Meta post I’ve decided to make. I enjoyed the unixporn subreddit a lot when I used reddit more. I enjoy customizing my linux de as much as the next nerd.

But you definitely shouldn’t use racist slang to refer to the process.

To be clear, I didn’t know the origin of the term ‘ricing’ until fairly recently. I was chattimg with my friend and used it to describe my de setup. They informed me that apparently it’s from car customization, and is a pejorative against generally asian men who customize their car to look like a racecar.

After learning this I was sad to realize just how engrained it is in linux de customization culture. I personally have stopped using the term, and I would ask everyone here stop as well.

  • sanpedropeddler
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    4
    ·
    1 year ago

    What could rice have to do with computer customization?

    Nothing, its a completely different meaning of the word rice.

    Even if it’s distanced from the original meaning the word itself implies that racist joke.

    Me and everyone I know didn’t know the history of the word at all until now. We didn’t think it implied anything, we just assumed it was another stupid nonsensical English word.

    • chicken@lemmy.dbzer0.com
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      1
      ·
      1 year ago

      Nothing, its a completely different meaning of the word rice.

      Apparently it isn’t though, or at least wasn’t.

      We didn’t think it implied anything, we just assumed it was another stupid nonsensical English word.

      I guess it would be hard to know what people who don’t know might conclude if they think about it. But don’t most slang terms have some kind of near-surface etymology? Maybe someone could mistake it for being related to the practice of putting damp electronics in rice somehow. Idk, do you think the people who are opposed to its use are just muckraking?

      • sanpedropeddler
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        3
        ·
        1 year ago

        There are a lot of words and phrases that don’t make sense at all in English, so I usually don’t question things very much. Maybe I’m the weird one but I’ve never seen anyone ask about why we use the word rice.

        Idk, do you think the people who are opposed to its use are just muckraking?

        Idk what muckraking is, but I think those opposed to it are mostly correct in their thinking. I just think that this isn’t quite the same as other similar examples. This use of the word rice is so far detached from racism that most people don’t even know about the connection. There is no intention of racism, there is no perception of racism. I see no problem.