Chapter D: C. Power Lab n (16)

[From the mnemonic for the PDP-11 `SWAp Byte' instruction, as immortalized in the dd(1) option conv=swab (see dd)] 1. vt. To solve the NUXI problem by swapping bytes in a file. 2. n. The program in V7 Unix used to perform this action, or anything functionally equivalent to it. See also big-endian, little-endian, middle-endian, bytesexual.

Node:swap, Next:swap space, Previous:swab, Up:= S =

swap vt.

1. [techspeak] To move information from a fast-access memory to a slow-access memory (`swap out'), or vice versa (`swap in'). Often refers specifically to the use of disks as `virtual memory'. As pieces of data or program are needed, they are swapped into core for processing; when they are no longer needed they may be swapped out again. 2. The jargon use of these terms analogizes people's short-term memories with core. Cramming for an exam might be spoken of as swapping in. If you temporarily forget someone's name, but then remember it, your excuse is that it was swapped out. To `keep something swapped in' means to keep it fresh in your memory: "I reread the TECO manual every few months to keep it swapped in." If someone interrupts you just as you got a good idea, you might say "Wait a moment while I swap this out", implying that a piece of paper is your extra-somatic memory and that if you don't swap the idea out by writing it down it will get overwritten and lost as you talk. Compare page in, page out.

Node:swap space, Next:swapped in, Previous:swap, Up:= S =

swap space n.

Storage space, especially temporary storage space used during a move or reconfiguration. "I'm just using that corner of the machine room for swap space."

Node:swapped in, Next:swapped out, Previous:swap space, Up:= S =

swapped in n.

See swap. See also page in.

Node:swapped out, Next:swizzle, Previous:swapped in, Up:= S =

swapped out n.

See swap. See also page out.

Node:swizzle, Next:sync, Previous:swapped out, Up:= S =

swizzle v.

To convert external names, array indices, or references within a data structure into address pointers when the data structure is brought into main memory from external storage (also called `pointer swizzling'); this may be done for speed in chasing references or to simplify code (e.g., by turning lots of name lookups into pointer dereferences). The converse operation is sometimes termed `unswizzling'. See also snap.

Node:sync, Next:syntactic salt, Previous:swizzle, Up:= S =

sync /sink/ n., vi.

(var. `synch') 1. To synchronize, to bring into synchronization. 2. [techspeak] To force all pending I/O to the disk; see flush, sense 2. 3. More generally, to force a number of competing processes or agents to a state that would be `safe' if the system were to crash; thus, to checkpoint (in the database-theory sense).

Node:syntactic salt, Next:syntactic sugar, Previous:sync, Up:= S =

syntactic salt n.

The opposite of syntactic sugar, a feature designed to make it harder to write bad code. Specifically, syntactic salt is a hoop the programmer must jump through just to prove that he knows what's going on, rather than to express a program action. Some programmers consider required type declarations to be syntactic salt. A requirement to write end if, end while, end do, etc. to terminate the last block controlled by a control construct (as opposed to just end) would definitely be syntactic salt. Syntactic salt is like the real thing in that it tends to raise hackers' blood pressures in an unhealthy way. Compare candygrammar.

Node:syntactic sugar, Next:sys-frog, Previous:syntactic salt, Up:= S =

syntactic sugar n.

[coined by Peter Landin] Features added to a language or other formalism to make it `sweeter' for humans, features which do not affect the expressiveness of the formalism (compare chrome). Used esp. when there is an obvious and trivial translation of the `sugar' feature into other constructs already present in the notation. C's a[i] notation is syntactic sugar for *(a + i). "Syntactic sugar causes cancer of the semicolon." -- Alan Perlis.

The variants `syntactic saccharin' and `syntactic syrup' are also recorded. These denote something even more gratuitous, in that syntactic sugar serves a purpose (making something more acceptable to humans), but syntactic saccharin or syrup serve no purpose at all. Compare candygrammar, syntactic salt.

Node:sys-frog, Next:sysadmin, Previous:syntactic sugar, Up:= S =

sys-frog /sis'frog/ n.

[the PLATO system] Playful variant of `sysprog', which is in turn short for `systems programmer'.

Node:sysadmin, Next:sysape, Previous:sys-frog, Up:= S =

sysadmin /sis'ad-min/ n.

Common contraction of `system admin'; see admin.

Node:sysape, Next:sysop, Previous:sysadmin, Up:= S =

sysape /sys'ayp/ n.

A rather derogatory term for a computer operator; a play on sysop common at sites that use the banana hierarchy of problem complexity (see one-banana problem).

Node:sysop, Next:system, Previous:sysape, Up:= S =

sysop /sis'op/ n.

[esp. in the BBS world] The operator (and usually the owner) of a bulletin-board system. A common neophyte mistake on FidoNet is to address a message to `sysop' in an international echo, thus sending it to hundreds of sysops around the world.

Node:system, Next:systems jock, Previous:sysop, Up:= S =

system n.

1. The supervisor program or OS on a computer. 2. The entire computer system, including input/output devices, the supervisor program or OS, and possibly other software. 3. Any large-scale program. 4. Any method or algorithm. 5. `System hacker': one who hacks the system (in senses 1 and 2 only; for sense 3 one mentions the particular program: e.g., `LISP hacker')

Node:systems jock, Next:system mangler, Previous:system, Up:= S =

systems jock n.

See jock, sense 2.

Node:system mangler, Next:SysVile, Previous:systems jock, Up:= S =

system mangler n.

Humorous synonym for `system manager', poss. from the fact that one major IBM OS had a root account called SYSMANGR. Refers specifically to a systems programmer in charge of administration, software maintenance, and updates at some site. Unlike admin, this term emphasizes the technical end of the skills involved.

Node:SysVile, Next:T, Previous:system mangler, Up:= S =

SysVile /sis-vi:l'/ n.

See Missed'em-five.

