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Comment by debt | Hacker News Reader

This is awesome I hope they invest some of that into rebranding as I do believe Repl.it is probably the worst name for anything. It almost sounds like a nefarious file format or like some software company for the early 90s; maybe that’s the vibe they’re going for. Even the word Replit looks like “reptile”. I guess it’s very developer-y it’s just grammatically grating on the nerves.

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For what it's worth, I found them by googling "online c# repl", so having repl in the name is pretty strong for people with my use case.

I think it's perfect. Obviously the customer base is never going to expand beyond programmers who already know what REPL stands for, and the full name is a homonym for "replete" which is aspirational for a tool that aims to grow into a more fully-featured service.

Good one. Also, like "repleat". As in, refactor your code - online :)

Oh that's a cool thought thank you!

You’re quite welcome. Best of luck with the startup.

On the other hand, the name creates a pretty clear picture of the service to its audience.

If you start looking at demographics outside the audience to qualify the name, then you'll probably end up with an abstract-but-brandable name that communicates less which seems like a regression.

The 90's were great for independent software vendors and we'd want to bring that aspect of it back so it works out perfectly ;)

I do dig that 90s vibe, Dropbox’s current marketing campaign kinda doing something similar

Their name is honestly fine - it's memorable, has a good domain, and is super, super search-friendly.

Also, personally, it reminds me of "replete" more than "reptile", but that's neither here nor there.

I think it's a good name. Reminds me of Reddit, which is not a bad thing.

I know people who prefer reptiles to icky furred animals. Just cuz you are reptilist doesn't mean everyone is.

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