Talk:Pwn/Archive 4

WTFPWNED
Can we say something about "wtfpwned"? When I did a search for it, it brough me to this article. However, "wtfpwned" has a somewhat different meaning. When you pwned someone so bad that they didnt even know what happened (i.e. head-spinning pwned), it's called wtfpwned (full form: what-teh-fuck pwned).Game Collector 01:28, 7 October 2007 (UTC)

Trivial pwn mentions?

Is it necessary or even relevant to the needs of an encyclopedia to create a list of each and every mention of the word "pwn" in television and film? It seems very trivial to me, and only invites more of the same.

Corn pwned?
Possibly we should think about explaining the pwnage hierarchy, which has been verified as such: -pwn: explained

-uber pwn: to pwn extensively. Intentional pwnage by definition.

-corn pwn: Intentional, premeditated uberpwnage that may only occur once a year in the life of a gamer (although not specific to gaming-specific examples). Etymology stems from the colonial-era dish Corn Pone, and the humiliation the Native American tribes felt when they realized it was disgusting in texture and flavor. Thus, Corn Pone has not been eaten since 1701.

The distribution is decided by the Formed Aggregate Gamer Society to be: in all cases of Pwnage, 70% normal pwnage, 26% uberpwnage, and 3.9% corn pwnage. However there is one final term:

uber corn pwn: To corn pwn so definitively that merely observing the act of pwnage renders the viewer corn pwned him or herself. Hardly ever used do to unrealistic connotations; there have only been four cases of ubercornpwnage in recorded history since Pliny the Younger, and thus the term is in extreme danger of exiting the lexicon.

What do we think? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 140.247.42.104 (talk) 01:03, 11 February 2008 (UTC)

pwn3d
shouldn't it be pronounced "pwenned" not "pwinned" cuz the 3 is an e in l33tspeak —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.140.128.34 (talk) 01:41, 12 December 2007 (UTC)

No actually. It is pronounced "poned" not pwinned or pwenned.. -_- Noobs. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Topazthewolf (talk • contribs) 00:52, 18 July 2008 (UTC)

Possible alternate etymology (and meaning) of pwn
This past summer, a co-worker of mine in his early twenties sent me his email address which used the word ‘pwned’. I asked him about how he came up with the name. He told me that ‘pwn’ was a gaming term and that it was used to indicate going beyond owning someone or something. He said that the spelling was determined by (intentionally) using the letter ‘p’ since it was the next letter in the alphabet after ‘o’.

Other than this statement I have no other support for this source. I am not even certain it can be verified.

Rod Lockwood (talk) 17:24, 25 December 2007 (UTC)


 * Exactly. It can't be sourced.  So why bring it up?  I don't see why everyone seems to feel the need to repeat the same things over and over again.  --  Oni Ookami Alfador Talk 16:48, 26 December 2007 (UTC)


 * The best explanation to date:

This term actually comes from a game created hundreds of years ago, even before computers were invented. This game was called, 'chess'. The object of the game was to put the other player in checkmate, meaning, he was unable to move his king anywhere that he would not be threatened by another piece. Also in this game, you have 8 pieces at the front of your army called 'pawns', these were the least useful of all pieces, but that is not to mean they were worthless. If you could defeat the other player by using your pawn to apply check, that was called, and is still called pawned.

Now, back in the early 80's, before warcraft, counterstrike or even the INTERNET, there were ways you could contact other PC's by using a modem. These were called BBS's and allowed you to connect to individual computers acting as severs where games would be so that people could play other people they did not know. Now, when I used to play these games as well as many other people 22+, they used to use and coined the phrase, 'pwned'. Which was slang for pawned. It eventually was taken from just chess and used in other text based games to taunt the loser of a match. It is now commonly wide spread across the world, although the children do not understand its true meaning.

