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What does kbin mean? Why is kbin.social called that? (lemm.ee)

submitted 1 year ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

47 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Is it just random letters arrived to by keyboard mashing like a lot of federated websites seem, or is there any thought behind it?

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[–] [email protected] 135 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (3 children)

Here is the answer on the Polish instance directly from @ernest, kbin's creator. For reference, he was being accused of being a gun lover based on the name of the Polish instance "karab.in" and "magazines," as well as his Monty Python profile pic with a gun in it.

https://karab.in/m/fediverse/p/217281/The-reason-for-the-strange-naming-and-uncomfortable-images-on#post-comment-311421

Here are the relevant sections from Ernest on the origins of both kbin and magazine:

Hey, I'm the admin of kbin.social. The name "kbin" comes from the Linux "/sbin" directory - I've mentioned it multiple times before. The name of the Polish instance - karab.in - does indeed reference a rifle, but it's just a play on words, and it was actually chosen through a survey among other domains. It's simply easy to remember and sounds nice in Polish. There's no place for nazi bullshit on my instances.

On the other hand, the name "magazyn" refers to the virtual edition of a late 90s gaming newspaper :D

[–] [email protected] 22 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Thanks for providing the references. This should be at the top.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago

No problem, hopefully it will make its way up there haha.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 year ago (1 children)

We still don’t know what the K stands for though.

[–] [email protected] 16 points 1 year ago (2 children)

The K stands for Kool, same as in KDE.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

🤣🤣

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Kool kool kool

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

So /sbin from Linux + k from karabin from the Polish word for rifle

But the creator doesn't want it the instance to be seen as rifle-focused or otherwise militant and violent, so it just carries the "rifle-wielding polish linux user"-name without wanting to focus on militant Polish nerds.