If you’ve been following us for a while, you may have noticed a change: our open research environment is now called laborium. Before that, it was LabOS, and before that, EcoSphereLab. Changing names is a hassle, for us and for everyone who had just got used to the previous one. But our search has repeatedly brought us up against the same lesson: a name can be a perfect fit and still be unavailable to us. Here’s why we had to think again, and what we need a name to do.
A good name may already be taken. We’ve run into this more than once: names that suited our work were already in use, either exactly as we’d imagined them or in a similar form. That meant we couldn’t use them for our project and had to keep looking. This is as much a part of our naming story as finding words that describe what we do.
Legally, there’s more to a name than its spelling. Similar trade marks can create a conflict where the goods or services are identical or similar and there is a likelihood of confusion. A resemblance doesn’t automatically rule out a name; the circumstances matter. Earlier business names may also be protected, even without a registered trade mark. An available domain or a quick web search therefore isn’t enough to establish whether a name is available for use. The German Patent and Trade Mark Office explains what to consider when researching a name.
Our takeaway: check early. Once a name is on your website, throughout your documentation and in people’s heads, changing it takes real work. We want people to be able to identify our work clearly, while respecting existing rights. If you’re starting a project, this is one experience we’d pass on: look into whether you can use your chosen name for what you’re offering before you commit to it, and get qualified advice when the results are unclear.
LabOS had another problem, too. “OS” suggests an operating system. That isn’t what laborium is. It’s an environment for planning experiments, connecting devices and sensors, organising measurement data and documenting results so that others can reproduce the work. When a name creates the wrong expectation, every conversation starts with a correction. Those explanations add up.
Why laborium? Our products now form a family of names that makes sense when you see them together: somsorium is the whole, mesorium is the place for exchange and publishing, and laborium is the place for research. The name combines the idea of a laboratory with the ending we use to signal a place. Alongside them are smolit, the assistant, and the smolit node, the device that runs everything in your home. Four building blocks, two naming patterns, no abbreviations that need unpacking.
What we need from a name has become clearer through experience. It should be easy to pronounce when you see it written down. It should belong in the family. It shouldn’t promise something the product doesn’t deliver. And we need to establish whether we can legally use it for our offering, as well as find a suitable domain. That last part has sent us back to the drawing board several times. For us, naming always involves research and careful judgement.
A practical note: You’ll still come across the old name in documents and repositories for a while. We’re updating them bit by bit. Renaming an open project means working through lots of small details, well beyond a single find-and-replace. That’s part of building in public, too: the transitions are visible.
If you’d like to see what comes next for laborium, our test network launches this autumn. We’re looking for researchers and curious people who want to get involved. Join the waitlist.