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Comment by arp242

2 days ago

> I wonder what he's implying about GitHub

Nothing. It's just a common(-ish) reference/joke.

Yes. I've also used this when leaving a job, albeit with a slight modification since the job did not provide fish. I suppose you could read it with the subtext that the dolphins are saying "see ya suckers" but I think it's more appropriate to read it as the dolphins actually saying "thank you" even though things didn't entirely work out.

  • One of my reports was a hardcore HHGG fan, including carrying a towel on towel day. He signed off with the "so long and thanks for all the fish", and I don't think anyone read anything negative into this.

    In fact, while that was some years ago, it was a tight-knit team and we still meet up for dinner with the original team members about 2-3x a year :)

    • Yeah. I always interpreted that quote as the dolphins saying “thanks, it was fun while it lasted”

  • I had a coworker say this when quitting. Most people that knew the reference interpreted it in a negative way. I would not recommend using it because of how ambiguous it is

    • tbh I had never thought carefully about it until now. I always got excited hearing it from other people thinking "Oh another person who likes Douglas Adam's book!"

      I'm kind of glad I read this thread though, I can see why it could stress people out.

  • If I remember correctly, the dolphins had tried to warn humanity without success and eventually gave up and left, so the “see ya suckers” reading doesn’t quite track.

    • Maybe I'm reading "see ya suckers" wrong, but IMHO that reading absolutely tracks. "See ya suckers... [we tried to warn you]"

Yeah, I didn't know it was a reference to something - it was just a saying to me without any background context.