[Zope3-dev] RFC: Rename "principal" to "participant"

[Shane Hathaway]

Philipp von Weitershausen wrote:
> (Note that the point of finding translations for technical terms is not
> only for the sake of a translated Zope 3 UI. It's more about how people
> understand technical terms. I think most Zope 3 developers aren't native
> English speakers and they do not necessarily think in English. So, good
> words that have good native translations help the understanding process
> on their end. That is not only important for _learning_ a concept, but
> also for _explaining_ it. As a book author, I know what I'm talking
> about... :))

The word "principal" has always bugged me because:

1) I can't recall ever seeing anyone get confused about the word "user". 
  In conventional usage, the word "user" gained the general meaning 
intended by "principal" long ago.  Technologists already understand 
perfectly well that a user isn't always a person.

2) It's a new word for nearly all technologists (excepting security 
gurus, perhaps.)

3) Philosophically, it's impossible for Zope to know whether there's 
really a person on the other end.  Thus what Zope calls a user is 
sometimes really only a principal.

4) It's one of the more difficult words to spell correctly, being a 
homonym with principle.

Now you've added a fifth reason to drop the word principal, and IMHO 
it's an excellent one.

Shane