Locomotion naming

[phort99]

[edit] I wrote the below response before he/she added that second qualifying sentence.

The infinitive "ir" is an irregular verb which means "to go." Vaya is the él/usted imperative form, which means you'd use it to tell someone to go somewhere, like "Vaya con Pablo" ("Go with Pablo.")

However, it seems vaya can also be used as a general interjection.

[STRZ]

I'm sure you're right, technically. Damn i don't know my own father language, just never used or heard "vaya" in ths context while beeing in Spain

[colocolo]

Vaya que si!

[Zoide]

Another word in Spanish related to going and walking is "andar" (with a stress on the second syllable). The problem us that saying Virtuix Andar is kind of hard. Maybe if you place the stress on the first syllable of andar it'll be easier to pronounce. The fact is that Virtuix by itself is kind of hard to pronounce, so any product name that goes after it needs to be very simple.

[TheHolyChicken]

"Ice Step".
Verbally you can't really help but contract it into "Icetep" (with my accent, anyway), which seems like a nice little word for a product.

[mahler]

"Ice Step".
Verbally you can't really help but contract it into "Icetep" (with my accent, anyway), which seems like a nice little word for a product.

Does sound an awful lot like iStep

[ElMatarife]

I'd suggest Vya! or V-Ya or Vyia some sort of other spelling that suggests it is supposed to be pronounced "via". "via" alternate spellings are a great name because of the meanings and Latin etymology, it's got the alteration with your company name, and using the letter V just suggests VR.

I liked rover but I bet it's trademarked already, what about the Virtuix Roamer? After all, it lets you "roam" in game.

[rhinosix]

A ride that never ends? You could paint some flames on the side and call it The Ixion.

[Okta]

Please not a silly fad name like Vya, which doesn't sound like anything descriptive. Make it sound like what it is/does to some degree.

[Zoide]

Please not a silly fad name like Vya, which doesn't sound like anything descriptive. Make it sound like what it is/does to some degree.

That's why I thought "Groove" was a good name, but Jan says it's not available for trademark. Perhaps it would work if it were spelled differently (e.g. "Groov", "Gruev", etc).

[rhinosix]

Please not a silly fad name like Vya, which doesn't sound like anything descriptive. Make it sound like what it is/does to some degree.

That's why I thought "Groove" was a good name, but Jan says it's not available for trademark. Perhaps it would work if it were spelled differently (e.g. "Groov", "Gruev", etc).

Grüv looks nice aesthetically. Looks like it's the name of a nailcare company.

When I look at the V words like 'Vya' I just get this image of a group of women in their mid-forties wearing Crocs and fake Louis Vuitton who have drunk too much wine and started coming up with pet names for their... stuff.

Maybe a word that describes the advantage or ability it will give you in a game? Like for a gun peripheral you might have a name like DeadAim, Marksman, etc.

So... Quickstep, Silentstep, Silent Tread, Quick Tread, Scout, Tracker, Marathon, Runner, March, Strafe, Endurance...

Patrol?

Persistence?

Maybe something to do with https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persistence_hunting?

[Zoide]

When I look at the V words like 'Vya' I just get this image of a group of women in their mid-forties wearing Crocs and fake Louis Vuitton who have drunk too much wine and started coming up with pet names for their... stuff.

I seriously laughed out loud with that!

Your other suggestions were pretty good. I like the idea of something that is related to movement and has positive connotations.

Perhaps a name generator such as WORDOID can help?

[Diorama]

Like for a gun peripheral you might have a name like DeadAim, Marksman, etc.

So... Quickstep, Silentstep, Silent Tread, Quick Tread, Scout, Tracker, Marathon, Runner, March, Strafe, Endurance...

Patrol?

These are really good. I like Strafe, Tracker and Scout.

[phort99]

I'm sure you're right, technically. Damn i don't know my own father language, just never used or heard "vaya" in ths context while beeing in Spain

I'm not a native Spanish speaker, I just had to memorize conjugation of a bunch of irregular verbs as a part of my high school Spanish class. I can't speak as to how common it is in terms of usage.

[STRZ]

I'm not a native Spanish speaker, I just had to memorize conjugation of a bunch of irregular verbs as a part of my high school Spanish class. I can't speak as to how common it is in terms of usage.

Me neither, i have spanish roots and learned it more "in the field", visiting my family in holidays as a child and later living there a few years as a twen, among spanish people. Just didn't happen that i had to use "vaya" this way, and i don't remember hearing it from the people i was surrounded with or met. But i'm sure that it's used when people interact with each other with a certain distance.

