Talk:boxen

a citation for that etymology would be nice.


 * Added FOLDOC links for ya. --Connel MacKenzie 07:17, 1 March 2008 (UTC)

Interestingly, if box were a German word, its plural would be boxen. Related? Not sure. 84.184.244.250 20:18, 13 October 2007 (UTC)
 * Not likely. --Connel MacKenzie 07:17, 1 March 2008 (UTC)


 * If the "Oxen" link is true then it is unquestionably related since Oxen is of Germanic origin. 212.219.220.122 08:53, 6 April 2011 (UTC)

"Boxen" appears in some larger English dictionaries to mean "made from boxwood", analogous to golden, leathern, oaken, etc. 86.131.103.104 16:46, 19 May 2008 (UTC)


 * Maybe not related and responding to an old discussion, I want to add that Box is indeed German word, probably borrowed from English and the plural is indeed Boxen. As nouns they are both spelled with a capital initial. It basically has the same meaning (and is a synonym to German "Schachtel" (borrowed from Italian) and "Kiste" (the original German word)) but is also a common synonym to (loud)speaker (which is Lautsprecher in German), maybe due to their classic shape.


 * Interestingly "box" also means garage (def. 1) or carhouse in Italian.


 * Perhaps this comment should be moved to the discussion of "box"? --Kazu89 17:02, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

So I note that someone put the Wikipedia link to Brian Regan in the References section, but he isn't actually referenced in the article. Personally I suspect that his bit about learning grammar and spelling in elementary school, which includes the exact examples given in this article, is responsible for the now common colloquial usage of "boxen." That bit was in his 1997 album "Brian Regan Live", and he had been doing the bit well before the album was released. It seems possible (not debating the probability, just mentioning the possibility) that his bit was the inspiration for the 1995 usage referenced in the article. Obviously we can't document that, though. Anyway, it seems like an actual reference to Brian Regan in the article would be appropriate. 98.202.125.252 02:36, 11 September 2009 (UTC)

Since the term seems to derive from hacker humor, I thought the etymology was probably a sort of mock-German along the lines of Blinkenlights. B7T 08:46, 26 August 2010 (UTC)


 * The -xen thing is used quite a lot among certain groups of computer enthusiasts, e.g. Linuxen:, VAXen:. Equinox ◑ 09:20, 26 August 2010 (UTC)

The current entry, calling the use of boxen unproductive, suggests a quantitative study backing it up exists. As this is clearly not the case, it comes off judgmental and unhelpful (dare I say, unproductive?). It was changed to "not in standard use," which is much more accurate, but Mglovesfun reverted it. Why?

Computer plural
Is there any evidence that this word is a plural of "box" (computer)? There are no citations.


 * Try a Google Groups (Usenet) search, perhaps adding relevant terms like "server" and "Linux". You'll find plenty. Use WT:RFV if unconvinced. Equinox ◑ 07:07, 24 August 2016 (UTC)