Leaving the Premises

I am writing this post based upon on the premise that the English language, my Mother tongue, is being harmed on a daily basis in the name of cloud computing.  I am not writing it on the premises of my employer (whose opinions are not reflected here), because I am on a train, writing this on a mobile device.

Those of you who know me are probably saying, "Oh great, another screed from Mike about some trivial point of irrelevant detail that no one cares about, because he's trying to sound smarter than everyone else."  I love you, too.

I also know that I run the risk among grammar geeks of starting a whole "prescriptivist vs descriptivist" war, but that's not usually a target audience for this blog, so, whatevs. :)

I will accept your labels of "pedant," "know-it-all," and "nitpicker" if you need to attach them to me, but my motivation runs a bit deeper.  I was raised by teachers, and their standards for how we wrote and spoke as a family are a part of how I was formed. I suppose that part of my passion comes from just being who I am, some from how I was raised and educated, and some from an explicit desire to honor my parents.

But I digress.  This is the thing:

"Premises" (plural) are a location, a physical place or property.  When we say that Mike has "left the premises" we are saying that Mike is no longer in the building or on the property.

A "premise" (singular) is an idea or concept upon which other ideas or concepts are based.  For example, the value of SharePoint is based upon the premise that collaboration is a worthwhile and valuable thing for a particular venture.  If this premise is false (e.g., the venture in question comprises only a single person), then SharePoint will not be valuable.

The more comprehensive and definitive Merriam-Webster definition is here, for your reference.

In the world of cloud computing, I see this all the time:  systems maintained in organizations' own facilities frequently referred to as "on premise," from organizations as substantial as Microsoft, Oracle, SalesForce, and many others. I wish they would stop.

I implore copywriters and people everywhere who care about both technology and language to understand this difference, to fight the laziness and lack of rigor implied by this mistake, and to use the right word.  Words still matter.  Please choose them thoughtfully.

If you can't remember which is correct, the ambiguous "on prem" should cover you.

Thank you for reading.

[photo credit:  me, at the City Square, Charlestown premises formerly housing Olives restaurant, reported by the Boston Globe to soon be the home of a new Legal "C" bar.  Kudos for use of premises, brickbats for lack of agreement between subject and verb ("premises is...").  One windmill at a time...]

Comments

[Sympmarc]

Hear, hear. Misuse of language doesn't benefit anyone; it just causes misunderstandings. The general erosion of the English language that you and I bemoan may not concern others, but what about the fact that it makes one sound less intelligent?

M.

[Mike Gil]

Thanks, Marc. I worry sometimes that I'm too worried about sounding intelligent, and not worried enough about being understood. You validate me. :-)