Node:= T =, Next:= U =, Previous:= S =, Up:The Jargon Lexicon

= T =

T:

tail recursion:

talk mode:

talker system:

tall card:

tanked:

TANSTAAFL:

tape monkey:

tar and feather:

tarball:

tardegy:

taste:

tayste:

TCB:

TCP/IP:

TechRef:

TECO:

tee:

teergrube:

teledildonics:

Telerat:

TELNET:

ten-finger interface:

tense:

tentacle:

tenured graduate student:

tera-:

teraflop club:

terminak:

terminal brain death:

terminal illness:

terminal junkie:

terpri:

test:

TeX:

text:

thanks in advance:

That's not a bug that's a feature!:

the literature:

the network:

the X that can be Y is not the true X:

theology:

theory:

thinko:

This can't happen:

This time for sure!:

thrash:

thread:

three-finger salute:

throwaway account:

thud:

thumb:

thundering herd problem:

thunk:

tick:

tick-list features:

tickle a bug:

tiger team:

time bomb:

time sink:

time T:

times-or-divided-by:

TINC:

Tinkerbell program:

TINLC:

tip of the ice-cube:

tired iron:

tits on a keyboard:

TLA:

(TM):

TMRC:

TMRCie:

TMTOWTDI:

to a first approximation:

to a zeroth approximation:

toad:

toast:

toaster:

toeprint:

toggle:

tool:

toolsmith:

toor:

topic drift:

topic group:

TOPS-10:

TOPS-20:

tourist:

tourist information:

touristic:

toy:

toy language:

toy problem:

toy program:

trampoline:

trap:

trap door:

trash:

trawl:

tree-killer:

treeware:

trit:

trivial:

troff:

troglodyte:

troglodyte mode:

Trojan horse:

troll:

Troll-O-Meter:

tron:

true-hacker:

tty:

tube:

tube time:

tunafish:

tune:

turbo nerd:

Turing tar-pit:

turist:

Tux:

tweak:

tweeter:

TWENEX:

twiddle:

twiddle:

twilight zone:

twink:

twirling baton:

two pi:

two-to-the-N:

twonkie:

Node:T, Next:tail recursion, Previous:SysVile, Up:= T =

T /T/

1. [from LISP terminology for `true'] Yes. Used in reply to a question (particularly one asked using The -P convention). In LISP, the constant T means `true', among other things. Some Lisp hackers use `T' and `NIL' instead of `Yes' and `No' almost reflexively. This sometimes causes misunderstandings. When a waiter or flight attendant asks whether a hacker wants coffee, he may absently respond `T', meaning that he wants coffee; but of course he will be brought a cup of tea instead. Fortunately, most hackers (particularly those who frequent Chinese restaurants) like tea at least as well as coffee -- so it is not that big a problem. 2. See time T (also since time T equals minus infinity). 3. [techspeak] In transaction-processing circles, an abbreviation for the noun `transaction'. 4. [Purdue] Alternate spelling of tee. 5. A dialect of LISP developed at Yale. (There is an intended allusion to NIL, "New Implementation of Lisp", another dialect of Lisp developed for the VAX)

Node:tail recursion, Next:talk mode, Previous:T, Up:= T =

tail recursion n.

If you aren't sick of it already, see tail recursion.

Node:talk mode, Next:talker system, Previous:tail recursion, Up:= T =

talk mode n.

A feature supported by Unix, ITS, and some other OSes that allows two or more logged-in users to set up a real-time on-line conversation. It combines the immediacy of talking with all the precision (and verbosity) that written language entails. It is difficult to communicate inflection, though conventions have arisen for some of these (see the section on writing style in the Prependices for details).

Talk mode has a special set of jargon words, used to save typing, which are not used orally. Some of these are identical to (and probably derived from) Morse-code jargon used by ham-radio amateurs since the 1920s.

AFAIAC

as far as I am concerned

AFAIK

as far as I know

BCNU

be seeing you

BTW

by the way

BYE?

are you ready to unlink? (this is the standard way to end a talk-mode conversation; the other person types BYE to confirm, or else continues the conversation)

CUL

see you later

ENQ?

are you busy? (expects ACK or NAK in return)

FOO?

are you there? (often used on unexpected links, meaning also "Sorry if I butted in ..." (linker) or "What's up?" (linkee))

FWIW

for what it's worth

FYI

for your information

FYA

for your amusement

GA

go ahead (used when two people have tried to type simultaneously; this cedes the right to type to the other)

GRMBL

grumble (expresses disquiet or disagreement)

HELLOP

hello? (an instance of the `-P' convention)

IIRC

if I recall correctly

JAM

just a minute (equivalent to SEC....)

MIN

same as JAM

NIL

no (see NIL)

NP

no problem

O

over to you

OO

over and out

/

another form of "over to you" (from x/y as "x over y")

\

lambda (used in discussing LISPy things)

OBTW

oh, by the way

OTOH

on the other hand

R U THERE?

are you there?

SEC

wait a second (sometimes written SEC...)

SYN

Are you busy? (expects ACK, SYN|ACK, or RST in return; this is modeled on the TCP/IP handshake sequence)

T

yes (see the main entry for T)

TNX

thanks

TNX 1.0E6

thanks a million (humorous)

TNXE6

another form of "thanks a million"

WRT

with regard to, or with respect to.

WTF

the universal interrogative particle; WTF knows what it means?

WTH

what the hell?

<double newline>

When the typing party has finished, he/she types two newlines to signal that he/she is done; this leaves a blank line between `speeches' in the conversation, making it easier to reread the preceding text.

<name>:

When three or more terminals are linked, it is conventional for each typist to prepend his/her login name or handle and a colon (or a hyphen) to each line to indicate who is typing (some conferencing facilities do this automatically). The login name is often shortened to a unique prefix (possibly a single letter) during a very long conversation.

/\/\/\

A giggle or chuckle. On a MUD, this usually means `earthquake fault'.

Most of the above sub-jargon is used at both Stanford and MIT. Several of these expressions are also common in email, esp. FYI, FYA, BTW, BCNU, WTF, and CUL. A few other abbreviations have been reported from commercial networks, such as GEnie and CompuServe, where on-line `live' chat including more than two people is common and usually involves a more `social' context, notably the following:

<g>

grin

<gd&r>

grinning, ducking, and running

BBL

be back later

BRB

be right back

HHOJ

ha ha only joking

HHOK

ha ha only kidding

HHOS

ha ha only serious

IMHO

in my humble opinion (see IMHO)

LOL

laughing out loud

NHOH

Never Heard of Him/Her (often used in initgame)

ROTF

rolling on the floor

ROTFL

rolling on the floor laughing

AFK

away from keyboard

b4

before

CU l8tr

see you later

MORF

male or female?

TTFN

ta-ta for now

TTYL

talk to you later

OIC

oh, I see

rehi

hello again

Most of these are not used at universities or in the Unix world, though ROTF and TTFN have gained some currency there and IMHO is common; conversely, most of the people who know these are unfamiliar with FOO?, BCNU, HELLOP, NIL, and T.

