h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I always found pwned interesting. It derives from owned, but because typing a smackdown when trying to play an online game is tricky at best, pwned became an acceptable typo (p and o are right next to each other), until now, almost no one uses 'owned' - it is always 'pwned'.

yes cause the people that type pwned are dumb asses that followed the flow instead of keeping the roots ther as owned, just because one guy and a bunch of thers started to miss type owned and made it pwned is dumb in my eyes, ive been a long time speaker of 1337

You are right about the pwned thing
A bunch of followers use it and that's
all. r3m3mb3r j00r r0075.

Locke

PWNED actually became popular in the beta of WC3 when a typo of the word "owned" in a hardcoded death message appeared. Ever since it stuck.

pwned has been out waaaay before wc3 beta. First time I remember it was in a very old UO comic.

Omg, its pwnt, f4gs.

What's even more interesting IMHO is that not only do people keep typing pwned but they'll also say "poaned" with the p in the pronunciation. I smile at that for some reason, I just think it's kind of funny. I've taken to saying "poaned" with some of my friends.

oook i know this is a while later, but if bizzle had been paying attention he would notice that researcher said that the beta of wc3 made it POPULAR didnt INVENT it. (sry had 2 put htis in)

YOu sad sad bastards.