Saying it came from anywhere else is stating you're a poser for the fact you have no knowledge of gaming history and like to think you do so you make things up. Thanks. Uh-oh a personal attack. O.o

Joe pawned/pwned Goerge along with his queen and knight.-- Chess Player  20:30, 3 March 2008 (PST)


 * There is no source for the etymology of this word without original research. Many users believe this came from a warcraft 3 online game, but no evidence can be found to support this.  As such, the entire section should be removed, as it reeks of OR. 136.168.201.1 (talk) 21:58, 28 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Edit: The first sentence is properly sourced. The reset of the section is complete OR and needs to be removed. 136.168.201.1 (talk) 22:02, 28 April 2008 (UTC

Back in 1874, Emmit P. Winnebager first pwned Samuel L. Saskatoon on a clear spring day in April. Emmit wore an onion on his belt, which was the style at the time (but were, of course, not called 'onions' but 'freedom radishes') and he caught Samuel....blah blah blah. It's a misspelling of 'owned' get on with your life.

I actually agree that the chess theory makes a lot more sense. It just sounds more logical. Joeloliv8 02:23, 13 August 2008 (UTC)

the current etymology suggests that pwn is a typo of own.. personaly ive been in gaming long enough to have experienced pwn with its original spelling, "pawn" it really is much more likely that the term does come from the chess "pawns" that suggests complete and utter defeat, "pawn" beeing the least valuable piece of a chessboard.

External Link not up to date
Link 4 should be this: http://www.lssu.edu/whats_new/articles.php?articleid=1188 The current list is not the one the article should point to. 12.218.153.85 (talk) 07:48, 6 January 2008 (UTC)

What the hell is this:

"It can also be used, especially by non-gamers, in the context of getting "pwned" by The Man."

'The Man'? Does this make any sense?? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.161.170.255 (talk) 02:10, 6 February 2008 (UTC)

Origin
From first person shooter games getting PWN'd is the ultimate disgrace. Pistol Whipped Noob.

the origins of the word pwn come from a warcraft map/scenario that was created it was a spelling error in an automated message that popped up whenever you lost a match e.g if you are the orcs and you are beaten by the elves the message will say " you were pwned by the elves"

S02178 (talk) 01:23, 8 January 2008 (UTC) s02178

Perhaps before calling other Wikipedians "idiots" you should think a little more about what you're going to write, and if you do write something, provide refs. Furthermore, I remember playing Starcraft and people using it then, which predated Warcraft so I think you had best check your sources. -- Librarianofages (talk) 01:25, 8 January 2008 (UTC)

uhh, warcraft 2 (the first multiplayer warcraft) predated starcraft by 3 years. provide refs (haha). I would also make a joke about your first sentence, but that would be mean which is not my goal here. I have heard many people claim that pwn originated from own. BUUUUTTTTT.... pwn with the "w" almost looks like the word "poon" which is a much more pervasive slang term among dirty ass little kids that obviously means to fuck. so getting pwn3d would be the equivalent of getting fucked.

the other school of though would state that, in a multiplayer match, due to the speed of gameplay one might attempt to type owned and instead type pwn3d because they are clicking the mouse and pressing the asdw directional buttons frantically and accidentally hit those keys. some douchebag sees it, laughs, then posts it on his ghey ass harvest moon forums. a bunch of harvest moon loner boys use that same term on counterstrike before they get knifed up by some 12 year old in korea. and the cycle repeats. Gordonliu420 (talk) 21:14, 28 March 2008 (UTC)

Lol ok. you tell me to provide references and attack me with a claim that starcraft used it before warcraft, yet you dont have any references yourself. and i would provide some but i am at work and i have limited web accessS02178 (talk) 01:37, 8 January 2008 (UTC) s02178
 * Check out Leet: Fully details with reference where Pwned and as an extention pwn came from. You'll find that by the time the map in WC3 used it, it was merely one of the words in 1337. -- Ļıßζېấשּׂ~ۘ  Ώƒ ﻚĢęخ (talk) 04:34, 8 January 2008 (UTC)


 * I thought it was possible that the word came from Phrack World News. Why is it's origin as a typo given as known fact?  Is it actually known? Carlo (talk) 15:09, 13 January 2008 (UTC)