The MUD community uses a mixture of Usenet/Internet emoticons, a few of the more natural of the old-style talk-mode abbrevs, and some of the `social' list above; specifically, MUD respondents report use of BBL, BRB, LOL, b4, BTW, WTF, TTFN, and WTH. The use of `rehi' is also common; in fact, mudders are fond of re- compounds and will frequently `rehug' or `rebonk' (see bonk/oif) people. The word `re' by itself is taken as `regreet'. In general, though, MUDders express a preference for typing things out in full rather than using abbreviations; this may be due to the relative youth of the MUD cultures, which tend to include many touch typists and to assume high-speed links. The following uses specific to MUDs are reported:

CU l8er

see you later (mutant of CU l8tr)

FOAD

fuck off and die (use of this is generally OTT)

OTT

over the top (excessive, uncalled for)

ppl

abbrev for "people"

THX

thanks (mutant of TNX; clearly this comes in batches of 1138 (the Lucasian K)).

UOK?

are you OK?

Some B1FFisms (notably the variant spelling d00d) appear to be passing into wider use among some subgroups of MUDders.

One final note on talk mode style: neophytes, when in talk mode, often seem to think they must produce letter-perfect prose because they are typing rather than speaking. This is not the best approach. It can be very frustrating to wait while your partner pauses to think of a word, or repeatedly makes the same spelling error and backs up to fix it. It is usually best just to leave typographical errors behind and plunge forward, unless severe confusion may result; in that case it is often fastest just to type "xxx" and start over from before the mistake.

See also hakspek, emoticon.

Node:talker system, Next:tall card, Previous:talk mode, Up:= T =

talker system n.

British hackerism for software that enables real-time chat or talk mode.

Node:tall card, Next:tanked, Previous:talker system, Up:= T =

tall card n.

A PC/AT-size expansion card (these can be larger than IBM PC or XT cards because the AT case is bigger). See also short card. When IBM introduced the PS/2 model 30 (its last gasp at supporting the ISA) they made the case lower and many industry-standard tall cards wouldn't fit; this was felt to be a reincarnation of the connector conspiracy, done with less style.

Node:tanked, Next:TANSTAAFL, Previous:tall card, Up:= T =

tanked adj.

Same as down, used primarily by Unix hackers. See also hosed. Popularized as a synonym for `drunk' by Steve Dallas in the late lamented "Bloom County" comic strip.

Node:TANSTAAFL, Next:tape monkey, Previous:tanked, Up:= T =

TANSTAAFL /tan'stah-fl/

[acronym, from Robert Heinlein's classic "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress".] "There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch", often invoked when someone is balking at the prospect of using an unpleasantly heavyweight technique, or at the poor quality of some piece of software, or at the signal-to-noise ratio of unmoderated Usenet newsgroups. "What? Don't tell me I have to implement a database back end to get my address book program to work!" "Well, TANSTAAFL you know." This phrase owes some of its popularity to the high concentration of science-fiction fans and political libertarians in hackerdom (see Appendix B for discussion).

Node:tape monkey, Next:tar and feather, Previous:TANSTAAFL, Up:= T =

tape monkey n.

A junior system administrator, one who might plausibly be assigned to do physical swapping of tapes and subsequent storage. When a backup needs to be restored, one might holler "Tape monkey!" (Compare one-banana problem) Also used to dismiss jobs not worthy of a highly trained sysadmin's ineffable talents: "Cable up her PC? You must be joking - I'm no tape monkey."

Node:tar and feather, Next:tarball, Previous:tape monkey, Up:= T =

tar and feather vi.

[from Unix tar(1)] To create a transportable archive from a group of files by first sticking them together with tar(1) (the Tape ARchiver) and then compressing the result (see compress). The latter action is dubbed `feathering' partly for euphony and (if only for contrived effect) by analogy to what you do with an airplane propeller to decrease wind resistance, or with an oar to reduce water resistance; smaller files, after all, slip through comm links more easily. Compare the more common tarball.

Node:tarball, Next:tardegy, Previous:tar and feather, Up:= T =

tarball n.

[very common; prob. based on the "tar baby" in the Uncle Remus folk tales] An archive, created with the Unix tar(1) utility, containing myriad related files. "Here, I'll just ftp you a tarball of the whole project." Tarballs have been the standard way to ship around source-code distributions since the mid-1980s; in retrospect it seems odd that this term did not enter common usage until the late 1990s.

Node:tardegy, Next:taste, Previous:tarball, Up:= T =

tardegy

n. [deliberate mangling of `tragedy'] An incident in which someone who clearly deserves to be selected out of the gene pool on grounds of extreme stupidity meets with a messy end. Coined on the Darwin list, which is dedicated to chronicling such incidents; but almost all hackers would instantly recognize the intention of the term and laugh.

Node:taste, Next:tayste, Previous:tardegy, Up:= T =

taste [primarily MIT] n.

1. The quality in a program that tends to be inversely proportional to the number of features, hacks, and kluges programmed into it. Also `tasty', `tasteful', `tastefulness'. "This feature comes in N tasty flavors." Although `tasty' and `flavorful' are essentially synonyms, `taste' and flavor are not. Taste refers to sound judgment on the part of the creator; a program or feature can exhibit taste but cannot have taste. On the other hand, a feature can have flavor. Also, flavor has the additional meaning of `kind' or `variety' not shared by `taste'. The marked sense of flavor is more popular than `taste', though both are widely used. See also elegant. 2. Alt. sp. of tayste.

Node:tayste, Next:TCB, Previous:taste, Up:= T =

tayste /tayst/

n. Two bits; also as taste. Syn. crumb, quarter. See nybble.

Node:TCB, Next:TCP/IP, Previous:tayste, Up:= T =

TCB /T-C-B/ n.

[IBM] 1. Trouble Came Back. An intermittent or difficult-to-reproduce problem that has failed to respond to neglect or shotgun debugging. Compare heisenbug. Not to be confused with: 2. Trusted Computing Base, an `official' jargon term from the Orange Book.

Node:TCP/IP, Next:TechRef, Previous:TCB, Up:= T =

TCP/IP /T'C-P I'P/ n.

