The New Hacker's Dictionary by Eric S. Raymond (each kindness read aloud TXT) 📖

vt.

Syn. [3418]bounce (sense 4), [3419]120 reset; from the phrase `cycle

power'. "Cycle the machine again, that serial port's still hung."

Node:cycle crunch, Next:[3420]cycle drought, Previous:[3421]cycle,

Up:[3422]= C =

cycle crunch n.,obs.

A situation wherein the number of people trying to use a computer

simultaneously has reached the point where no one can get enough

cycles because they are spread too thin and the system has probably

begun to [3423]thrash. This scenario is an inevitable result of

Parkinson's Law applied to timesharing. Usually the only solution is

to buy more computer. Happily, this has rapidly become easier since

the mid-1980s, so much so that the very term `cycle crunch' now has a

faintly archaic flavor; most hackers now use workstations or personal

computers as opposed to traditional timesharing systems, and are far

more likely to complain of `bandwidth crunch' on their shared networks

rather than cycle crunch.

Node:cycle drought, Next:[3424]cycle of reincarnation,

Previous:[3425]cycle crunch, Up:[3426]= C =

cycle drought n.

A scarcity of cycles. It may be due to a [3427]cycle crunch, but it

could also occur because part of the computer is temporarily not

working, leaving fewer cycles to go around. "The [3428]high moby is

[3429]down, so we're running with only half the usual amount of

memory. There will be a cycle drought until it's fixed."

Node:cycle of reincarnation, Next:[3430]cycle server,

Previous:[3431]cycle drought, Up:[3432]= C =

cycle of reincarnation n.

See [3433]wheel of reincarnation.

Node:cycle server, Next:[3434]cypherpunk, Previous:[3435]cycle of

reincarnation, Up:[3436]= C =

cycle server n.

A powerful machine that exists primarily for running large compute-,

disk-, or memory-intensive jobs (more formally called a `compute

server'). Implies that interactive tasks such as editing are done on

other machines on the network, such as workstations.

Node:cypherpunk, Next:[3437]C|N>K, Previous:[3438]cycle server,

Up:[3439]= C =

cypherpunk n.

[from [3440]cyberpunk] Someone interested in the uses of encryption

via electronic ciphers for enhancing personal privacy and guarding

against tyranny by centralized, authoritarian power structures,

especially government. There is an active cypherpunks mailing list at

[3441]cypherpunks-request@toad.com coordinating work on public-key

encryption freeware, privacy, and digital cash. See also

[3442]tentacle.

Node:C|N>K, Next:[3443]D. C. Power Lab, Previous:[3444]cypherpunk,

Up:[3445]= C =

C|N>K n.

[Usenet] Coffee through Nose to Keyboard; that is, "I laughed so hard

I [3446]snarfed my coffee onto my keyboard.". Common on

alt.fan.pratchett and [3447]scary devil monastery; recognized

elsewhere. The [3448]Acronymphomania FAQ on alt.fan.pratchett

recognizes variants such as T|N>K = `Tea through Nose to Keyboard' and

C|N>S = `Coffee through Nose to Screen'.

Node:= D =, Next:[3449]= E =, Previous:[3450]= C =, Up:[3451]The

Jargon Lexicon

= D =

[3452]D. C. Power Lab:

[3453]daemon:

[3454]daemon book:

[3455]dahmum:

[3456]dancing frog:

[3457]dangling pointer:

[3458]dark-side hacker:

[3459]Datamation:

[3460]DAU:

[3461]Dave the Resurrector:

[3462]day mode:

[3463]dd:

[3464]DDT:

[3465]de-rezz:

[3466]dead:

[3467]dead beef attack:

[3468]dead code:

[3469]dead link:

[3470]DEADBEEF:

[3471]deadlock:

[3472]deadly embrace:

[3473]death code:

[3474]Death Square:

[3475]Death Star:

[3476]DEC:

[3477]DEC:

[3478]DEC Wars:

[3479]decay:

[3480]deckle:

[3481]DED:

[3482]deep hack mode:

[3483]deep magic:

[3484]deep space:

[3485]defenestration:

[3486]defined as:

[3487]dehose:

[3488]deletia:

[3489]deliminator:

[3490]delint:

[3491]delta:

[3492]demented:

[3493]demigod:

[3494]demo:

[3495]demo mode:

[3496]demoeffect:

[3497]demogroup:

[3498]demon:

[3499]demon dialer:

[3500]demoparty:

[3501]demoscene:

[3502]dentro:

[3503]depeditate:

[3504]deprecated:

[3505]derf:

[3506]deserves to lose:

[3507]desk check:

[3508]despew:

[3509]Devil Book:

[3510]/dev/null:

[3511]dickless workstation:

[3512]dictionary flame:

[3513]diddle:

[3514]die:

[3515]die horribly:

[3516]diff:

[3517]digit:

[3518]dike:

[3519]Dilbert:

[3520]ding:

[3521]dink:

[3522]dinosaur:

[3523]dinosaur pen:

[3524]dinosaurs mating:

[3525]dirtball:

[3526]dirty power:

[3527]disclaimer:

[3528]Discordianism:

[3529]disk farm:

[3530]display hack:

[3531]dispress:

[3532]Dissociated Press:

[3533]distribution:

[3534]distro:

[3535]disusered:

[3536]do protocol:

[3537]doc:

[3538]documentation:

[3539]dodgy:

[3540]dogcow:

[3541]dogfood:

[3542]dogpile:

[3543]dogwash:

[3544]domainist:

[3545]Don't do that then!:

[3546]dongle:

[3547]dongle-disk:

[3548]donuts:

[3549]doorstop:

[3550]DoS attack:

[3551]dot file:

[3552]double bucky:

[3553]doubled sig:

[3554]down:

[3555]download:

[3556]DP:

[3557]DPB:

[3558]DPer:

[3559]Dr. Fred Mbogo:

[3560]dragon:

[3561]Dragon Book:

[3562]drain:

[3563]dread high-bit disease:

[3564]Dread Questionmark Disease:

[3565]DRECNET:

[3566]driver:

[3567]droid:

[3568]drone:

[3569]drool-proof paper:

[3570]drop on the floor:

[3571]drop-ins:

[3572]drop-outs:

[3573]drugged:

[3574]drum:

[3575]drunk mouse syndrome:

[3576]dub dub dub:

[3577]Duff's device:

[3578]dumb terminal:

[3579]dumbass attack:

[3580]dumbed down:

[3581]dump:

[3582]dumpster diving:

[3583]dup killer:

[3584]dup loop:

[3585]dusty deck:

[3586]DWIM:

[3587]dynner:

Node:D. C. Power Lab, Next:[3588]daemon, Previous:[3589]C|N>K,

Up:[3590]= D =

D. C. Power Lab n.

The former site of [3591]SAIL. Hackers thought this was very funny

because the obvious connection to electrical engineering was

nonexistent -- the lab was named for a Donald C. Power. Compare

[3592]Marginal Hacks.

Node:daemon, Next:[3593]daemon book, Previous:[3594]D. C. Power Lab,

Up:[3595]= D =

daemon /day'mn/ or /dee'mn/ n.

[from the mythological meaning, later rationalized as the acronym

`Disk And Execution MONitor'] A program that is not invoked

explicitly, but lies dormant waiting for some condition(s) to occur.

The idea is that the perpetrator of the condition need not be aware

that a daemon is lurking (though often a program will commit an action

only because it knows that it will implicitly invoke a daemon). For

example, under [3596]ITS writing a file on the [3597]LPT spooler's

directory would invoke the spooling daemon, which would then print the

file. The advantage is that programs wanting (in this example) files

printed need neither compete for access to nor understand any

idiosyncrasies of the [3598]LPT. They simply enter their implicit

requests and let the daemon decide what to do with them. Daemons are

usually spawned automatically by the system, and may either live

forever or be regenerated at intervals.

Daemon and [3599]demon are often used interchangeably, but seem to

have distinct connotations. The term `daemon' was introduced to

computing by [3600]CTSS people (who pronounced it /dee'mon/) and used

it to refer to what ITS called a [3601]dragon; the prototype was a

program called DAEMON that automatically made tape backups of the file

system. Although the meaning and the pronunciation have drifted, we

think this glossary reflects current (2000) usage.

Node:daemon book, Next:[3602]dahmum, Previous:[3603]daemon, Up:[3604]=

D =

daemon book n.

"The Design and Implementation of the 4.3BSD UNIX Operating System",

by Samuel J. Leffler, Marshall Kirk McKusick, Michael J. Karels, and

John S. Quarterman (Addison-Wesley Publishers, 1989, ISBN

0-201-06196-1); or "The Design and Implementation of the 4.4 BSD

Operating System" by Marshall Kirk McKusick, Keith Bostic, Michael J.

Karels and John S. Quarterman (Addison-Wesley Longman, 1996, SBN

0-201-54979-4) Either of the standard reference books on the internals

of [3605]BSD Unix. So called because the covers have a picture

depicting a little devil (a visual play on [3606]daemon) in sneakers,

holding a pitchfork (referring to one of the characteristic features

of Unix, the fork(2) system call). Also known as the [3607]Devil Book.

Node:dahmum, Next:[3608]dancing frog, Previous:[3609]daemon book,

Up:[3610]= D =

dahmum /dah'mum/ n.

[Usenet] The material of which protracted [3611]flame wars, especially

those about operating systems, is composed. Homeomorphic to

[3612]spam. The term `dahmum' is derived from the name of a militant

[3613]OS/2 advocate, and originated when an extensively crossposted

OS/2-versus-[3614]Linux debate was fed through [3615]Dissociated

Press.

Node:dancing frog, Next:[3616]dangling pointer, Previous:[3617]dahmum,

Up:[3618]= D =

dancing frog n.

