> > Is it ? I thought it was 'computador'.
>
Computadora. However, the (masc.) term ordenador is also used-- perhaps
French influence?
>
> > It is quite usual to hear phrases like 'Il me dit des
> > trucs bizarres', 'Il veut pas faire ce que je lui
> > dis', 'Il est plante', 'Il m'insulte' (*), etc, about
> > the computer, or rather, the whole (hardware +
> > software). That means that the computer is perceived
> > as something nearly human....
Isn't this just a function of the lack of a neuter pronoun? (and the lack
of a neuter gender as well-- every inanimate thing must be either masc. or
fem.).