1. [Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol] The wide-area-networking protocol that makes the Internet work, and the only one most hackers can speak the name of without laughing or retching. Unlike such allegedly `standard' competitors such as X.25, DECnet, and the ISO 7-layer stack, TCP/IP evolved primarily by actually being used, rather than being handed down from on high by a vendor or a heavily-politicized standards committee. Consequently, it (a) works, (b) actually promotes cheap cross-platform connectivity, and (c) annoys the hell out of corporate and governmental empire-builders everywhere. Hackers value all three of these properties. See creationism. 2. [Amateur Packet Radio] Formerly expanded as "The Crap Phil Is Pushing". The reference is to Phil Karn, KA9Q, and the context was an ongoing technical/political war between the majority of sites still running AX.25 and the TCP/IP relays. TCP/IP won.

Node:TechRef, Next:TECO, Previous:TCP/IP, Up:= T =

TechRef /tek'ref/ n.

[MS-DOS] The original "IBM PC Technical Reference Manual", including the BIOS listing and complete schematics for the PC. The only PC documentation in the original-issue package that was considered serious by real hackers.

Node:TECO, Next:tee, Previous:TechRef, Up:= T =

TECO /tee'koh/ n.,v. obs.

1. [originally an acronym for `[paper] Tape Editor and COrrector'; later, `Text Editor and COrrector'] n. A text editor developed at MIT and modified by just about everybody. With all the dialects included, TECO may have been the most prolific editor in use before EMACS, to which it was directly ancestral. Noted for its powerful programming-language-like features and its unspeakably hairy syntax. It is literally the case that every string of characters is a valid TECO program (though probably not a useful one); one common game used to be mentally working out what the TECO commands corresponding to human names did. 2. vt. Originally, to edit using the TECO editor in one of its infinite variations (see below). 3. vt.,obs. To edit even when TECO is not the editor being used! This usage is rare and now primarily historical.

As an example of TECO's obscurity, here is a TECO program that takes a list of names such as:

Loser, J. Random Quux, The Great Dick, Moby

sorts them alphabetically according to surname, and then puts the surname last, removing the comma, to produce the following:

Moby Dick J. Random Loser The Great Quux

The program is

[1 J^P$L$$ J <.-Z; .,(S,$ -D .)FX1 @F^B $K :L I $ G1 L>$$

(where ^B means `Control-B' (ASCII 0000010) and $ is actually an alt or escape (ASCII 0011011) character).

In fact, this very program was used to produce the second, sorted list from the first list. The first hack at it had a bug: GLS (the author) had accidentally omitted the @ in front of F^B, which as anyone can see is clearly the Wrong Thing. It worked fine the second time. There is no space to describe all the features of TECO, but it may be of interest that ^P means `sort' and J<.-Z; ... L> is an idiomatic series of commands for `do once for every line'.

In mid-1991, TECO is pretty much one with the dust of history, having been replaced in the affections of hackerdom by EMACS. Descendants of an early (and somewhat lobotomized) version adopted by DEC can still be found lurking on VMS and a couple of crufty PDP-11 operating systems, however, and ports of the more advanced MIT versions remain the focus of some antiquarian interest. See also retrocomputing, write-only language.

Node:tee, Next:teergrube, Previous:TECO, Up:= T =

tee n.,vt.

[Purdue] A carbon copy of an electronic transmission. "Oh, you're sending him the bits to that? Slap on a tee for me." From the Unix command tee(1), itself named after a pipe fitting (see plumbing). Can also mean `save one for me', as in "Tee a slice for me!" Also spelled `T'.

Node:teergrube, Next:teledildonics, Previous:tee, Up:= T =

teergrube /teer'groob/ n.

[German for `tar pit'] A trap set to punish spammers who use an address harvester; a mail server deliberately set up to be really, really slow. To activate it, scatter addresses that look like users on the teergrube's host in places where the address harvester will be trolling (one popular way is to embed the fake address in a Usenet sig block next to a human-readable warning not to send mail to it). The address harvester will dutifully collect the address. When the spammer tries to mailbomb it, his mailer will get stuck.

Node:teledildonics, Next:Telerat, Previous:teergrube, Up:= T =

teledildonics /tel`*-dil-do'-niks/ n.

Sex in a computer simulated virtual reality, esp. computer-mediated sexual interaction between the VR presences of two humans. This practice is not yet possible except in the rather limited form of erotic conversation on MUDs and the like. The term, however, is widely recognized in the VR community as a ha ha only serious projection of things to come. "When we can sustain a multi-sensory surround good enough for teledildonics, then we'll know we're getting somewhere." See also hot chat.

Node:Telerat, Next:TELNET, Previous:teledildonics, Up:= T =

Telerat /tel'*-rat/ n. obs.

Unflattering hackerism for `Teleray', a now-extinct line of extremely losing terminals. Compare AIDX, Macintrash Nominal Semidestructor, ScumOS, sun-stools, HP-SUX, Slowlaris.

Node:TELNET, Next:ten-finger interface, Previous:Telerat, Up:= T =

TELNET /tel'net/ vt.

(also commonly lowercased as `telnet') To communicate with another Internet host using the TELNET (RFC 854) protocol (usually using a program of the same name). TOPS-10 people used the word IMPCOM, since that was the program name for them. Sometimes abbreviated to TN /T-N/. "I usually TN over to SAIL just to read the AP News."

Node:ten-finger interface, Next:tense, Previous:TELNET, Up:= T =

ten-finger interface n.

The interface between two networks that cannot be directly connected for security reasons; refers to the practice of placing two terminals side by side and having an operator read from one and type into the other.

Node:tense, Next:tentacle, Previous:ten-finger interface, Up:= T =

tense adj.

Of programs, very clever and efficient. A tense piece of code often got that way because it was highly bummed, but sometimes it was just based on a great idea. A comment in a clever routine by Mike Kazar, once a grad-student hacker at CMU: "This routine is so tense it will bring tears to your eyes." A tense programmer is one who produces tense code.

Node:tentacle, Next:tenured graduate student, Previous:tense, Up:= T =

tentacle n.

A covert pseudo, sense 1. An artificial identity created in cyberspace for nefarious and deceptive purposes. The implication is that a single person may have multiple tentacles. This term was originally floated in some paranoid ravings on the cypherpunks list (see cypherpunk), and adopted in a spirit of irony by other, saner members. It has since shown up, used seriously, in the documentation for some remailer software, and is now (1994) widely recognized on the net.

Node:tenured graduate student, Next:tera-, Previous:tentacle, Up:= T =

tenured graduate student n.

