Definition: naive

Source: WordNet (r) 1.7

naive
     adj 1: marked by or showing unaffected simplicity and lack of guile
            or worldly experience; "a teenager's naive ignorance
            of life"; "the naive assumption that things can only
            get better"; "this naive simple creature with wide
            friendly eyes so eager to believe appearances" [syn: naif]
            [ant: sophisticated]
     2: lacking experience of life; "a callow youth of seventeen"
        [syn: callow, inexperienced, unsophisticated]
     3: lacking sophistication [syn: unsophisticated]

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Naive \Na"["i]ve`\, a. [F. na["i]f, fem. na["i]ve, fr. L.
   nativus innate, natural, native. See Native, and cf.
   Na["i]f.]
   Having native or unaffected simplicity; ingenuous; artless;
   frank; as, na["i]ve manners; a na["i]ve person; na["i]ve and
   unsophisticated remarks.

Source: The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (2003-OCT-10)

naive

   Untutored in the perversities of some particular program or
   system; one who still tries to do things in an intuitive way,
   rather than the right way (in really good designs these
   coincide, but most designs aren't "really good" in the
   appropriate sense).  This trait is completely unrelated to
   general maturity or competence or even competence at any other
   specific program.  It is a sad commentary on the primitive
   state of computing that the natural opposite of this term is
   often claimed to be "experienced user" but is really more like
   "cynical user".

   (1994-11-29)

Source: Jargon File (4.3.1, 29 Jun 2001)

naive adj. 1. Untutored in the perversities of some particular program
   or system; one who still tries to do things in an intuitive way, rather
   than the right way (in really good designs these coincide, but most
   designs aren't `really good' in the appropriate sense). This trait is
   completely unrelated to general maturity or competence, or even
   competence at any other specific program. It is a sad commentary on the
   primitive state of computing that the natural opposite of this term is
   often claimed to be `experienced user' but is really more like `cynical
   user'. 2. Said of an algorithm that doesn't take advantage of some
   superior but advanced technique, e.g., the bubble sort. It may imply
   naivete on the part of the programmer, although there are situations
   where a naive algorithm is preferred, because it is more important to
   keep the code comprehensible than to go for maximum performance. "I know
   the linear search is naive, but in this case the list typically only has
   half a dozen items." Compare brute force.