I'm afraid you're very wrong. The word "Pwn" began back before Warcraft was even around. It was originally a Starsiege Tribes message forum typo. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.227.231.91 (talk) 22:22, 22 March 2008 (UTC)

Pwn means power own... P ower o WN = PWN At least where I'm from and everyone around the world I talk to uses pwn as "power own" —Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.252.35.180 (talk) 21:43, 28 May 2008 (UTC)
 * WP:VERIFY. --Onorem♠Dil 21:45, 28 May 2008 (UTC)

The term pwn began in a WarCraft (which was released in 1994) map/scenario when the map editor misspelled the word own as pwn and the player was informed he/she had been "pwned" rather than "owned". From there the use of the word spread on battle.net (Blizzard's online gaming service) and has since permeated the online pc gaming community and has come into common usage. Munchy45 (talk) 17:13, 19 July 2008 (UTC)Munchy45

It was used as far back as 1998 in first person shooters (quake 2) as "owned". I know this because that was my first online game. I remember seeing it as "pwned", in role playing games(although I can't remember which game) when a lower level and/or rank beat a higher level. Such as when a pawn of a chess game takes a stronger piece. Im sure there are others who remember this as well, and maybe some verifiable video?, comments?, John Carmack? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.33.104.208 (talk) 06:37, 25 August 2008 (UTC)

I read in trivia information on imdb to the topic StarCraft that the misspelling happened in the game StarCraft, not WarCraft. Quoting: "Starcraft first made use of the word 'pwned', which is popular with Internet users. It came about when a map designer misspelled the word. Then the game was published with the error. When a player had been beaten, the message '______ has been pwned' appeared. This was corrected using patches but remained in the vocabulary of '1337' or 'leet' speakers." I can't confirm that though. -- Private meta (talk) 10:56, 19 September 2008 (UTC)

Rumor of the Creation
One thing that i have seen come up from tmie to time is that some people believe that the word pwned originated from the Warcraft III game Defence of the Ancients when the creator misspelled "owned". —Preceding unsigned comment added by Rajin71506 (talk • contribs) 16:29, 13 January 2008 (UTC)

It should be mentioned where the term pwn did NOT originate. There has been some talk that a member of the Jonas brothers invented it when he misspelt the word in a game of quake 4. This is not the case, and the word has been around since before the members of said band were even born.

Pronunciacion by comparison to welsh words
It seems to me that the article's reference to obscure welsh words is out of place. I find the idea of 'w' as a vowel in an english word fascinating and its worthy of note in the article. But common sense tells me that if the 'pwnd' shares no etimological background with those obscure welsh words, then they would have nothing to do with its pronunciation.

perhaps there is a better place in the article for the factoid that there are few other words in English that use w as a vowel, where this fact is not confused with the arguments about pronunciation.

Headybrew (talk) 23:50, 31 January 2008 (UTC)

The Welsh word 'cwm' is NOT and obscure word - it means 'Valley' and is an every day word. The article incorrectly states that it means cirque. The English word 'cwm' means cirque.

David

--DsquaredUK (talk) 16:04, 30 March 2008 (UTC)

Owned
All the P in this word represents is a mouth with a tongue sticking out to further taught the owned. :-) ;-p. Mostly in text form, and spoken like "owned." Majorly owned. Now you get it? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Rickyflip (talk • contribs) 18:03, 26 February 2008 (UTC)

Pronunciation "pone" is common amongst who?
The article states "pone", "pawn", and "pownt" are pronunciations used by newbie gamers, hackers, etc. What the hell? Nearly everyone I've ever discussed this word with has pronounced it "pone"; and even if the word likely derived from a typo of "owned", the 'p' should still be taken into consideration. The sentence in the article beginning with "The alternate pronunciation..." should be taken out completely, or modified to account for the fact that most gamers do say "pone". I'm lead to think a cast member from Pure Pwnage typed out that entire section.