One who has been in graduate school for 10 years (the usual maximum is 5 or 6): a `ten-yeared' student (get it?). Actually, this term may be used of any grad student beginning in his seventh year. Students don't really get tenure, of course, the way professors do, but a tenth-year graduate student has probably been around the university longer than any untenured professor.

Node:tera-, Next:teraflop club, Previous:tenured graduate student, Up:= T =

tera- /te'r*/ pref.

[SI] See quantifiers.

Node:teraflop club, Next:terminak, Previous:tera-, Up:= T =

teraflop club /te'r*-flop kluhb/ n.

[FLOP = Floating Point Operation] A mythical association of people who consume outrageous amounts of computer time in order to produce a few simple pictures of glass balls with intricate ray-tracing techniques. Caltech professor James Kajiya is said to have been the founder. Compare Knights of the Lambda Calculus.

Node:terminak, Next:terminal brain death, Previous:teraflop club, Up:= T =

terminak /ter'mi-nak`/ n.

[Caltech, ca. 1979] Any malfunctioning computer terminal. A common failure mode of Lear-Siegler ADM 3a terminals caused the `L' key to produce the `K' code instead; complaints about this tended to look like "Terminak #3 has a bad keyboard. Pkease fix." Compare dread high-bit disease, frogging; see also AIDX, Nominal Semidestructor, ScumOS, sun-stools, Telerat, HP-SUX, Slowlaris.

Node:terminal brain death, Next:terminal illness, Previous:terminak, Up:= T =

terminal brain death n.

The extreme form of terminal illness (sense 1). What someone who has obviously been hacking continuously for far too long is said to be suffering from.

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terminal illness n.

1. Syn. raster burn. 2. The `burn-in' condition your CRT tends to get if you don't have a screen saver.

Node:terminal junkie, Next:terpri, Previous:terminal illness, Up:= T =

terminal junkie n.

[UK] A wannabee or early larval stage hacker who spends most of his or her time wandering the directory tree and writing noddy programs just to get a fix of computer time. Variants include `terminal jockey', `console junkie', and console jockey. The term `console jockey' seems to imply more expertise than the other three (possibly because of the exalted status of the console relative to an ordinary terminal). See also twink, read-only user. Appropriately, this term was used in the works of William S. Burroughs to describe a heroin addict with an unlimited supply.

Node:terpri, Next:test, Previous:terminal junkie, Up:= T =

terpri /ter'pree/ vi.

[from LISP 1.5 (and later, MacLISP)] To output a newline. Now rare as jargon, though still used as techspeak in Common LISP. It is a contraction of `TERminate PRInt line', named for the fact that, on some early OSes and hardware, no characters would be printed until a complete line was formed, so this operation terminated the line and emitted the output.

Node:test, Next:TeX, Previous:terpri, Up:= T =

test n.

1. Real users bashing on a prototype long enough to get thoroughly acquainted with it, with careful monitoring and followup of the results. 2. Some bored random user trying a couple of the simpler features with a developer looking over his or her shoulder, ready to pounce on mistakes. Judging by the quality of most software, the second definition is far more prevalent. See also demo.

Node:TeX, Next:text, Previous:test, Up:= T =

TeX /tekh/ n.

An extremely powerful macro-based text formatter written by Donald E. Knuth, very popular in the computer-science community (it is good enough to have displaced Unix troff, the other favored formatter, even at many Unix installations). TeX fans insist on the correct (guttural) pronunciation, and the correct spelling (all caps, squished together, with the E depressed below the baseline; the mixed-case `TeX' is considered an acceptable kluge on ASCII-only devices). Fans like to proliferate names from the word `TeX' -- such as TeXnician (TeX user), TeXhacker (TeX programmer), TeXmaster (competent TeX programmer), TeXhax, and TeXnique. See also CrApTeX.

Knuth began TeX because he had become annoyed at the declining quality of the typesetting in volumes I-III of his monumental "Art of Computer Programming" (see Knuth, also bible). In a manifestation of the typical hackish urge to solve the problem at hand once and for all, he began to design his own typesetting language. He thought he would finish it on his sabbatical in 1978; he was wrong by only about 8 years. The language was finally frozen around 1985, but volume IV of "The Art of Computer Programming" is not expected to appear until 2002. The impact and influence of TeX's design has been such that nobody minds this very much. Many grand hackish projects have started as a bit of toolsmithing on the way to something else; Knuth's diversion was simply on a grander scale than most.

TeX has also been a noteworthy example of free, shared, but high-quality software. Knuth offers a monetary awards to anyone who found and reported bugs dating from before the 1989 code freeze; as the years wore on and the few remaining bugs were fixed (and new ones even harder to find), the bribe went up. Though well-written, TeX is so large (and so full of cutting edge technique) that it is said to have unearthed at least one bug in every Pascal system it has been compiled with.

Node:text, Next:thanks in advance, Previous:TeX, Up:= T =

text n.

1. [techspeak] Executable code, esp. a `pure code' portion shared between multiple instances of a program running in a multitasking OS. Compare English. 2. Textual material in the mainstream sense; data in ordinary ASCII or EBCDIC representation (see flat-ASCII). "Those are text files; you can review them using the editor." These two contradictory senses confuse hackers, too.

Node:thanks in advance, Next:That's not a bug that's a feature!, Previous:text, Up:= T =

thanks in advance

[Usenet] Conventional net.politeness ending a posted request for information or assistance. Sometimes written `advTHANKSance' or `aTdHvAaNnKcSe' or abbreviated `TIA'. See net.-, netiquette.

Node:That's not a bug that's a feature!, Next:the literature, Previous:thanks in advance, Up:= T =

That's not a bug, that's a feature!

The canonical first parry in a debate about a purported bug. The complainant, if unconvinced, is likely to retort that the bug is then at best a misfeature. See also feature.

Node:the literature, Next:the network, Previous:That's not a bug that's a feature!, Up:= T =

the literature n.

Computer-science journals and other publications, vaguely gestured at to answer a question that the speaker believes is trivial. Thus, one might answer an annoying question by saying "It's in the literature." Oppose Knuth, which has no connotation of triviality.

Node:the network, Next:the X that can be Y is not the true X, Previous:the literature, Up:= T =

the network n.

