The whole history of computing is one of redefining words. Really, who cares if you call it a Unit Test or a Frisbee? You certainly don't have to know the name to come up with the concept and find it useful.<p>REST is an unfortunate name for a great movement - unfortunate because the original "REST" paper was the same kind of overengineered crap that REST-the-movement was a rebellion against. So now the highly paid consultants are peddling their overengineered crap and calling it "REST" and on a literal level they're right. But the solution isn't to argue about what is and isn't REST - it's to consider the actual behaviours (HTTP verbs, content types, HATEOAS) on their own merits.<p>I believe in using HTTP verbs to mean the things they say, but I think HATEOAS is actively harmful. Am I doing REST? Who cares!