[TheHolyChicken]

A simple recommendation; try to avoid a name that is going to make someone feel silly saying it out loud. Also, try to go with something that's simple and obvious in how to say it out loud.

Go with 'Virtuix Stomp' or 'Virtuix Walker' or something, rather than the Virtuix xzyxzxiop.

[Zoide]

I agree with TheHolyChicken. I think that Virtuix is already distinctive enough that you can afford to have a generic-sounding product name, as long as it's a good one.

[ElMatarife]

Grüv looks nice aesthetically. Looks like it's the name of a nailcare company.

Umlauts make me think heavy metal bands personally. http://www.theonion.com/articles/united ... auts,4230/

[JanVR]

A generic-sounding name is indeed safer and less controversial than a more catchy name. I think a product name like Nintendo's "Wii" for example would have invoked mixed reactions amongst our group here. But in hindsight, I think "Wii" is a more clever and powerful name than the Playstation "Move". To HolyChicken's point, the worst name is one that consumers feel silly using. Would anyone feel silly using Virtuix or Vya?

[KBK]

The real test is to give the name to someone, more than one person, then ask them a week later, what the name was. And to not just remember it, but write it down.

the closer you can get to that, then the better the name. maybe. Just some bits to think of.

For example, Palmer's choice of Oculus Rift, is easy to remember and then repeat, verbally or on paper.

Most importantly, laid out and unique enough so that search engines don't loose you under piles of other stuff.

[Fredz]

Virtuix sounds finds, but I'm not fond of Vya. It's not descriptive at all and thus not really easy to remember. Like someone else said in this thread a more descriptive name for the model itself would be nice.

[Mystify]

Vya is the name that has most stood out to me from all of this. I remember via and groove, the others I'd have to look up.

[virror]

Virtuix is to complex, take a simple short name thats easy to remember, I like Vya, short and easy : )

Edit: Vya is oblivious a wine : )
http://www.vya.com/

[ElMatarife]

The real test is to give the name to someone, more than one person, then ask them a week later, what the name was. And to not just remember it, but write it down.

the closer you can get to that, then the better the name. maybe. Just some bits to think of.

Most importantly, laid out and unique enough so that search engines don't loose you under piles of other stuff.

Brilliant idea. I'm going to remember that the next time I need to think of a name. It's only good if it sticks!

[JanVR]

After all the input, I went back to the drawing board. A good solution might be a name that is fully descriptive, but that can be abbreviated for the catchy marketing part. For example:

The Virtual Runner, or in short, the Virtuix VR or simply the VR. The mark VR can be used for logo / marketing purposes.

The Omni Runner, or in short, the Virtuix Omni or simply the Omni.

Other options:
- Virtual Tred (the "VT")
- Omni Tred (the "Omni")
- Virtual Rover
- Virtual Gait
- Omni Tracker
- Virtual Rover
- Etc.

Any other thoughts or feedback in this regard?

[BillRoeske]

Actually, I quite like the Virtuix Omni. Omni a memorable, familiar, but uncommon one-syllable word and it's descriptive of a notable quality of the device. And, as a bonus, it sounds like a piece of exercise equipment.

[Zoide]

Virtuix Omni sounds good. Virtuix Groove is also nice and looks better in print, but having the "g" right after the "x" makes it harder to pronounce.

I think Rover sounds kind of silly. Tred is OK, but a bit misleading since it's not really a treadmill, and that's what it sounds like. I don't like Gait at all.

Looking forward to more news, pictures, and video of your prototypes, Jan! Keep up the good work

[phort99]

Tred and Omni are good words.

Gait is hard to understand verbally because of the homophone Gate. "Have you heard of the new virtuix gait? That's gait spelled G-A-I-T, as in walking."

I tend to think of Mars robots and dogs when I hear Rover but that's just me. Maybe just use Rove?

How attached are you to "Virtuix?" It's three syllables and the X doesn't go well with some words.

Actually, I quite like the Virtuix Omni. Omni a memorable, familiar, but uncommon one-syllable word and it's descriptive of a notable quality of the device. And, as a bonus, it sounds like a piece of exercise equipment.

Omni is two syllables.

[BillRoeske]

Omni is two syllables.

:headdesk:

Good catch.

Still my favorite, though.

[twofoe]

I'm putting a vote in for "Groove." It's very clever, descriptive and memorable. I have been away from this thread for days now and I still remembered "oh, locomotion naming, wasn't that the Groove thing?"