1. Historicaslly, the union of all the major noncommercial, academic, and hacker-oriented networks, such as Internet, the pre-1990 ARPANET, NSFnet, BITNET, and the virtual UUCP and Usenet `networks', plus the corporate in-house networks and commercial time-sharing services (such as CompuServe, GEnie and AOL) that gateway to them. A site is generally considered `on the network' if it can be reached through some combination of Internet-style (@-sign) and UUCP (bang-path) addresses. See Internet, bang path, Internet address, network address. 2. Following the mass-culture discovery of the Internet in 1994 and subsequent proliferation of cheap TCP/IP connections, "the network" is increasingly synonymous with the Internet itself (as it was before the second wave of wide-area computer networking began around 1980). 3. A fictional conspiracy of libertarian hacker-subversives and anti-authoritarian monkeywrenchers described in Robert Anton Wilson's novel "Schrödinger's Cat", to which many hackers have subsequently decided they belong (this is an example of ha ha only serious).

In sense 1, `the network' is often abbreviated to `the net'. "Are you on the net?" is a frequent question when hackers first meet face to face, and "See you on the net!" is a frequent goodbye.

Node:the X that can be Y is not the true X, Next:theology, Previous:the network, Up:= T =

the X that can be Y is not the true X

Yet another instance of hackerdom's peculiar attraction to mystical references -- a common humorous way of making exclusive statements about a class of things. The template is from the "Tao te Ching": "The Tao which can be spoken of is not the true Tao." The implication is often that the X is a mystery accessible only to the enlightened. See the trampoline entry for an example, and compare has the X nature.

Node:theology, Next:theory, Previous:the X that can be Y is not the true X, Up:= T =

theology n.

1. Ironically or humorously used to refer to religious issues. 2. Technical fine points of an abstruse nature, esp. those where the resolution is of theoretical interest but is relatively marginal with respect to actual use of a design or system. Used esp. around software issues with a heavy AI or language-design component, such as the smart-data vs. smart-programs dispute in AI.

Node:theory, Next:thinko, Previous:theology, Up:= T =

theory n.

The consensus, idea, plan, story, or set of rules that is currently being used to inform a behavior. This usage is a generalization and (deliberate) abuse of the technical meaning. "What's the theory on fixing this TECO loss?" "What's the theory on dinner tonight?" ("Chinatown, I guess.") "What's the current theory on letting lusers on during the day?" "The theory behind this change is to fix the following well-known screw...."

Node:thinko, Next:This can't happen, Previous:theory, Up:= T =

thinko /thing'koh/ n.

[by analogy with `typo'] A momentary, correctable glitch in mental processing, especially one involving recall of information learned by rote; a bubble in the stream of consciousness. Syn. braino; see also brain fart. Compare mouso.

Node:This can't happen, Next:This time for sure!, Previous:thinko, Up:= T =

This can't happen

Less clipped variant of can't happen.

Node:This time for sure!, Next:thrash, Previous:This can't happen, Up:= T =

This time, for sure! excl.

Ritual affirmation frequently uttered during protracted debugging sessions involving numerous small obstacles (e.g., attempts to bring up a UUCP connection). For the proper effect, this must be uttered in a fruity imitation of Bullwinkle J. Moose. Also heard: "Hey, Rocky! Watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat!" The canonical response is, of course, "But that trick never works!" See hacker humor.

Node:thrash, Next:thread, Previous:This time for sure!, Up:= T =

thrash vi.

To move wildly or violently, without accomplishing anything useful. Paging or swapping systems that are overloaded waste most of their time moving data into and out of core (rather than performing useful computation) and are therefore said to thrash. Someone who keeps changing his mind (esp. about what to work on next) is said to be thrashing. A person frantically trying to execute too many tasks at once (and not spending enough time on any single task) may also be described as thrashing. Compare multitask.

Node:thread, Next:three-finger salute, Previous:thrash, Up:= T =

thread n.

[Usenet, GEnie, CompuServe] Common abbreviation of `topic thread', a more or less continuous chain of postings on a single topic. To `follow a thread' is to read a series of Usenet postings sharing a common subject or (more correctly) which are connected by Reference headers. The better newsreaders can present news in thread order automatically. Not to be confused with the techspeak sense of `thread', e.g. a lightweight process.

Interestingly, this is far from a neologism. The OED says: "That which connects the successive points in anything, esp. a narrative, train of thought, or the like; the sequence of events or ideas continuing throughout the whole course of anything;" Citations are given going back to 1642!

Node:three-finger salute, Next:throwaway account, Previous:thread, Up:= T =

three-finger salute n.

Syn. Vulcan nerve pinch.

Node:throwaway account, Next:thud, Previous:three-finger salute, Up:= T =

throwaway account n.

1. An inexpensive Internet account purchased on a legitimate ISP for the the sole purpose of spewing spam. 2. An inexpensive Internet account obtained for the sole purpose of doing something which requires a valid email address but being able to ignore spam since the user will not look at the account again.

Node:thud, Next:thumb, Previous:throwaway account, Up:= T =

thud n.

1. Yet another metasyntactic variable (see foo). It is reported that at CMU from the mid-1970s the canonical series of these was `foo', `bar', `thud', `blat'. 2. Rare term for the hash character, `#' (ASCII 0100011). See ASCII for other synonyms.

Node:thumb, Next:thundering herd problem, Previous:thud, Up:= T =

thumb n.

The slider on a window-system scrollbar. So called because moving it allows you to browse through the contents of a text window in a way analogous to thumbing through a book.

Node:thundering herd problem, Next:thunk, Previous:thumb, Up:= T =

thundering herd problem

Scheduler thrashing. This can happen under Unix when you have a number of processes that are waiting on a single event. When that event (a connection to the web server, say) happens, every process which could possibly handle the event is awakened. In the end, only one of those processes will actually be able to do the work, but, in the meantime, all the others wake up and contend for CPU time before being put back to sleep. Thus the system thrashes briefly while a herd of processes thunders through. If this starts to happen many times per second, the performance impact can be significant.

Node:thunk, Next:tick, Previous:thundering herd problem, Up:= T =

thunk /thuhnk/ n.

1. [obs.]"A piece of coding which provides an address", according to P. Z. Ingerman, who invented thunks in 1961 as a way of binding actual parameters to their formal definitions in Algol-60 procedure calls. If a procedure is called with an expression in the place of a formal parameter, the compiler generates a thunk which computes the expression and leaves the address of the result in some standard location. 2. Later generalized into: an expression, frozen together with its environment, for later evaluation if and when needed (similar to what in techspeak is called a `closure'). The process of unfreezing these thunks is called `forcing'. 3. A stubroutine, in an overlay programming environment, that loads and jumps to the correct overlay. Compare trampoline. 4. People and activities scheduled in a thunklike manner. "It occurred to me the other day that I am rather accurately modeled by a thunk -- I frequently need to be forced to completion." -- paraphrased from a plan file.

