init4fun

Words mean one thing and one thing only ; they mean what the speaker of them meant for them to mean at the time they were spoken ......

A while back , when this whole "what's a drone VS what's an RC model aircraft question first appeared on RC forums , but wasn't quite yet in the daily news , I asked a few folks , who were not in the least hobby related , "what would you define the word drone to mean ?" Almost each person's first utterance was "A Worker Bee" . Worker , as in , with a job to do . It is common usage to see a boring repetitive task referred to as "Drone's work" , I'm sure most folks are familiar with the term . So it stands to reason that to the public , a drone is something with a boring repetitive job to do , and no where are any notions of fun , hobby , or entertainment involved in the word drone . The drone's got a job to do . Best git to it . Now , just last night , I had occasion to be with a whole bunch of non RC people , and I had two pictures with me , advertising photos showing someone flying a "traditional" model airplane and one showing a quad copter being flown . Of all respondents asked , 100% identified the parkzone foamy cub as a remote controlled model aircraft and the quad as a drone .

So , at least in "the court of public opinion" , the die has been cast as to what exactly is a model aircraft VS a drone . A model plane is flown for fun and a drone has a job to do . Now , if a quadcopter or any other machine is operated for nothing but the sheer fun of operating it , then it too becomes a model aircraft , and LCS' extra with the heat seeking missiles is most certainly a drone . The public has yet to make that distinction because the only things they see doing a job are quads , they are seen most frequently doing the work of photography . When they see a model airplane being flown in the local park their first nor even 101 first thought are anything about drones , it's "oh , some guy flying a toy plane" .

Now , in closing , if you don't think the public adopts , adapts , and co opts the meanings of words to suit popular modern usage , just try telling someone who is very happy that they're "Gay" , and see where that gets ya ! Yes , as well all know , in the 1930s , gay meant happy . Nothing more . Now of course we use it to mean something completely different , the modern intent of the term being defined by how the greater public chooses to define it .

You say ToMAHto , I say ToMAYto , , , either way they make a damned good pasta sauce