Steve lamented:
"The proper application of the standard has disintegrated to the point of unusability. When did you last see the badge on a serial port saying if it was DCE or DTE?"

The TIA now seem confident that all is now well, and these woes have been banished by the publication of TIA/EIA-574 - which formalises the 9-pin interface:

"This Standard was developed in recognition of the fact that a defacto interface had appeared in industry which, although it used the Circuit Definitions and Electrical Characteristics of TIA-232-D, was implemented on a 9-pin connector instead of the 25-pin connector specified in the Standard. As no Standard existed for this interface, many manufacturers incorrectly labeled this defacto interface "RS-232" causing confusion to the user community. TIA-574 resolves this dilemma." (my emphasis!)

Does anyone here have the heart to shatter their delusion?... ;-)