Naming software has got to be one of the most difficult steps of the software development lifecycle.
This winter, I quickly and single-handedly developed a Web-based help desk software. Clients log in to submit trouble reports, and they can track and edit them as things progress. It also allows them to track their assets. It makes great use of PHP, HTML 5, CSS 3.0, AJAX, geolocation, Google Gears, and more; it’s a balanced mix of tried-and-true and bleeding-edge technology.
The world’s only (known) installation is on my company’s Web server. However, since then, it’s grown by leaps and bounds, but still running on the same spaghetti PHP code; even though it was developed in a rush, if my old college professors could see what I did, they’d revoke my degree.
So, what I’d like to do is clean it up, document it, make it portable, and release it as a free and open-source project. Naturally, the company would sell support contracts, like Red Hat does with Linux — there’s the moneymaking portion of it, enough to please my boss.
However, I just can’t think of a good name. The best name that I came up with is Mercury, eponymous after the messenger of the Greek gods. Trouble is, while “Project Mercury” rolls off the tongue with aplomb, and what I’m calling the development process, it’s not the greatest of names for a final product.
New and returning readers, it’s discussion time. What’s in a name? How do you name software? Have any ideas?
