Visually defined: tech jargon

How non-tech people visualize tech terms

Tech terminology might feel a little bit daunting for people estranged from the tech community. We probably don’t pay attention to it anymore as we keep our tech vocabulary constantly updated. But how does it really feel to be on the other side? Do our conversations sound like Klingon? 😱

I’ve jotted down a list with some of the most common used terms and their explanation and here’s a visual example of what people literally think instead!

Ruby — a dynamic, reflective, object-oriented, general-purpose programming language.
Cloud — basically, a network of servers. Some of them provide an online service, like Adobe Creative Cloud, and others allow you to store and access data, like Instagram or Dropbox. You can read more about it here.
Bug — a coding error in a computer program.
Merge — to combine two or more files in such a way that the resulting one has the same organization as the individual files.
Refactoring — the process of changing a software system in such a way that it does not alter the external behavior of the code yet improves its internal structure.
Migration — the process of transferring data between storage types, formats, or computer systems.
Commit — adding changes to the local repository.
Pull request — a method of submitting contributions to an open development project.
Deploy — all the processes involved in getting new software or hardware up and running properly in its environment, including installation, configuration, running, testing, and making necessary changes.
Ship it — in the software sense means to deliver it to the customer: “It compiles, ship it!”
Staging — a private website that serves as a preview of work that has been done by developers.

What are other most used terms? Let me know! :)

Special thanks to my husband and favorite dev Gianluca Tranchedone who gave me the inspiration for the illustrations :)

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