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There's a well-known, widely used, Python project called Babel (http://babel.pocoo.org/ http://babel.pocoo.org/). I find it quite annoying when people name the

There's a well-known, widely used, Python project called Babel (http://babel.pocoo.org/ http://babel.pocoo.org/). I find it quite annoying when people name their project without consideration for other people in the open source community. Other historical examples include Mozilla Firebird, which was renamed to Thunderbird after loud complains of the Firebird database community, or Twitter's Fabric, which clashes with Fabric (http://www.fabfile.org/ http://www.fabfile.org/), another Python project.

sgentle 12y ago
I don't think it's as inconsiderate as you imply. Babel (as in tower of) is a fairly well known biblical reference that I'd expect to find used in all sorts of project names related to translation. Indeed, a quick googling shows there's a Python Babel, an Eclipse Babel, an Emacs Babel, a TeX Babel, a Babel language, and an Open Babel for chemistry. I'm sure the addition of this new JS Babel won't inconvenience anyone too much. If anything, I think the real issue is open source projects overplaying their hand and insisting they own certain words or ideas that they have no real claim to, particularly when there isn't any actual chance of confusion. The Firebird renaming wasn't so much sensible precedent as a good example of a Mozilla saying "okay please stop yelling, we'll do whatever you want".
- fermigier 12y ago
  1) "I'd expect to find used in all sorts of project names related to translation." Indeed, except that this project has nothing to do with i18n like (most of) the other projects you are citing. This is a compiler project, not a multilinguistic project. 2) There is nothing called "Python Babel", it's just called "Babel". Eclipse Babel (https://eclipse.org/babel/ https://eclipse.org/babel/) is called "Eclipse Babel" so there is no name clash. For some of the other projects, you have a (minor) point. 3) "The Firebird renaming wasn't so much sensible precedent as a good example of a Mozilla saying "okay please stop yelling, we'll do whatever you want"." Mozilla had a much stronger reason to comply than just goodwill and being fair: the other party had a trademark (see: http://www.firebirdsql.org/en/firebird-brand-faq/ http://www.firebirdsql.org/en/firebird-brand-faq/ ). 4) The considerate thing to do would have been to call the project "Babeljs".
- rspeer 12y ago
  I recall there have been multiple, incompatible tools for managing gettext-style translation files called "Rosetta".
sebastianmck 12y ago
Not really true. Babel is a generic term for translation/languages and the Python and JavaScript world are very different so confusion about a translation library and a JavaScript transpiler is extremely unlikely.
- hk__2 12y ago
  It becomes confusing if you use Python and JavaScript in the same project, which is common in Web applications.
  - mg74 12y ago
    Hardly, 6to5 isn't a library that you include in your own code. Its a tool that you use indirectly through Gulp/Browserify/WebPack.
petepete 12y ago
Firebird was actually renamed to Firefox and was previously known as Phoenix.
petepete 12y ago
Firebird was actually renamed to Firefox and was previously known as Phoenix.

sgentle 12y ago

I don't think it's as inconsiderate as you imply. Babel (as in tower of) is a fairly well known biblical reference that I'd expect to find used in all sorts of project names related to translation. Indeed, a quick googling shows there's a Python Babel, an Eclipse Babel, an Emacs Babel, a TeX Babel, a Babel language, and an Open Babel for chemistry. I'm sure the addition of this new JS Babel won't inconvenience anyone too much. If anything, I think the real issue is open source projects overplaying their hand and insisting they own certain words or ideas that they have no real claim to, particularly when there isn't any actual chance of confusion. The Firebird renaming wasn't so much sensible precedent as a good example of a Mozilla saying "okay please stop yelling, we'll do whatever you want".

fermigier 12y ago
1) "I'd expect to find used in all sorts of project names related to translation." Indeed, except that this project has nothing to do with i18n like (most of) the other projects you are citing. This is a compiler project, not a multilinguistic project. 2) There is nothing called "Python Babel", it's just called "Babel". Eclipse Babel (https://eclipse.org/babel/ https://eclipse.org/babel/) is called "Eclipse Babel" so there is no name clash. For some of the other projects, you have a (minor) point. 3) "The Firebird renaming wasn't so much sensible precedent as a good example of a Mozilla saying "okay please stop yelling, we'll do whatever you want"." Mozilla had a much stronger reason to comply than just goodwill and being fair: the other party had a trademark (see: http://www.firebirdsql.org/en/firebird-brand-faq/ http://www.firebirdsql.org/en/firebird-brand-faq/ ). 4) The considerate thing to do would have been to call the project "Babeljs".
rspeer 12y ago
I recall there have been multiple, incompatible tools for managing gettext-style translation files called "Rosetta".

sebastianmck 12y ago

Not really true. Babel is a generic term for translation/languages and the Python and JavaScript world are very different so confusion about a translation library and a JavaScript transpiler is extremely unlikely.

hk__2 12y ago
It becomes confusing if you use Python and JavaScript in the same project, which is common in Web applications.
- mg74 12y ago
  Hardly, 6to5 isn't a library that you include in your own code. Its a tool that you use indirectly through Gulp/Browserify/WebPack.

petepete 12y ago

Firebird was actually renamed to Firefox and was previously known as Phoenix.

petepete 12y ago

Firebird was actually renamed to Firefox and was previously known as Phoenix.