Historical note: There are a couple of onomatopoeic myths circulating about the origin of this term. The most common is that it is the sound made by data hitting the stack; another holds that the sound is that of the data hitting an accumulator. Yet another suggests that it is the sound of the expression being unfrozen at argument-evaluation time. In fact, according to the inventors, it was coined after they realized (in the wee hours after hours of discussion) that the type of an argument in Algol-60 could be figured out in advance with a little compile-time thought, simplifying the evaluation machinery. In other words, it had `already been thought of'; thus it was christened a `thunk', which is "the past tense of `think' at two in the morning".

Node:tick, Next:tick-list features, Previous:thunk, Up:= T =

tick n.

1. A jiffy (sense 1). 2. In simulations, the discrete unit of time that passes between iterations of the simulation mechanism. In AI applications, this amount of time is often left unspecified, since the only constraint of interest is the ordering of events. This sort of AI simulation is often pejoratively referred to as `tick-tick-tick' simulation, especially when the issue of simultaneity of events with long, independent chains of causes is handwaved. 3. In the FORTH language, a single quote character.

Node:tick-list features, Next:tickle a bug, Previous:tick, Up:= T =

tick-list features n.

[Acorn Computers] Features in software or hardware that customers insist on but never use (calculators in desktop TSRs and that sort of thing). The American equivalent would be `checklist features', but this jargon sense of the phrase has not been reported.

Node:tickle a bug, Next:tiger team, Previous:tick-list features, Up:= T =

tickle a bug vt.

To cause a normally hidden bug to manifest itself through some known series of inputs or operations. "You can tickle the bug in the Paradise VGA card's highlight handling by trying to set bright yellow reverse video."

Node:tiger team, Next:time bomb, Previous:tickle a bug, Up:= T =

tiger team n.

[U.S. military jargon] 1. Originally, a team (of sneakers) whose purpose is to penetrate security, and thus test security measures. These people are paid professionals who do hacker-type tricks, e.g., leave cardboard signs saying "bomb" in critical defense installations, hand-lettered notes saying "Your codebooks have been stolen" (they usually haven't been) inside safes, etc. After a successful penetration, some high-ranking security type shows up the next morning for a `security review' and finds the sign, note, etc., and all hell breaks loose. Serious successes of tiger teams sometimes lead to early retirement for base commanders and security officers (see the patch entry for an example). 2. Recently, and more generally, any official inspection team or special firefighting group called in to look at a problem.

A subset of tiger teams are professional crackers, testing the security of military computer installations by attempting remote attacks via networks or supposedly `secure' comm channels. Some of their escapades, if declassified, would probably rank among the greatest hacks of all times. The term has been adopted in commercial computer-security circles in this more specific sense.

Node:time bomb, Next:time sink, Previous:tiger team, Up:= T =

time bomb n.

A subspecies of logic bomb that is triggered by reaching some preset time, either once or periodically. There are numerous legends about time bombs set up by programmers in their employers' machines, to go off if the programmer is fired or laid off and is not present to perform the appropriate suppressing action periodically.

Interestingly, the only such incident for which we have been pointed to documentary evidence took place in the Soviet Union in 1986! A disgruntled programmer at the Volga Automobile Plant (where the Fiat clones called Ladas were manufactured) planted a time bomb which, a week after he'd left on vacation, stopped the entire main assembly line for a day. The case attracted lots of attention in the Soviet Union because it was the first cracking case to make it to court there. The perpetrator got a suspended sentence of 3 years in jail and was barred from future work as a programmer.

Node:time sink, Next:time T, Previous:time bomb, Up:= T =

time sink n.

[poss. by analogy with `heat sink' or `current sink'] A project that consumes unbounded amounts of time.

Node:time T, Next:times-or-divided-by, Previous:time sink, Up:= T =

time T /ti:m T/ n.

1. An unspecified but usually well-understood time, often used in conjunction with a later time T+1. "We'll meet on campus at time T or at Louie's at time T+1" means, in the context of going out for dinner: "We can meet on campus and go to Louie's, or we can meet at Louie's itself a bit later." (Louie's was a Chinese restaurant in Palo Alto that was a favorite with hackers.) Had the number 30 been used instead of the number 1, it would have implied that the travel time from campus to Louie's is 30 minutes; whatever time T is (and that hasn't been decided on yet), you can meet half an hour later at Louie's than you could on campus and end up eating at the same time. See also since time T equals minus infinity.

Node:times-or-divided-by, Next:TINC, Previous:time T, Up:= T =

times-or-divided-by quant.

[by analogy with `plus-or-minus'] Term occasionally used when describing the uncertainty associated with a scheduling estimate, for either humorous or brutally honest effect. For a software project, the scheduling uncertainty factor is usually at least 2.

Node:TINC, Next:Tinkerbell program, Previous:times-or-divided-by, Up:= T =

TINC //

[Usenet] Abbreviation: "There Is No Cabal". See backbone cabal and NANA, but note that this abbreviation did not enter use until long after the dispersal of the backbone cabal.

Node:Tinkerbell program, Next:TINLC, Previous:TINC, Up:= T =

Tinkerbell program n.

[Great Britain] A monitoring program used to scan incoming network calls and generate alerts when calls are received from particular sites, or when logins are attempted using certain IDs. Named after `Project Tinkerbell', an experimental phone-tapping program developed by British Telecom in the early 1980s.

Node:TINLC, Next:tip of the ice-cube, Previous:Tinkerbell program, Up:= T =

TINLC //

Abbreviation: "There Is No Lumber Cartel". See Lumber Cartel. TINLC is a takeoff on TINC.

Node:tip of the ice-cube, Next:tired iron, Previous:TINLC, Up:= T =

tip of the ice-cube n. //

[IBM] The visible part of something small and insignificant. Used as an ironic comment in situations where `tip of the iceberg' might be appropriate if the subject were at all important.

Node:tired iron, Next:tits on a keyboard, Previous:tip of the ice-cube, Up:= T =

tired iron n.

[IBM] Hardware that is perfectly functional but far enough behind the state of the art to have been superseded by new products, presumably with sufficient improvement in bang-per-buck that the old stuff is starting to look a bit like a dinosaur.

Node:tits on a keyboard, Next:TLA, Previous:tired iron, Up:= T =

tits on a keyboard n.