Chrome89 (talk) 23:19, 6 March 2008 (UTC)


 * Everyone I knew before I started playing WoW pronounced it simply as "own" or "owned" - If it's leetspeak based on a common typo then it should be pronounced like the non-leet version of the word. For example, you don't pronounce "1337" (Leetspeak for "leet") as "Onethreethreeseven" - you pronounce it as "leet". I supect the P sound pronunciation has come about from the arrival of newer gamers unfamiliar with the origins of the word.70.180.211.82 (talk) 22:30, 10 April 2008 (UTC)

Robot chicken pronounces this word poon (the 'welsh' way) see http://www.adultswim.com/video/?episodeID=d920516b180819d626000a96913a7109 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.215.196.53 (talk) 09:20, 11 March 2008 (UTC)

Pwn = Poon

The urban dictionary has THEE BEST definition of pwn. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Archervixen (talk • contribs) 23:23, 11 March 2008 (UTC)


 * Urban dictionary should NEVER be used as a source for wikipedia. It is the web's largest repository for original research backed by opinion.75.80.82.112 (talk) 07:18, 2 May 2008 (UTC)

pwn as an acronym?
I'm sort of surprised this hasn't come up, and it just may be that it is a local usage for pwned, but many people I have gamed with (from my time in the Army to several years afterward) stated pwn's meaning as an acronym for Punished Without Need (or Necessity). What are your thoughts about that? Has anyone else heard this translation? This is a very interesting article with serious ideas about modern language. I have had fun reading it, and hoped to contribute. Take care. Pwn can also mean proffesionally owned P.S. And even as an acronym, it was always pronounced "pone'd"

75.185.48.99 (talk) 01:46, 3 April 2008 (UTC) Garry K.


 * I suspect this is a "backronym", but if you can find a source to indicate that this usage is common, by all means add it. - Revolving Bugbear  22:01, 28 April 2008 (UTC)

Total disagrement
Owned and Pwnd are to distinct L33t words. Pwnd is not a typo. It's a term that was first used in online FPS (First Person Shooter) games that had chat functions like the Classic CS (Counter Strike (Beta versions)). The original word was "Pawned" as in using someone as a pawn or using a pawn to get someone else to compromise themselves and then eliminate them, much like in chess where you would leave a pawn unprotected to an attack as bait for your opponents bigger pieces. You never whant to be the "pawn" or the the "pawned". The need to be brief and lazyness made "pawned" become "pwnd", in much the same way "Newby" became "Newb" and then "Nub", "pwnd" was transformed into a word who's meaning has become very inconsistent from one group of people to another because most people read it as "P" and "own" and have deduced meaning for the odd looking word.

TalkingBeast (talk) 16:31, 30 April 2008 (UTC)
 * That might be true, but can it be verified? --Onorem♠Dil 16:34, 30 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Yeah, how's this .. Who cares ? It's not an official language, it's based on conventions, and things predating each other hardly ever count for anything in true languages, so why would it be so important in L33t ? Just use your words however you like them, if your community gets them, that's great, if not, hey, you might just eventually contribute to your slang lang ! -- Skaiuoquer (talk) 16:14, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

Why was the Etymology posted on 5/1/08 deleted?
I provided the actual history of the word "pwn" and it was removed and the other text that was false was put back up. Why? The information is not exactly true. The actual origin was from the game "Quake." There was a special on the word on G4TV. It did not come from "pure ownage" or "powerful ownage." That is a common misconception and (if believed at all) is far from the truth. This seems like it was added just for the sake of adding it. It did not originate on its own either. It was a mis-spelling of the word "owned." The creators of Quake admitted their mistake, but they kept it because it just stuck.

Research it please. It is true.

