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What's in a name? Send us your feedback.
In watching the recent Transformers movie - and seeing/hearing the word "mainframe" come up a few times - I began to wonder about just what the name stands for.
On one hand, it's not uncommon that some mainframe enthusiasts consider the name itself to be somewhat archaic - to suggest that perhaps the vitality and new innovation around the mainframe platform is cheated by the antiquity of its own name.
On the other hand, the most common public uses of the term recently seem to be coming from very youthful and non-intuitive sources.
I took a spin around the web and found a number of interesting uses of the word "mainframe." You might be surprised at what I found. Some are old and others new - but each of them are surprisingly cool.
So here is the question: Is the word "mainframe" lugging baggage behind it, or is it actually, well, cool?
Lady Mainframe - the avatar host of the popular internet gaming news source, Gaming News with Lady Mainframe.
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Techno DJ in Germany, known as "DJ Mainframe"
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From the mid-80's toy series G.I. Joe, here is computer specialist "Mainframe."
YO JOE!
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Here's another toy named "Mainframe," complete with push-button action.
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Creative services and entertainment consulting firm.
| by Kevin Acocella | July 13, 2007 in Future Permalink |
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» Mainframe: Is it a cool word or what? from Getting the Most out of DB2 for z/OS and System z
I just read a post on Mainframe blog called "What's in a name? Send us your feedback" that talks about the word mainframe. I posted a few weeks ago (07/01/2007) that maybe using the term mainframe had a negative connotation.... [Read More]
Tracked on Jul 14, 2007 4:44:02 PM
» Mainframe: Is it a cool word or what? from Getting the Most out of DB2 for z/OS and System z
I just read a post on Mainframe blog called "What's in a name? Send us your feedback" that talks about the word mainframe and what it really stands for. I posted a few weeks ago (07/01/2007) that maybe using the... [Read More]
Tracked on Jul 14, 2007 4:50:11 PM
» Sunday's Silly & Superficial Stories: My post today is NOT any of these, just not DB2 from Getting the Most out of DB2 for z/OS and System z
Happy July! Happy Sunday! And welcome to a huge change to my vocabulary. First, let's get the really important stuff out of the way for a Sunday afternoon. Dale Jr. took 3rd in the race this afternoon. Not too bad... [Read More]
Tracked on Jul 14, 2007 5:00:15 PM
Comments
As I mentioned in a recent interview (http://www.gamingnexus.com/Default.aspx?Section=Article&I=1480) - of course William Gibson has the Tessier-Ashpool family choose a Mainframe to host the AIs of Wintermute and Neuromancer.
See http://www.williamgibsonbooks.com/
Posted by: Boas Betzler | Jul 13, 2007 4:50:29 PM
It's interesting to see the list of trademarks registered at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office that contain the word "mainframe." There seems to be some musical association. Here are a couple notables:
Norton Mainframe System: modular guitar design
http://www.nortonguitars.com/technology.htm
Richmond Mainframe: a musical group
http://www.richmondmainframe.com
Posted by: Timothy | Jul 15, 2007 12:58:55 AM
And some more:
Mainframe: motion graphics and broadcast design studio
http://www.mainframe.co.uk
Mainframe: Vienna live music club?
http://www.mainframe.co.at
Main Frame Gallery: Native American and fine art gallery
http://www.mainframegallery.com
Mainframe Photographics: Boston photography studio
http://www.mainframephotographics.com
Mainframe: a 1980s electropop band from London
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mainframe_(band)
Mainframe: a Marvel Comics character
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mainframe_(comics)
Mullahs on the Mainframe: non-fiction book
http://www.amazon.com/Mullahs-Mainframe-Islam-Modernity-Bohras/dp/0226056775
MainFrame Inc.: aluminum extrusion
http://www.mainframeinc.com
Protein Mainframe: broadcast consultancy
http://www.proteinmainframe.com
MainFrame Direct: fruit and vegetable crop protection
http://mainframedirect.net/home
Posted by: Timothy | Jul 15, 2007 1:31:15 AM
Still more:
Mainframe: a horse
http://www.warlockfarm.com/images/Mainframe.jpg
Icon Mainframe Helmets: motorcycle helmets
http://www.webbikeworld.com/r2/motorcycle-helmet/icon-helmets/icon-mainframe/
Posted by: Timothy | Jul 15, 2007 2:13:56 AM
Do you all allow trackbacks to this blog? I did an article similar to this on my blog and unsuccessfully tried to do a trackback to this blog.
Posted by: Willie | Jul 16, 2007 12:19:55 PM
For us old-timers - started in the "computer business" in 1966, Ed Yourdon calls us "Old Goats" as compared to "Young Turks" - mainframe always meant "an order of magnitude more powerful, more scalable than mid-range (AS-400, pSeries, HP, Sun, etc.)", while mid-range meant "an order of magnitude more powerful, more scalable than PC servers". I don't believe that's become out-dated.
Posted by: Chuck Shorter | Jul 16, 2007 1:15:17 PM
mainframe, mainstream, mainline, main-channel, mainstreet, main squeeze, main man, main point....how did something this fundamental and essential to large-scale, mission-critical computing get relegated to something wrongly perceived as un-modern, archaic, irrelevant (vs distributed environments)? Glad the IT (and rest of)world is waking up to what System z is doing and why the mainframe is not only the present; it is the future. It also is the source for the less powerful, less secure derivatives, like; Unix, Windows, and Linux servers..which still do not deliver the same level of EE, virtualization, utilization and, RAS...but which aspire to..... Thanks.
Posted by: | Aug 15, 2007 8:51:47 PM
HEY!! Read the sticker! haha
Im Mainframe (the dj) from the USA (Los Angeles) not Germany!! Thats a whole different genre haha
Posted by: Mainframe | Oct 19, 2007 9:51:56 AM
Sometimes the name is just a catchy word like mainframe, I just love that GI Joe character, I had one just like it when I was a kid. Yo Joe.
Posted by: protein shakes | Apr 21, 2011 10:00:09 AM
I think mainframe name is the title of one movie or game. It is usually the characters or the organization of the characters, sometimes a thing or sometimes a characters name. GI JOE and Transformer is the series that will never end.
Posted by: google redirect virus removal | Jun 30, 2011 12:42:17 AM
The mainframe is the name of a story or movie that starts with a thoughts then comic and finally the movie. Transformer is the best example of mainframe.
Posted by: tv licence refund | Aug 3, 2011 12:06:15 AM
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