Microslop
English
[edit]Etymology
[edit]Blend of Microsoft + slop. Attested since at least 1988. It has gained some degree of currency in the 2020s as the company is seen as placing an excessive focus on artificial intelligence. Compare AI slop.
Pronunciation
[edit]- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈmaɪkɹəˌslɒp/, /ˈmaɪkɹəʊˌslɒp/
- (General American) IPA(key): /ˈmaɪkɹəˌslɑp/, /ˈmaɪkɹoʊˌslɑp/
Proper noun
[edit]Microslop
- (slang, dysphemistic, derogatory) The technology company Microsoft.
- 1988 April 24, Henry Spencer, “Re: Anyone seen a good Amiga Pascal lately ? Why not Modula-2?”, in comp.lang.modula2[1] (Usenet), archived from the original on 5 March 2026:
- If Microslop can't be bothered, don't buy their compiler.
- 1993 December, A. Fasoldt, “Key Combo Standards”, in GENIE LAMP, volume 3, number 63, page 15:
- All Windows apps use Control-X, Control-C and Control-V, and using the same ones on the Atari makes life a little easier for those of us who need to deal with Microslop products.
- [1994 November 14, Alan Deutschman, “The soul of Microsoft's machine”, in Fortune, volume 130, number 10, page 260:
- But [David] Cutler also felt outright contempt for lowly PCs and their bug-ridden programs, calling his new employer "Microslop" and "this scumbag company" and thinking Gates himself overrated.]
- 1998, 2600: The Hacker Quarterly[2], volume 15, page 9:
- If you're using a MicroSlop based OS, well then there's not much I can do for ya.
- 2003 March, Ben Swanner, “Letters”, in Network Magazine, San Francisco:
- Regarding protection of property in the computing industry, I once heard a computer consultant say, "If someone thinks they have intellectual property to protect, then they don't have any intellectual property." This statement says it all about innovation and progression in the area of software development. Stifle that for "Microslop" profit and you kill all future innovation.
- [2005, Peter Middleton, James Sutton, Lean Software Strategies, page 374:
- In 1988, experienced software engineers who joined Microsoft from Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) called the company “Microslop.” They felt the Microsoft developers were less experienced and approached problems “helter skelter.”]
- [2014, Zachary Pascal, Showstopper! The Breakneck Race to Create Windows NT and the Next Generation at Microsoft, page 43:
- The differences in style were apparent to Cutler’s people, who derisively referred to Microsoft as “Microslop.”]
- 2023, Steal This Book, 4th edition, page 791:
- While the at first pure and progressive international education focused OLPC or $100 laptop project appears to have been messed up by the facists at microslop, we are very excited with the proliferation of inexpensive linux laptops it has spawned. […] MS Slaves can still find most models with windoze installed for around $50 extra.
- [2026 January 6, Nat Wilson Turner, “Coffee Break: Microsoft’s Satya Nadella Makes Microslop Trend”, in Naked Capitalism[3], archived from the original on 6 January 2026:
- Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has made the term Microslop go viral with his admonition to “get beyond the arguments of slop vs sophistication” when discussing Large Language Model (LLM) Artificial Intelligence (AI).]