Newspeak

[mattc]

I assumed brifters had been coined as more manufacturers (Campagnolo, SRAM, there's another whose name I can't recall) produced integrated brake and gear levers. A way of both avoiding copyright problems and indicating that you're referring to a whole genre rather than a particular firm's product. It does sound ugly, but that's just my opinion, I'm sure some like the sound of the word.

(Simplex?)
Again, like cockpit, it's a horrible word but we don't have any alternative for the concept. (We should check if there is anything in Meaning of Liff we could steal.)

[Kim]

Simplex is a lovely word, I'm just not sure that it's really appropriate for (non-electronic, and only then if there's no feedback path) bicycle controls.

[clarion]

Simplex was a joy.

[Jaded]

Herpes?

[clarion]

It's going round.

[Rhys W]

An abbreviation that sticks in my craw is alu.  The English abbreviation for aluminium alloy used to be pronounce as alley.  Alu just sounds so wrong but I assume again it is the magazine editors trying to write in a manner that an international market will understand.

I dislike the misuse of "alloy" when they mean "aluminium alloy". I've never owned an alumnium alloy frame but most of my bike frames are alloy - iron alloyed with manganese, chromium, molybdenum, nickel or vanadium, and of course carbon.

[Ham]

I road my bike yesterday, and I had to use the breaks and peddles!

But I DID use breaks to stop me today........

[Heaney]

I read this thread with astonishment until I checked the posting times and realised you're all in work, presumably.