RSN

Definitions

1. Short for 'Real Soon Now', a sardonic estimate meaning the opposite of what it says. RSN describes a promised feature, release, or fix whose delivery date is indefinite and receding, and it is applied with particular relish to vendor roadmaps and one's own unfinished projects. The term was popularised by Jerry Pournelle's computing columns and became the standard shorthand for vaporware timelines. Its enduring usefulness lies in the way it lets a speaker acknowledge a commitment while signalling total scepticism about the schedule, all in three letters.