"Tenuous atmospheres." Poor choice of words?

[CMDR H83DH3R0]

Like many CMDRs I was very exited to see the shimmering blue aura around the planet in the opening scene of the Odyssey trailer. Then seeing the blue sky above, a clear indication of an atmosphere. Soon after Frontier confirmed this by stating that we would receive "tenuous atmospheres". Very exiting except the word tenuous really stood out to me. Most would consider tenuous to be a "down word", usually with a negative connotation. For example, tenuous alliances or tenuous friendships. Obviously the word does describe the nature of the new atmospheres accurately as they will be very thin. However I feel that perhaps calling them thin atmospheres instead would have been better. I can already see some CMDRs' snarky comments such as "Hi Tenuous Atmospheres, I'm Tenuous CQC and this is Tenuous Multicrew and Tenuous Squadrons, welcome to the family, you'll fit right in. We're all about being weak and barely existant over here". Maybe I'm making too big a deal of it, but it just stuck out to me.
Thank you for listening
07 CMDRs

 

[Valorin]

I was under the impression, that atmospheric worlds is just a treat we get along with space legs. We know nothing else about it yet, so it's a bit to early for assumptions what exactly "tenuous" means, but well.
Even if it turns out it's just rocky planet with blue skies, there's no use complaining about it, since it has obviously not been the main feature of the update. I'd be disappointed, but well, I have been before by the dev's focus concerning features of ED, so that wouldn't be new. In any case, it's their decision to make.
Looking forward to Odyssey anyway of course.

I want real atmospheric planets (and I don't think "Earth like" when I say that) and no space legs. Just to make that clear.

 

[dognosh]

Like many CMDRs I was very exited to see the shimmering blue aura around the planet in the opening scene of the Odyssey trailer. Then seeing the blue sky above, a clear indication of an atmosphere. Soon after Frontier confirmed this by stating that we would receive "tenuous atmospheres". Very exiting except the word tenuous really stood out to me. Most would consider tenuous to be a "down word", usually with a negative connotation. For example, tenuous alliances or tenuous friendships. Obviously the word does describe the nature of the new atmospheres accurately as they will be very thin. However I feel that perhaps calling them thin atmospheres instead would have been better. I can already see some CMDRs' snarky comments such as "Hi Tenuous Atmospheres, I'm Tenuous CQC and this is Tenuous Multicrew and Tenuous Squadrons, welcome to the family, you'll fit right in. We're all about being weak and barely existant over here". Maybe I'm making too big a deal of it, but it just stuck out to me.
Thank you for listening
07 CMDRs

You are spot on and I Un-Tenuously agree with all you posted

 

[CMDR H83DH3R0]

I was under the impression, that atmospheric worlds is just a treat we get along with space legs. We know nothing else about it yet, so it's a bit to early for assumptions what exactly "tenuous" means, but well.
Even if it turns out it's just rocky planet with blue skies, there's no use complaining about it, since it has obviously not been the main feature of the update. I'd be disappointed, but well, I have been before by the dev's focus concerning features of ED, so that wouldn't be new. In any case, it's their decision to make.
Looking forward to Odyssey anyway of course.

I want real atmospheric planets (and I don't think "Earth like" when I say that) and no space legs. Just to make that clear.

I'm not complaining about the fact that atmospheres will be tenuous, im saying they could have used better wording to describe it that's all

 

[Vardaugas]

Tenuous atmospheres lead to tenuous expectations.
I think it works well.

 

[Lowbee]

Hmm, that's thought provoking, at least for me. I've used tenous in many a scientific paper and never really given thought to the "flimsy, shaky, instability" connotations of the word while doing so. Interesting.

o7

 

[dognosh]

I want real atmospheric planets (and I don't think "Earth like" when I say that) and no space legs. Just to make that clear.

^^^^^ THIS
But FD have made a commercial decision, just my OPINION and NOT necessarily FACT, to develop legs as it opens a whole new world of earnings in the store, including adding player owned bases in the future(the amount of stuff they can sell for that in the store !!!) , more assets in space and personal equipment, all of which will benefit from livery/variation sales in the store.

 

[FrogsFriend]

Density-challenged atmospheres?
Diaphanous atmospheres?
Gossamer atmospheres?
Non-thick atmospheres?

 

[CMDR H83DH3R0]

Hmm, that's thought provoking, at least for me. I've used tenous in many a scientific paper and never really given thought to the "flimsy, shaky, instability" connotations of the word while doing so. Interesting.

o7

Exactly my point sir 07

 

[CMDR H83DH3R0]

Density-challenged atmospheres?
Diaphanous atmospheres?
Gossamer atmospheres?
Non-thick atmospheres?

All good suggestions

 

[Maggie_Oz]

You could call it "Amazing beyond all words of an asskickkin' atmosphere" and people would still come up with derisive comments, so better to stick to an accurate adjective.

 

[CMDR H83DH3R0]

You could call it "Amazing beyond all words of an asskickkin' atmosphere" and people would still come up with derisive comments, so better to stick to an accurate adjective.

I just feel like there are better terms to describe it. Some synonyms for tenuous:slight, insubstantial, flimsy, negligible, weak, fragile, shaky, sketchy, doubtful, dubious, questionable, suspect, vague, nebulous, hazy, unspecific, indefinite, indeterminate

 

[Maggie_Oz]

Synonyms have the same meaning/implications So it's just a rose by another name.

 

[CMDR H83DH3R0]

Synonyms have the same meaning/implications So it's just a rose by another name.

So you believe that the atmospheres will not only be tenuous in that they are thin, but also tenuous as in the content itself is going to suck?

 

[Maggie_Oz]

So you believe that the atmospheres will not only be tenuous in that they are thin, but also tenuous as in the content itself is going to suck?

Tenuous doesn't imply "suck".

 

[CMDR H83DH3R0]

Tenuous doesn't imply "suck".

I dunno. When someone tells me they're gonna give me content that's slight, insubstantial, flimsy, negligible, weak, fragile, shaky, sketchy, doubtful, dubious, questionable, suspect, vague, nebulous, hazy, unspecific, indefinite, indeterminate it sure sounds like it's gonna suck to me

 

[Factabulous]

I think you'll find the level of snark in the forums is a uncorrelated to any terminology fdev use.

'Thin' can also be used negatively - I'm sure some wit would accuse the release of been thin on features, even anorexic.

hey ho, forums eh?

 

[Adept Geraden]

Density-challenged atmospheres?
Diaphanous atmospheres?
Gossamer atmospheres?
Non-thick atmospheres?

Clayton's Atmosphere. The atmosphere you have when you don't really have an atmosphere.

 

[FrogsFriend]

I dunno. When someone tells me they're gonna give me content that's slight, insubstantial, flimsy, negligible, weak, fragile, shaky, sketchy, doubtful, dubious, questionable, suspect, vague, nebulous, hazy, unspecific, indefinite, indeterminate it sure sounds like it's gonna suck to me

Perhaps you're just projecting your own already negative thoughts about the update onto that word and then looking for all the negative synonyms to support that feeling?
Why not think positive and go for:

• delicate
• airy
• ethereal
• fine
• gossamer
• light
• rare
• rarefied
• slender
• slight
• subtle

 

[Judge Rhadamanthus]

Nope, not a poor choice, a very careful one. Tenuous atmospheres are a thing. Earths Heliosphere is often descriped as such as are those of planets like Mercurary or our moon. Think "really thin" almost an exosphere. My assesment of this is that there will not be weather effects or re-entry dynamics. Just a skybox of one colour or another.