Books: The New Hacker\'s Dictionary version 4.2.2

V >> Various editors >> The New Hacker\'s Dictionary version 4.2.2

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See also [14218]VAX, [14219]TOPS-10, [14220]TOPS-20, [14221]Unix,
[14222]runic.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:voice, Next:[14223]voice-net, Previous:[14224]VMS, Up:[14225]= V
=

voice vt.

To phone someone, as opposed to emailing them or connecting in
[14226]talk mode. "I'm busy now; I'll voice you later."
_________________________________________________________________

Node:voice-net, Next:[14227]voodoo programming, Previous:[14228]voice,
Up:[14229]= V =

voice-net n.

Hackish way of referring to the telephone system, analogizing it to a
digital network. Usenet [14230]sig blocks not uncommonly include the
sender's phone next to a "Voice:" or "Voice-Net:" header; common
variants of this are "Voicenet" and "V-Net". Compare [14231]paper-net,
[14232]snail-mail.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:voodoo programming, Next:[14233]VR, Previous:[14234]voice-net,
Up:[14235]= V =

voodoo programming n.

[from George Bush's "voodoo economics"] 1. The use by guess or
cookbook of an [14236]obscure or [14237]hairy system, feature, or
algorithm that one does not truly understand. The implication is that
the technique may not work, and if it doesn't, one will never know
why. Almost synonymous with [14238]black magic, except that black
magic typically isn't documented and nobody understands it. Compare
[14239]magic, [14240]deep magic, [14241]heavy wizardry, [14242]rain
dance, [14243]cargo cult programming, [14244]wave a dead chicken. 2.
Things programmers do that they know shouldn't work but they try
anyway, and which sometimes actually work, such as recompiling
everything.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:VR, Next:[14245]Vulcan nerve pinch, Previous:[14246]voodoo
programming, Up:[14247]= V =

VR // [MUD] n.

On-line abbrev for [14248]virtual reality, as opposed to [14249]RL.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:Vulcan nerve pinch, Next:[14250]vulture capitalist,
Previous:[14251]VR, Up:[14252]= V =

Vulcan nerve pinch n.

[from the old "Star Trek" TV series via Commodore Amiga hackers] The
keyboard combination that forces a soft-boot or jump to ROM monitor
(on machines that support such a feature). On PC clones this is
Ctrl-Alt-Del; on Suns, L1-A; on Macintoshes, it is - switch> or --! Also called [14253]three-finger
salute. Compare [14254]quadruple bucky.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:vulture capitalist, Next:[14255]W2K bug, Previous:[14256]Vulcan
nerve pinch, Up:[14257]= V =

vulture capitalist n.

Pejorative hackerism for `venture capitalist', deriving from the
common practice of pushing contracts that deprive inventors of control
over their own innovations and most of the money they ought to have
made from them.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:= W =, Next:[14258]= X =, Previous:[14259]= V =, Up:[14260]The
Jargon Lexicon

= W =

* [14261]W2K bug:
* [14262]wabbit:
* [14263]WAITS:
* [14264]waldo:
* [14265]walk:
* [14266]walk off the end of:
* [14267]walking drives:
* [14268]wall:
* [14269]wall follower:
* [14270]wall time:
* [14271]wall wart:
* [14272]wallpaper:
* [14273]wango:
* [14274]wank:
* [14275]wannabee:
* [14276]war dialer:
* [14277]-ware:
* [14278]warez:
* [14279]warez d00dz:
* [14280]warez kiddies:
* [14281]warlording:
* [14282]warm boot:
* [14283]wart:
* [14284]washing machine:
* [14285]washing software:
* [14286]water MIPS:
* [14287]wave a dead chicken:
* [14288]weasel:
* [14289]web pointer:
* [14290]web toaster:
* [14291]webify:
* [14292]webmaster:
* [14293]web ring:
* [14294]wedged:
* [14295]wedgie:
* [14296]wedgitude:
* [14297]weeble:
* [14298]weeds:
* [14299]weenie:
* [14300]Weenix:
* [14301]well-behaved:
* [14302]well-connected:
* [14303]wetware:
* [14304]whack:
* [14305]whack-a-mole:
* [14306]whacker:
* [14307]whales:
* [14308]whalesong:
* [14309]What's a spline?:
* [14310]wheel:
* [14311]wheel bit:
* [14312]wheel of reincarnation:
* [14313]wheel wars:
* [14314]White Book:
* [14315]whitelist:
* [14316]whizzy:
* [14317]wibble:
* [14318]WIBNI:
* [14319]widget:
* [14320]wiggles:
* [14321]WIMP environment:
* [14322]win:
* [14323]win big:
* [14324]win win:
* [14325]Winchester:
* [14326]windoid:
* [14327]window shopping:
* [14328]Windoze:
* [14329]winged comments:
* [14330]winkey:
* [14331]winnage:
* [14332]winner:
* [14333]winnitude:
* [14334]Wintel:
* [14335]wired:
* [14336]wirehead:
* [14337]wirewater:
* [14338]wish list:
* [14339]within delta of:
* [14340]within epsilon of:
* [14341]wizard:
* [14342]Wizard Book:
* [14343]wizard hat:
* [14344]wizard mode:
* [14345]wizardly:
* [14346]wok-on-the-wall:
* [14347]womb box:
* [14348]WOMBAT:
* [14349]womble:
* [14350]wonky:
* [14351]woofer:
* [14352]workaround:
* [14353]working as designed:
* [14354]worm:
* [14355]wormhole:
* [14356]wound around the axle:
* [14357]wrap around:
* [14358]write-only code:
* [14359]write-only language:
* [14360]write-only memory:
* [14361]Wrong Thing:
* [14362]wugga wugga:
* [14363]wumpus:
* [14364]WYSIAYG:
* [14365]WYSIWYG:
_________________________________________________________________

Node:W2K bug, Next:[14366]wabbit, Previous:[14367]vulture capitalist,
Up:[14368]= W =

W2K bug

[from `Y2K bug' for the Year 2000 problem] The upcoming deployment of
Microsoft's Windows 2000 operating system, which hackers generally
expect will be among the worst train wrecks in the history of software
engineering. Such is the power of Microsoft marketing, however, that
it is also expected this will not become obvious until it has incurred
hundreds of millions of dollars in downtime and lost opportunity
costs.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wabbit, Next:[14369]WAITS, Previous:[14370]W2K bug, Up:[14371]= W
=

wabbit /wab'it/ n.