Small bumps on certain keycaps to keep touch-typists registered. Usually on the 5 of a numeric keypad, and on the F and J of a QWERTY keyboard; but older Macs, perverse as usual, had them on the D and K keys (this changed in 1999).

Node:TLA, Next:(TM), Previous:tits on a keyboard, Up:= T =

TLA /T-L-A/ n.

[Three-Letter Acronym] 1. Self-describing abbreviation for a species with which computing terminology is infested. 2. Any confusing acronym. Examples include MCA, FTP, SNA, CPU, MMU, SCCS, DMU, FPU, NNTP, TLA. People who like this looser usage argue that not all TLAs have three letters, just as not all four-letter words have four letters. One also hears of `ETLA' (Extended Three-Letter Acronym, pronounced /ee tee el ay/) being used to describe four-letter acronyms. The term `SFLA' (Stupid Four-Letter Acronym) has also been reported. See also YABA.

The self-effacing phrase "TDM TLA" (Too Damn Many...) is often used to bemoan the plethora of TLAs in use. In 1989, a random of the journalistic persuasion asked hacker Paul Boutin "What do you think will be the biggest problem in computing in the 90s?" Paul's straight-faced response: "There are only 17,000 three-letter acronyms." (To be exact, there are 26^3 = 17,576.) There is probably some karmic justice in the fact that Paul Boutin subsequently became a journalist.

Node:(TM), Next:TMRC, Previous:TLA, Up:= T =

(TM) //

[Usenet] ASCII rendition of the trademark-superscript symbol appended to phrases that the author feels should be recorded for posterity, perhaps in future editions of this lexicon. Sometimes used ironically as a form of protest against the recent spate of software and algorithm patents and `look and feel' lawsuits. See also UN*X.

Node:TMRC, Next:TMRCie, Previous:(TM), Up:= T =

TMRC /tmerk'/ n.

The Tech Model Railroad Club at MIT, one of the wellsprings of hacker culture. The 1959 "Dictionary of the TMRC Language" compiled by Peter Samson included several terms that became basics of the hackish vocabulary (see esp. foo, mung, and frob).

By 1962, TMRC's legendary layout was already a marvel of complexity and has grown in the years since. All the features described here were still present when the old layout was decomissioned in 1998 just before the demolition of MIT Building 20, and will almost certainly be retained when the old layout is rebuilt (expected in 2003). The control system alone featured about 1200 relays. There were scram switches located at numerous places around the room that could be thwacked if something undesirable was about to occur, such as a train going full-bore at an obstruction. Another feature of the system was a digital clock on the dispatch board, which was itself something of a wonder in those bygone days before cheap LEDs and seven-segment displays. When someone hit a scram switch the clock stopped and the display was replaced with the word `FOO'; at TMRC the scram switches are therefore called `foo switches'.

Steven Levy, in his book "Hackers" (see the Bibliography in Appendix C), gives a stimulating account of those early years. TMRC's Signals and Power Committee included many of the early PDP-1 hackers and the people who later became the core of the MIT AI Lab staff. Thirty years later that connection is still very much alive, and this lexicon accordingly includes a number of entries from a recent revision of the TMRC dictionary.

TMRC has a web page at http://web.mit.edu/tmrc/www/.

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TMRCie /tmerk'ee/, n.

[MIT] A denizen of TMRC.

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TMTOWTDI /tim-toh'-dee/

There's More Than One Way To Do It. This abbreviation of the official motto of Perl is frequently used on newsgroups and mailing lists related to that language.

Node:to a first approximation, Next:to a zeroth approximation, Previous:TMTOWTDI, Up:= T =

to a first approximation adj.

1. [techspeak] When one is doing certain numerical computations, an approximate solution may be computed by any of several heuristic methods, then refined to a final value. By using the starting point of a first approximation of the answer, one can write an algorithm that converges more quickly to the correct result. 2. In jargon, a preface to any comment that indicates that the comment is only approximately true. The remark "To a first approximation, I feel good" might indicate that deeper questioning would reveal that not all is perfect (e.g., a nagging cough still remains after an illness).

Node:to a zeroth approximation, Next:toad, Previous:to a first approximation, Up:= T =

to a zeroth approximation

[from `to a first approximation'] A really sloppy approximation; a wild guess. Compare social science number.

Node:toad, Next:toast, Previous:to a zeroth approximation, Up:= T =

toad vt. [MUD]

1. Notionally, to change a MUD player into a toad. 2. To permanently and totally exile a player from the MUD. A very serious action, which can only be done by a MUD wizard; often involves a lot of debate among the other characters first. See also frog, FOD.

Node:toast, Next:toaster, Previous:toad, Up:= T =

toast 1. n.

Any completely inoperable system or component, esp. one that has just crashed and burned: "Uh, oh ... I think the serial board is toast." 2. vt. To cause a system to crash accidentally, especially in a manner that requires manual rebooting. "Rick just toasted the firewall machine again." Compare fried.

Node:toaster, Next:toeprint, Previous:toast, Up:= T =

toaster n.

1. The archetypal really stupid application for an embedded microprocessor controller; often used in comments that imply that a scheme is inappropriate technology (but see elevator controller). "DWIM for an assembler? That'd be as silly as running Unix on your toaster!" 2. A very, very dumb computer. "You could run this program on any dumb toaster." See bitty box, Get a real computer!, toy, beige toaster. 3. A Macintosh, esp. the Classic Mac. Some hold that this is implied by sense 2. 4. A peripheral device. "I bought my box without toasters, but since then I've added two boards and a second disk drive." 5. A specialized computer used as an appliance. See web toaster, video toaster.

Node:toeprint, Next:toggle, Previous:toaster, Up:= T =

toeprint n.

A footprint of especially small size.

Node:toggle, Next:tool, Previous:toeprint, Up:= T =

toggle vt.

To change a bit from whatever state it is in to the other state; to change from 1 to 0 or from 0 to 1. This comes from `toggle switches', such as standard light switches, though the word `toggle' actually refers to the mechanism that keeps the switch in the position to which it is flipped rather than to the fact that the switch has two positions. There are four things you can do to a bit: set it (force it to be 1), clear (or zero) it, leave it alone, or toggle it. (Mathematically, one would say that there are four distinct boolean-valued functions of one boolean argument, but saying that is much less fun than talking about toggling bits.)

Node:tool, Next:toolsmith, Previous:toggle, Up:= T =

tool 1. n.