken c), Friday, 9 December 2005 15:36 (twenty years ago)

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