Promoting D

[Nick Sabalausky]

"Andrei Alexandrescu" <SeeWebsiteForEmail at erdani.org> wrote in message 
news:gu89ev$jq8$1 at digitalmars.com...
> hasen wrote:
>> Walter Bright wrote:
>>> Jesse Phillips wrote:
>>>> It looks to me that Walter's points aren't about convincing people to 
>>>> use it, but to show that you are using it, that there are customers.
>>>
>>> That's right. It's called "social proof". 
>>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_Proof
>>>
>>> Apple, for example, uses social proof as the central theme in its 
>>> marketing campaigns.
>>>
>>> Back in the 1970's, Dr. Pepper hilariously used social proof in their 
>>> oxymoronic campaign "join the non-conformists!"
>>
>> Social proof eh? hmm interesting. That's why I decided to learn vim, not 
>> because I felt or thought I needed to, but because it *seemed* that 
>> /real/ programmers use vim. You know what I mean?
>
> Absolutely. Some of the best dating advice I've ever got: just be 
> yourself.
>
> No, I was kidding :o). It was: be seen with women. It's social proof.
>

I think "The 'if-others-are-doing-it-then-it-*must*-be-right' Fallacy" is 
probably a much more accurate term for "social proof". I realize "social 
proof" is the typical term for it, but calling it that just seems like 
trying to call the ad hominem fallacy "associative proof".