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What is a word for one who configures in the sense of a person who adjusts settings on a system?
asked Aug 2, 2011 at 13:01
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7 Answers
In practice the normal term would be installer, but configurer and configurator could be used. I think most people would understand these words, even though they don't normally use them.
answered Aug 2, 2011 at 13:18
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4Configurator is commonly used, but I don't really like it since it's a neologism. Aug 2, 2011 at 13:59
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2@emddudley: I wouldn't say it's a neologism. Inevitably it's more common since the 70s, simply because we now have a much more common referent in the computer age. Here's a 1951 usage earlier than that, and I'm sure it will have been used long before. Aug 2, 2011 at 14:10
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2+1 for installer because this is the word used for people who configure fixtures in buildings, for instance. "Air conditioning installer". Yes, this word is normally used, if not for computer users who install. The reason might be that few specialize in just installing, they way someone specializes in, say, drywall installing. It's a bit of a passing role for systems people. Those who install probably offer various forms of support so they are "customer support staff" or "field engineers".– KazApr 25, 2012 at 3:47
Configurer is the appropriate form, even if the double |ərər| at the end of the word seems strange. Consider other nominalisations that end in |ər| (like 'conjure' -> 'conjurer').
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I think this NGram strongly suggests that configurator, which has become far more common since the 70s IT context got going, is the word of choice for those who don't want to use installer. Aug 2, 2011 at 14:26
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3A "configurator" is different; it is a tool, usually a software tool, that the user employs in the configuration progress. It creates a configuration, hence the term. You seldom if ever hear of a person being called a configurator.– KeithSAug 2, 2011 at 18:13
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This is the "most correct" answer, from purely logical grounds (and yes, I realize the tenuous role of logic in English).– John YNov 27, 2012 at 14:21
I thought of one possibility: tuner
answered Aug 2, 2011 at 13:05
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2Optimizer or fine-tuner. For the first, I was thinking of someone who tries to improve performance of a DBMS...– mkennedyAug 2, 2011 at 13:19
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This is not a bad option for those who find configurer too awkward or obscure. I like tuner much better than installer. Except for the very first time you set something up, adjusting settings would be more aptly called tuning than installing.– John YNov 27, 2012 at 14:29
Installer implies an initial effort, while configurer/configurator can describe individuals involved in subsequent changes to the initial configuration.
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1Thank you for your contribution but these is really just a comment on an existing answer. Jun 18, 2014 at 17:56
Sheer volume of usage in the IT community, e.g. among those configuring SAP, is starting to tilt towards configurator vs. configurer.
I think the proper conjugation would be a Configurer as we configure things, and we do not configurate things, such as the other answers say one who conjures is a conjurer, and I would have called them a Tuner anyway.
It depends whether it is the first configuration. You would actually have different actions to perform. (f.e Pre-Installation, Pre-configuration ) these items are called "Readiness".
Any changes to the above would be a configuration change.
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For short, I'd just go with Administrator as this embodies many responsibilities. Jan 6, 2019 at 3:10