Please avoid using the term “photoshop” as a verb, meaning any kind of photo manipulation or image editing in general. Photoshop is just the name of one particular image editing program….

If lots of people get into the habit of saying that a digitally manipulated image is “photoshopped,” then they’re equating a particular program (Photoshop) with the very act of editing images; they’re blocking the possibility of alternatives from their minds. Can you photoshop something with the GIMP? Yes, in a manner of speaking, but it’s not Photoshop. Once a brand name becomes entrenched in people’s minds, it can be hard to take alternatives seriously.

I guess it’s all a matter of perspective. If you own a trademark, you don’t want it to be genericized because then you can’t claim ownership of it anymore.

@Jenny: I, too, am guilty of the odd whisper. At the same time, I wonder: why should I particularly care? Why is it a big deal? As long as people assume that everyone is straight, this will continue. Also, avoiding genericizing trademarks isn’t “political correctness”; it’s being more accurate. People sometimes genericize trademarks, but that doesn’t mean they should.

Now I need to go get a kleenex facial tissue. The wind has picked up here something awful and the dust is creating a major mucous party in my sinuses.