FreakTardZtX (talk) 14:44, 2 May 2008 (UTC)
 * It was removed because it was unsourced. I've just removed the rest of the unsourced info from the etymology section. When was this G4TV special on? What show was it? --Onorem♠Dil 14:59, 2 May 2008 (UTC)


 * I'm unsure when it was on, not too long ago. It was on the show that had the history of different stuff (if you know what I mean).  Sorry I don't have much info, but I did see it.  The show provides different histories of different games and other things (like Nintendo, Atari, Sega, and other stuff).  There is also a pretty vague etymology on encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com but it doesn't seem reliable.  I'm an avid gamer and I research this stuff often.  It's pretty much one of my jobs (I host gaming conventions and whatnot).  Um, I'll try and find the information and post it up.

FreakTardZtX (talk) 15:08, 2 May 2008 (UTC)

It's sad information likely true has to be deleted because it's not verifiable. Honestly, based on what I know, I'm inclined to believe the warcraft 3 explanation is more accurate. Alas, it's better to let truth remain a rumor than to declare a falsehood. 136.168.160.11 (talk) 01:01, 5 May 2008 (UTC)

Well, according to the creators of Quake, they invented it, and it is in the game, and Quake came out before WCIII. If I find that episode of that show that I can't remember, I'll post that up. But if that is false, then WCIII would make sense. But in both cases, its the same deal, the creators made a mistype of the word "own." 70.167.66.180 (talk) 16:54, 5 May 2008 (UTC)

What is This?
"It can also be used, especially by non-gamers, in the context of getting "pwned" by The Man."

What is the grounds and/or source for this. I've never heard this before. I've never even seen this anywhere. Shouldn't it be removed? 24.254.180.63 (talk) 20:59, 2 May 2008 (UTC)

Why was "Pwned.nl" removed?
It was one of the most popular videos online of its time. I know for a fact that some people started saying the word because of this video. 70.167.66.180 (talk) 14:20, 9 May 2008 (UTC)

I re-added this in the "Use, online and in popular culture." The reason is because Pwned.nl is a flash video online that, in my opinion, made many more people accept the word. It was accepted by both gamers and non-gamers beacuase of this single video (in my experience). My experience being a video game event and convention coordinator/administrator. FreakTardZtX (talk) 20:46, 27 May 2008 (UTC)

Proposed merge with Owned
Pwn and Owned are really the same thing, just spelled differently. There isn't a reason why we should have two articles on the same topic. -- King of &hearts;   &diams;   &clubs;  &spades; 01:11, 22 May 2008 (UTC)

Pwn is abso-lutely different from own... ---AdderGuyInnit 25/05/08

Yeah, the word "pwn" and the word "own" are NOT the same thing. They may have the same basic meaning, but they are two entirely different words. FreakTardZtX (talk) 20:38, 27 May 2008 (UTC)
 * Two "entirely different words" with "the same basic meaning" should be merged into one article. Muad (talk) 10:29, 31 May 2008 (UTC)


 * I agree with Muad. It's ridiculous to have two pages with words that have the same basic meaning. Would it be right to have an article on "Dad" and one of "Father?" They have the same basic meaning, a Dad can be a father, or a father can be a priest or biological father. Use WP:Common. ¤IrønCrøw¤ (Speak to Me) 02:14, 17 June 2008 (UTC)


 * No, no, noooo. Own and pwn are not the same word! They don't mean the same thing at all! It's not like Dad vs. Father. It's like Father Figure vs. Father. To be owned means a superior player just beat you. To be pwned means to be so utterly obliberated it just goes beyond being owned. Getting hit by a bullet might be owned. Getting hit with a nuclear missile is getting pwned!!! Alinnisawest (talk) 03:56, 18 June 2008 (UTC)


 * You just showed that they are indeed the same: owned and pwned are different degrees of being 'humiliated' by a superior player so in essence, they're the same. - Simeon (talk) 12:48, 18 June 2008 (UTC)


 * Exactly- different degrees. Pwned is on a level that compeletely transcends being merely owned- actually, you know, I really don't care in the slightest about the articles, just wanted to throw my two cents in! From my pov, they are totally different words. Ask any gamer or Internet junkie. But whatever, doesn't really matter to me. Alinnisawest (talk) 15:06, 18 June 2008 (UTC)


