Pentium? Athlon? I’m often fond of saying that today’s processor names sound like characters from cheesy science fiction. In fact, I put my theory to the test.
Below you find the output from a small program that I’ve written. It produces 140 “random” words that sound like they could either be a new CPU name or the name of some character in a kids’ science fiction television show. You decide which!
| quagoic | protuon | paxinum | paxayon | crapium | cryaic | peyon |
| zipion | protutran | tixoyon | techyon | paten | zitayz | pytanum |
| zapiten | zloteum | penium | xotex | pytuax | nurpheyz | blorpuic |
| cyryyn | novaiyx | zlotunum | nurphaten | tizoon | paxunium | cyruum |
| onafaz | poium | zedutex | pentitax | powtiic | zapatez | pentitez |
| blorpaax | cyrayx | numyum | toyum | pentuyon | nurpheyn | powteax |
| tizyon | xogaic | zedaax | toitax | inaten | zedofaz | poitran |
| blorpinum | protytax | cytium | tizaten | petez | powtuon | zitonum |
| tiziax | poayn | pytran | proteic | xeum | pentyyon | zipoax |
| zlotuten | xetax | zipynium | xogitex | protitex | tizitax | cytoten |
| gaxoyn | zitoyn | zipytex | pytonon | techitex | cytytran | nurphaic |
| zlotanon | inuum | xiax | zapoic | exetran | pytoax | zityic |
| tixiax | zlotanum | tizonum | gaxenon | poxynium | tixyfaz | tixanum |
| xyax | oneic | poyum | nurpheyon | pytytran | protoyz | xunum |
| tounum | ziteyx | cryoyon | zedonum | numotax | novainon | nurphytex |
| quagefaz | crapiyx | poeon | cytatex | uthoon | gaxitax | pentyyz |
| exitex | quadiyz | inuic | paxayx | xogitran | quadetez | blorpyum |
| uthitax | quadoon | onotez | techinium | cyxetax | nurphayon | poanon |
| zloteten | tizayn | oniic | zipynon | tixuic | quadutax | zapeon |
| xanium | paxonum | poinon | exatex | poxuum | techuyon | panium |
You can go to my 140 Random Names page to see more names.
Nerdy Stuff. The program is written in PhP. It uses the following 36 prefixes:
| pent | pax | pox | p | prot | gax | xog | zap | ath | quag | blorp | crap |
| pyt | zip | nurph | tix | uth | num | zed | zit | powt | tech | zlot | tiz |
| cyt | cry | cyr | cyx | ex | in | to | quad | po | x | on | nova |
One of those is followed by a vowel (or ‘y’). Then I stick on one of 17 suffixes:
| tran | tax | faz | tex | ten | tez | um | on | |
| ic | yn | yz | yx | nium | num | yon | non | ax |
Mix ’em. Randomize them. And … ta da!
