In the world of accessible text replacement for web apps, one technique reigns supreme: sIFR.  Using a combination of Flash and Javascript, sIFR combs your markup and looks for elements you specify, replacing them with small Flash movies, to allow you to use non-standard fonts in your app.  For examples, look no further than this blog.  Post titles and the header on the home page use the technique to enable the use of Rockwell (a font that ships with MS Office 2003).But I digress, you didn’t come here to learn about sIFR – there are better places to do such things. You came to take part in the heated debate about the correct pronunciation of the acronym.  Some of my coworkers and I have nearly come to fisticuffs over the proper pronunciation, so why not join in on the fun?

Here’s the deal: I believe it is pronounced with a short “i”, a la “sift”.  Some of my coworkers believe it is pronounced with a long “i”, a la “site”.  Phonetically, they’re saying “cipher”. Obviously, I am correct.  My reasoning: the “I” in sIFR stands for Inman (soft “i”), as in scalable Inman Flash Replacement, because Shaun Inman initially developed the technology. Also, I believe the pronunciation of the first letter of each word in an acronym should be maintained, if it results in an easily spoken acronym.  For example – NASA arguably rolls off the tongue a little more easily than nay-say.  You can see my point.  Their sole reason: “cipher” sounds cooler.  Shenanigans, I say.

So now it’s time to hopefully get a collective opinion on the matter.  What say you, fellow geeks?