Google has finally let us know what the ‘N’ in Android N stands for. And this time they decided to crowdsource the name. And no, it’s not Neyyappam or Nankhatai. The ‘N’ in Android stands for Nougat, that chewy, sticky dessert.
Nougat is a sweet made from sugar or honey, nuts, and egg white.
Now, nougat isn’t as mainstream as say KitKat or Ice Cream Sandwich or Marshmallow, but it does have its fans. I have an old relationship with it. As a kid, I would pop into my mouth the moment I didn’t want to answer inane questions such as “Do you like your teacher?” or “Recite a poem for us”. While such nougats are long gone, the closest one can have over the counter is a Snickers bar.
But Google chose Nougat over Neyyappam, the deep-fried concoction from God’s Own Country. This despite the fact that we’ve had reports that among the names being considered were Nankhatai and Neyyappam, and that Neyyappam was leading!
Every time we talk of crowdsourcing, we expect to win by sheer numbers. And of course, doesn’t our own “Sundi” head Google? Neyyappam was a winner even before you finished saying it. Yes, India is a land of over a billion people, but we forgot to read the fine print: Google takes the final call on the name, despite whichever name getting the maximum ‘votes’. And while Sundar Pichai is the CEO of Google, that in no way affects what the next version of Android should be named. So while we might think it’s a loss of face for Indian fans, we should spare a thought for the millions of non-Indians who also use the world’s most popular mobile operating system. And if one goes by sheer numbers, shouldn’t all phones run only Chinese versions of software? Read more
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