Generation D
n. The generation that has grown up with and is completely at home with digital devices and digital culture.
Etymology
Examples
2000
Wheeler said he believes that if Baltimore is serious about attracting 'Generation D' — the 'digital generation' of young computer wizards — it should use its available harbor- front property to create places that would draw them, whether it's housing or work spaces or recreational amenities.
—Edward Gunts, “Icon in stone and steel,” The Baltimore Sun, September 24, 2000
2000 (earliest)
It was only a few years ago that the majority of our patrons were encountering computers and computer-based resources for the first time in our libraries. Their lack of familiarity with both the hardware and the software created an instant demand for assistance at the reference desk. Increasingly, computer savvy clientele no longer need as much support to use the hardware. We are no longer talking about Generation X or Y, but Generation D, the digital generation.
—Peggy A. Seiden, “Where Have All the Patrons Gone?,” Reference & User Services Quarterly, March 22, 2000
Notes
A phrase such as Generation D is difficult to search for, so I can't be certain I've find its first use in print, but the earliest citation is the oldest I could find for the "digital generation" sense of the phrase.
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