Bonjour is the new Rendezvous

No longer will your Macs be able to meet up in the night for clandestine sojourns, but they will still be saying 'hello.' Rendezvous is getting a new name, and it answers the question of what Apple had in mind with the Bonjour trademark: they were covering their asses.

Tibco Software of Palo Alto, CA leveled a trade dispute at Apple over usage of the Rendezvous name, which they say infringed on its exclusive rights to the Rendezvous name. Apple agreed to phase out the name in July 2004 to settle the dispute.

The replacement was originally to be "OpenTalk," but that was deemed "too techie" for prime time. It was eventually decided that since Rendenzvous-enabled devices say "hello" when they come within range of each other, a shift to the name "Bonjour" would be appropriate. Oui, oui, zees is good, and we hope the French take into account this international gesture when pressing their lawsuits!