What other tech synonyms are there for a master-slave relationship? The situation is a knob that controls other knobs, or a button that controls other buttons.
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1Now that I think about it, this is probably better asked on http://english.stackexchange.com/questions – FrustratedWithFormsDesigner Sep 13 '11 at 21:12
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2@Frustrated I don't think this has anything to do with EL&U, since the terms suggested have to make sense in a technical sense as well, but I'll check with a mod there to make sure. – Adam Lear Sep 13 '11 at 21:17
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1This question is attracting some seriously junky answers: the best place for single-word (or in this case, double-word) requests is English.SE, where you'll likely have a better time getting people to provide useful explanations as to why one pair of words is better than another. – Sep 13 '11 at 22:02
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1@Robert (and everyone else): if you want to discuss the finer points of offensive language, use [chat](http://chat.stackexchange.com/rooms/21). If you don't agree with the premise of the question, feel free to down-vote. – Sep 13 '11 at 22:09
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Related discussion on English usage StackExchange: https://english.stackexchange.com/q/204357/36249 – pestophagous Mar 05 '18 at 23:52
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You could go with "Parent" and "Child". I guess "Manager" and "Worker" are also possible, though I don't see that nearly as often. Also possible is "Controller" and "Controllee" though that sounds weird, and I'm not even sure if "Controlee" is a word.
On the fun side of things, you could try something like "Overlord" and "Minion". Or "Hero" and "Sidekick". Or "BigBoss" and "Lackey". Or "Captain" and "Sailor". ;)
FrustratedWithFormsDesigner
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Apart from that, when talking in HDD context, primary/secondary might actually work. – Rook Sep 13 '11 at 21:58
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3@FrustratedWithFormsDesign, I've also been thinking about "supercontrol" and "subcontrol" (or "underling"). Thanks for thinking about this, it definitely helps. +1 – Dan Rosenstark Sep 14 '11 at 01:51
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Are you talking about master & slave as used for hard disks? In this case, master & slave are actually a politically correct terms to use. It would also be politically correct to apply those terms to software parts.
Otherwise, you may use some terms depending on the context: primary & secondary, parent & child, etc.
Arseni Mourzenko
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