la computadora or el computrador

kori · 10-23-2005, 09:19 PM

A Spanish teacher was explaining to her class that in Spanish unlike English, nouns are designated as either masculine or feminine. “House” for instance, is feminine—“la casa”. “Phone,” however is masculine – “el telepono”
A student asked, “What gender is “computer?”
Instead of giving the answer, the teacher split the class into two groups, male and female, and asked them to decide for themselves whether “computer” should be masculine or a feminine noun. Each group was asked to give four reasons for their recommendation.
The men’s group decided that “computer” should definitely be of feminine gender (la computadora) because:
1. No one but their creator understands their internal logic;
2. The native language they use to communicate with other computers is incomprehensible to everyone else;
3. Even the smallest mistakes are stored in long term memory for possible later retrieval;
4. As soon as you make a commitment to one, you find yourself spending half your paycheck on accessories for it!
The women’s group, however, concluded that computers should be masculine (el computador) because:
1. In order to do anything with them, you have to turn them on;
2. They have a lot of data but still can’t think for themselves
3. They are supposed to help you solve problems but half the time they are the problem
4. As soon as you commit to one, you realize that if you had waited a little longer, you could have gotten a better model.

So, which group you think won?

ebackhus · 10-23-2005, 10:25 PM

Ftw!!

oldmn · 10-23-2005, 10:39 PM

I like it

**40sondacurb** · 10-23-2005, 11:09 PM

It gives you countless head aches but you can't live without one.

she's definitely a la

yustr · 10-24-2005, 07:19 AM

This one's gonna get me in trouble but:

The really sleek shiny ones with all of the latest cosmetic upgrades - are beyond the reach of most of us and are very high maintenance anyway...

Now, there's the perfectly competent, "get the job done" kind that we all can live with nicely. Does everything necessary and does it well. Not great looking but much more reliable.

Gotta be a La.

(But how much fun would it be to take one of the others for a test drive just to see what we're missing?

)

**JeremyC** · 10-24-2005, 07:34 AM

If in ends in a sound its feminine. i.e. la professora

anyways Women FTW cuz there better debaters...........

bry623 · 10-24-2005, 08:41 AM

Good one.

ebackhus · 10-25-2005, 09:54 AM

Then what are our trusty home brews? They seem to be an excellent (in most cases) combination of appearance and reliability.

blahmenator · 11-21-2005, 08:48 PM

lol wtf?

elf · 11-21-2005, 09:03 PM

Well it is actually la computadora, but since the teacher is a female she'll probably tell them it's el computador

10-23-2005, 09:19 PM	#1 (permalink)
kori Registered User Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 4 OS: xp	la computadora or el computrador A Spanish teacher was explaining to her class that in Spanish unlike English, nouns are designated as either masculine or feminine. “House” for instance, is feminine—“la casa”. “Phone,” however is masculine – “el telepono” A student asked, “What gender is “computer?” Instead of giving the answer, the teacher split the class into two groups, male and female, and asked them to decide for themselves whether “computer” should be masculine or a feminine noun. Each group was asked to give four reasons for their recommendation. The men’s group decided that “computer” should definitely be of feminine gender (la computadora) because: 1. No one but their creator understands their internal logic; 2. The native language they use to communicate with other computers is incomprehensible to everyone else; 3. Even the smallest mistakes are stored in long term memory for possible later retrieval; 4. As soon as you make a commitment to one, you find yourself spending half your paycheck on accessories for it! The women’s group, however, concluded that computers should be masculine (el computador) because: 1. In order to do anything with them, you have to turn them on; 2. They have a lot of data but still can’t think for themselves 3. They are supposed to help you solve problems but half the time they are the problem 4. As soon as you commit to one, you realize that if you had waited a little longer, you could have gotten a better model. So, which group you think won?

10-23-2005, 10:25 PM	#2 (permalink)
ebackhus Manager, Design Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: SATX Posts: 12,762 OS: WinXP Pro SP3 My System Blog Entries: 25	Ftw!! __________________ ----------------------------- There are no dumb questions, unless a customer is asking them. Help in the fight against cancer and other serious illnesses.

10-23-2005, 10:39 PM	#3 (permalink)
oldmn Hardware Tech Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Gig Harbor Wa Posts: 2,137 OS: XP Pro SP3 X 3 My System	I like it __________________ AVG \| MEMTEST86 \| Zone Alarm \| XXCLONE \| Adaware \| Beyond Compare \| Everest If TSF has helped you, Tell us about it! or Donate to help keep the site up! Sorry no PM's for problems.

10-23-2005, 11:09 PM	#4 (permalink)
40sondacurb #64 & #36 BACKBONE Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 5,804 OS: xp	It gives you countless head aches but you can't live without one. she's definitely a la __________________ Donate to keep the forum running "I know the human being and fish can coexist peacefully" -George W. Bush

10-24-2005, 07:19 AM	#5 (permalink)
yustr Asst. Manager, The Conversation Pit Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Connecticut shore Posts: 4,994 OS: XP Pro My System	This one's gonna get me in trouble but: The really sleek shiny ones with all of the latest cosmetic upgrades - are beyond the reach of most of us and are very high maintenance anyway... Now, there's the perfectly competent, "get the job done" kind that we all can live with nicely. Does everything necessary and does it well. Not great looking but much more reliable. Gotta be a La. (But how much fun would it be to take one of the others for a test drive just to see what we're missing? ) __________________ I didn't mean to say it. But I meant what I said. J. McMurtry In Vino Veritas

10-24-2005, 07:34 AM	#6 (permalink)
JeremyC Resident Alchemist Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Virginia Posts: 1,126 OS: SuSE 10.0/XP Pro	If in ends in a sound its feminine. i.e. la professora anyways Women FTW cuz there better debaters........... __________________ Last edited by JeremyC : 10-24-2005 at 07:35 AM.

10-24-2005, 08:41 AM	#7 (permalink)
bry623 Manager, The Conversation Pit/Analyst, Security Team Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: NW Territory circa 1787 Posts: 10,621 OS: winxp pro sp2	Good one. __________________ "Government is not the solution to our problem. Government is the problem." -Ronald Reagan

10-25-2005, 09:54 AM	#8 (permalink)
ebackhus Manager, Design Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: SATX Posts: 12,762 OS: WinXP Pro SP3 My System Blog Entries: 25	Then what are our trusty home brews? They seem to be an excellent (in most cases) combination of appearance and reliability. __________________ ----------------------------- There are no dumb questions, unless a customer is asking them. Help in the fight against cancer and other serious illnesses.

11-21-2005, 08:48 PM	#9 (permalink)
blahmenator Registered User Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: New Zealand Posts: 21 OS: Windows XP SP2	lol wtf?

11-21-2005, 09:03 PM	#10 (permalink)
elf Assistant Manager, Microsoft Support Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Knoxville, TN or Austin, TX depending Posts: 6,190 OS: WinXP Pro SP2 and Slackware 10.1 My System	Well it is actually la computadora, but since the teacher is a female she'll probably tell them it's el computador