"Is a New Word Required for a Common Experience?" Topic

Over the years, as I have helped others use their computers, or individually trained people in the applications I've developed, I've run into a situation for which I think there needs to be a new word, probably a verb. I've thought this to be a requirement in today's society for a long time now. Maybe there is such a word and someone a little more literate than I can point it out to me?

It's when two or more people are gathered around a computer and it's taking a long time to open a program, or crunch numbers. There's kind of a pregnant pause where people are looking at the screen and the computer takes longer to react than you expect. Usually I roll my eyes and apologize for my poor application development skills or curse Microsoft, the network admins, firewalls, or whatever. Often I've said "we need a word for this situation!"

Although usually associated with waiting for a computer to do stuff, it can also be applicable to other things. For example, last night I was at the pharmacy getting drugs to help keep the wonderful gift of someone's kidney to me functioning and the pharmacy student accidentally overcharged my account – he had to call the supervisor to reverse it. The supervisor took a little while to get there, so we were at the pharmacy counter waiting, waiting.

So what's a good existing word for this sort of pregnant pause/long wait? Should there be a new one?

Let's do the lacuna!

interluding

It's a painfully common situation for me – My Company is owned by a Big Beast, and THEY are financed by a Big Beast who are beholden to a large bank. As a result I have had 11 audits in the last 15 months.

There needs to be a special word to describe 'Hunching in front of a computer with two other people looking over your shoulder and desperately hoping the data you are pulling up supports the line you just spun them (WHY WON'T IT OPEN ? OPEN YOU BASTARD) Ahhhhh here we go, see? Trade Sales May 2011 ARE calculated in Welsh, just like I said' (thankgodthankgodthankgod) Sale of Fixed Assets in April hahahahaha? (nooooooooo not the sale of fixed assets glitch in april we were never able to track down noooooooooo……..)

Pat

I got an internal work thing in the post yesterday that described a new field laptop as "ruggedised". There's enough new words.

'polling', perhaps ?

And what's wrong with 'waiting' ?

Is is prettty much the bane of my existance. I do frequent webex and live demos, trainings, etc. and the hourglass makes me want to kill people…

I dunno, but if there's a term for it, it will be here: foldoc.org

(Caution: One can lose hours just clicking about in that "dictionary.")

And what's wrong with 'waiting' ?

Ed, waiting is accurate, but this sort of specific thing happens so much, it requires a variation of waiting.

Bill, I think "Wilting" needs to be in there somehow…

I must poke a Parzival's link.

ha ha, pphalen, that's how I feel sometimes, too. Espcially when you are sitting with incredibly humourless people like the stuffed dummies they have in Canada who parade as nuclear safety regulators. Honest to god, they must do some kind of brain altering surgery on people like that and some other types of auditors (right max?).

Streetline, "ruggedized" was around when I was dealing with MILSPECs back in the late 80s.
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Tim

Ruggedized I can almost accept, its origins are clear. Ruggedised I'm much less keen on… :-)

Wouldn't have that problem if they'd just install a "hurry" button. You know. The one that speeds up processes the more instances per unit time you strike it. Much like some folks and elevator buttons.

JJ

Ed, waiting is accurate, but this sort of specific thing happens so much, it requires a variation of waiting.

I'm not seeing why it has a special character of its own compared to other sorts of things you wait for.
Rather than making up new words I think more people need to expand their vocabulary to include old ones, such as 'patience'.

aggriwaiting?

Wouldn't have that problem if they'd just install a "hurry" button

That is accomplished by jiggling the mouse!