[Vancouver area] A problem that occurs on a computer that will not

reappear while anyone else is watching. From the classic Warner

Brothers cartoon "One Froggy Evening", featuring a dancing and singing

Michigan J. Frog that just croaks when anyone else is around (now the

WB network mascot).

Node:dangling pointer, Next:[3619]dark-side hacker,

Previous:[3620]dancing frog, Up:[3621]= D =

dangling pointer n.

[common] A reference that doesn't actually lead anywhere (in C and

some other languages, a pointer that doesn't actually point at

anything valid). Usually this happens because it formerly pointed to

something that has moved or disappeared. Used as jargon in a

generalization of its techspeak meaning; for example, a local phone

number for a person who has since moved to the other coast is a

dangling pointer. Compare [3622]dead link.

Node:dark-side hacker, Next:[3623]Datamation, Previous:[3624]dangling

pointer, Up:[3625]= D =

dark-side hacker n.

A criminal or malicious hacker; a [3626]cracker. From George Lucas's

Darth Vader, "seduced by the dark side of the Force". The implication

that hackers form a sort of elite of technological Jedi Knights is

intended. Oppose [3627]samurai.

Node:Datamation, Next:[3628]DAU, Previous:[3629]dark-side hacker,

Up:[3630]= D =

Datamation /day`t-may'shn/ n.

A magazine that many hackers assume all [3631]suits read. Used to

question an unbelieved quote, as in "Did you read that in

`Datamation?'" (But see below; this slur may be dated by the time you

read this.) It used to publish something hackishly funny every once in

a while, like the original paper on [3632]COME FROM in 1973, and Ed

Post's "Real Programmers Don't Use Pascal" ten years later, but for a

long time after that it was much more exclusively [3633]suit-oriented

and boring. Following a change of editorship in 1994, Datamation is

trying for more of the technical content and irreverent humor that

marked its early days.

Datamation now has a WWW page at [3634]http://www.datamation.com worth

visiting for its selection of computer humor, including "Real

Programmers Don't Use Pascal" and the `Bastard Operator From Hell'

stories by Simon Travaglia (see [3635]BOFH).

Node:DAU, Next:[3636]Dave the Resurrector, Previous:[3637]Datamation,

Up:[3638]= D =

DAU /dow/ n.

[German FidoNet] German acronym for D�mmster Anzunehmender User

(stupidest imaginable user). From the engineering-slang GAU for

Gr�sster Anzunehmender Unfall, worst assumable accident, esp. of a LNG

tank farm plant or something with similarly disastrous consequences.

In popular German, GAU is used only to refer to worst-case nuclear

acidents such as a core meltdown. See [3639]cretin, [3640]fool,

[3641]loser and [3642]weasel.

Node:Dave the Resurrector, Next:[3643]day mode, Previous:[3644]DAU,

Up:[3645]= D =

Dave the Resurrector n.

[Usenet; also abbreviated DtR] A [3646]cancelbot that cancels cancels.

Dave the Resurrector originated when some [3647]spam-spewers decided

to try to impede spam-fighting by wholesale cancellation of anti-spam

coordination messages in the news.admin.net-abuse.usenet newsgroup.

Node:day mode, Next:[3648]dd, Previous:[3649]Dave the Resurrector,

Up:[3650]= D =

day mode n.

See [3651]phase (sense 1). Used of people only.

Node:dd, Next:[3652]DDT, Previous:[3653]day mode, Up:[3654]= D =

dd /dee-dee/ vt.

[Unix: from IBM [3655]JCL] Equivalent to [3656]cat or [3657]BLT.

Originally the name of a Unix copy command with special options

suitable for block-oriented devices; it was often used in heavy-handed

system maintenance, as in "Let's dd the root partition onto a tape,

then use the boot PROM to load it back on to a new disk". The Unix

dd(1) was designed with a weird, distinctly non-Unixy keyword option

syntax reminiscent of IBM System/360 JCL (which had an elaborate DD

`Dataset Definition' specification for I/O devices); though the

command filled a need, the interface design was clearly a prank. The

jargon usage is now very rare outside Unix sites and now nearly

obsolete even there, as dd(1) has been [3658]deprecated for a long

time (though it has no exact replacement). The term has been displaced

by [3659]BLT or simple English `copy'.

Node:DDT, Next:[3660]de-rezz, Previous:[3661]dd, Up:[3662]= D =

DDT /D-D-T/ n.

[from the insecticide para-dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethene] 1.

Generic term for a program that assists in debugging other programs by

showing individual machine instructions in a readable symbolic form

and letting the user change them. In this sense the term DDT is now

archaic, having been widely displaced by `debugger' or names of

individual programs like adb, sdb, dbx, or gdb. 2. [ITS] Under MIT's

fabled [3663]ITS operating system, DDT (running under the alias

HACTRN, a six-letterism for `Hack Translator') was also used as the

[3664]shell or top level command language used to execute other

programs. 3. Any one of several specific DDTs (sense 1) supported on

early [3665]DEC hardware and CP/M. The PDP-10 Reference Handbook

(1969) contained a footnote on the first page of the