 * From an encyclopedic point of view, it's the same because in both cases the words express superiority over some other player/team. It's like comparing "book" and "really big book".. they're both books at the end of the day. Both words have the same purpose and intent: to express superiority over some other player/team. - Simeon (talk) 22:04, 18 June 2008 (UTC)


 * Couldn't disagree more. Pwn is entirely notable and verifiable on its own, from a pop culture standpoint.  If Pwn gets merged, then all internet memes need to be gotten rid of, and that's a can of worms that shouldn't be opened. WikiKingOfMishawaka (talk) 11:52, 27 June 2008 (UTC)


 * Should we combine better and best into one page? Boardhead (talk) 15:06, 30 July 2008 (UTC)

If you read the etymology discussion above, you will see there is serious disagreement that the origin of this word comes from "owned" and is just as likely to come from a word that's been around a lot longer, "pawned". Therefore merging it with "owned" makes no sense, as you would be arbitrarily resolving the etymology discussion without evidence in favor of doing so. Not to mention the fact that even to use "owned" in the sense discussed here is slang; there are many more common meanings of "to own", which gives pwn the right to a distinct entry. I came here to look it up and never would have found it under "to own". —Preceding unsigned comment added by Isabelwh (talk • contribs) 17:42, 27 June 2008 (UTC)
 * I don't have a strong opinion one way or the other, but just a reaction to the comment 'I came here to look it up and never would have found it under "to own": Merging the articles would not affect people's ability to look it up using 'pwn', since I'm sure that 'pwn' would be set up to redirect to the appropriate section of 'own'. Angelastic (talk) 19:14, 27 June 2008 (UTC)

I came to wikipedia looking for an article specifically on pwn, to find out exactly what it meant. To me, this signifies that they should be separate articles. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 74.61.140.172 (talk) 02:06, 8 July 2008 (UTC)
 * I don't see how it's relevant what people come looking for (except for deciding which should be the article title and which should be the redirect if the articles are merged), what matters is whether the two terms are sufficiently different in meaning to need separate articles. If I came here looking for woodchuck, I wouldn't use that as justification for creating an article for it separate from groundhog. --Angelastic (talk) 08:23, 8 July 2008 (UTC)

I agree that the merging of Owned and Pwn should not occur. They should be linked, but not merged. Owned and Pwn have very different meanings at times, and this possible disparity in connotation should be taken seriously. I am not editing to argue one side or the other, I am editing to inform you that I plan on obtaining mirc logs revealing one mainstream misspelling of own as pwn by a player on one of the QWTF top 5 clans circa 1999 who then claimed that it meant what we now know as PWN and wasn't a typo, causing all of the clans to join in on the backing of the at fault player to embarrass the legitimately confused player out of pure spite, effectively cementing its use in QWTF and EARTH. I should have the logs within the week. Look for Delataur-P- on gamesurge. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Asoki253 (talk • contribs) 23:28, 28 July 2008 (UTC)

Would seem to be a totally poor idea to merge them, considering the very specific meaning and the wrong usage. DGG (talk) 00:48, 2 August 2008 (UTC)


 * Snow Crash

Ok, so I've been reading Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson and the word used when a thrasher courier uses a magnet to latch onto a car is pooned (I'm listening to an Audio Book so I don't know the spelling used) as in harpooned. Now this book came out in 1992, I don't know when pwnage and pwned were first used, but considering how influential the cyberpunk literary genre is on things like this I'm just wondering why there is no mention of this book at all, even if its not the origin its at least an example in pop culture. Can someone who was an active "hacker" type from the early nineties try to remember if anyone was using this in leetspeak back then? did leetspeak even exist then? There seems to be a natural link with skateboarder lingo anyway. I'm not expert I just can't believe this hasn't been brought up71.56.126.25 (talk) 19:05, 20 August 2008 (UTC)


 * Try "'pooned", not "pooned". As in harpooned. - Revolving Bugbear  00:27, 27 August 2008 (UTC)