According to Wikipedia ping, the IP network utility, was named after the sonar "ping", which is apparently onomatopoeic.
However, "ping" is now used in the vernacular in the sense of "pinging" someone via (usually) electronic communication to request acknowledgement of a message. Does the usage of "ping" in this latter sense directly derive from the network utility ping, or does it predate it? And how common is usage of the word "ping" like this by people without technical backgrounds or who are otherwise familiar with the ping utility?
Also, assuming the vernacular usage does derive from the ping utility, are there examples other technical jargon that have entered the common vernacular and become (mostly) dissociated with their technical origins? (Computer jargon terms like "bits" and "bytes" that are commonly known but commonly understood as computer jargon do not count…obviously this hinges on what is considered common knowledge so cannot be answered precisely, but I'm looking for things generally in this category.)
Best Answer
The network utility dates from 1983. I first heard the IM use sometime within the last five or so years.
The IM meaning can be found on Urban Dictionary from September 10, 2005, in this second highest voted definition:
A slightly earlier definition is from March 11, 2005:
An earlier example can be found on the American Dialect Society mailing list from March 1, 2000:
And a reply:
The IM use is very similar to the utility, it's a short signal to test or rather announce online availability, as in "ping me when you're in the office".
When the ping utility was created, the sonar ping wasn't the only one. The OED says the sonar ping comes from the sound the equipment makes, from WWII. Ping as "a short, resonant, high-pitched (usually metallic) sound, as that made by the firing of a bullet, the ringing of a small bell, etc." is 19th century and still current. This may also influence the modern "ping me".