[almost certainly from Elmer Fudd's immortal line "You wascawwy
wabbit!"] 1. A legendary early hack reported on a System/360 at RPI
and elsewhere around 1978; this may have descended (if only by
inspiration) from a hack called RABBITS reported from 1969 on a
Burroughs 5500 at the University of Washington Computer Center. The
program would make two copies of itself every time it was run,
eventually crashing the system. 2. By extension, any hack that
includes infinite self-replication but is not a [14372]virus or
[14373]worm. See [14374]fork bomb and [14375]rabbit job, see also
[14376]cookie monster.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:WAITS, Next:[14377]waldo, Previous:[14378]wabbit, Up:[14379]= W =

WAITS /wayts/ n.

The mutant cousin of [14380]TOPS-10 used on a handful of systems at
[14381]SAIL up to 1990. There was never an `official' expansion of
WAITS (the name itself having been arrived at by a rather sideways
process), but it was frequently glossed as `West-coast Alternative to
ITS'. Though WAITS was less visible than ITS, there was frequent
exchange of people and ideas between the two communities, and
innovations pioneered at WAITS exerted enormous indirect influence.
The early screen modes of [14382]EMACS, for example, were directly
inspired by WAITS's `E' editor -- one of a family of editors that were
the first to do `real-time editing', in which the editing commands
were invisible and where one typed text at the point of
insertion/overwriting. The modern style of multi-region windowing is
said to have originated there, and WAITS alumni at XEROX PARC and
elsewhere played major roles in the developments that led to the XEROX
Star, the Macintosh, and the Sun workstations. Also invented there
were [14383]bucky bits -- thus, the ALT key on every IBM PC is a WAITS
legacy. One WAITS feature very notable in pre-Web days was a news-wire
interface that allowed WAITS hackers to read, store, and filter AP and
UPI dispatches from their terminals; the system also featured a
still-unusual level of support for what is now called `multimedia'
computing, allowing analog audio and video signals to be switched to
programming terminals.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:waldo, Next:[14384]walk, Previous:[14385]WAITS, Up:[14386]= W =

waldo /wol'doh/ n.

[From Robert A. Heinlein's story "Waldo"] 1. A mechanical agent, such
as a gripper arm, controlled by a human limb. When these were
developed for the nuclear industry in the mid-1940s they were named
after the invention described by Heinlein in the story, which he wrote
in 1942. Now known by the more generic term `telefactoring', this
technology is of intense interest to NASA for tasks like space station
maintenance. 2. At Harvard (particularly by Tom Cheatham and
students), this is used instead of [14387]foobar as a metasyntactic
variable and general nonsense word. See [14388]foo, [14389]bar,
[14390]foobar, [14391]quux.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:walk, Next:[14392]walk off the end of, Previous:[14393]waldo,
Up:[14394]= W =

walk n.,vt.

Traversal of a data structure, especially an array or linked-list data
structure in [14395]core. See also [14396]codewalker, [14397]silly
walk, [14398]clobber.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:walk off the end of, Next:[14399]walking drives,
Previous:[14400]walk, Up:[14401]= W =

walk off the end of vt.

To run past the end of an array, list, or medium after stepping
through it -- a good way to land in trouble. Often the result of an
[14402]off-by-one error. Compare [14403]clobber, [14404]roach,
[14405]smash the stack.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:walking drives, Next:[14406]wall, Previous:[14407]walk off the
end of, Up:[14408]= W =

walking drives n.

An occasional failure mode of magnetic-disk drives back in the days
when they were huge, clunky [14409]washing machines. Those old
[14410]dinosaur parts carried terrific angular momentum; the
combination of a misaligned spindle or worn bearings and stick-slip
interactions with the floor could cause them to `walk' across a room,
lurching alternate corners forward a couple of millimeters at a time.
There is a legend about a drive that walked over to the only door to
the computer room and jammed it shut; the staff had to cut a hole in
the wall in order to get at it! Walking could also be induced by
certain patterns of drive access (a fast seek across the whole width
of the disk, followed by a slow seek in the other direction). Some
bands of old-time hackers figured out how to induce disk-accessing
patterns that would do this to particular drive models and held
disk-drive races.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wall, Next:[14411]wall follower, Previous:[14412]walking drives,
Up:[14413]= W =

wall interj.

[WPI] 1. An indication of confusion, usually spoken with a quizzical
tone: "Wall??" 2. A request for further explication. Compare
[14414]octal forty. 3. [Unix, from `write all'] v. To send a message
to everyone currently logged in, esp. with the wall(8) utility.

It is said that sense 1 came from the idiom `like talking to a blank
wall'. It was originally used in situations where, after you had
carefully answered a question, the questioner stared at you blankly,
clearly having understood nothing that was explained. You would then
throw out a "Hello, wall?" to elicit some sort of response from the
questioner. Later, confused questioners began voicing "Wall?"
themselves.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wall follower, Next:[14415]wall time, Previous:[14416]wall,
Up:[14417]= W =

wall follower n.

A person or algorithm that compensates for lack of sophistication or
native stupidity by efficiently following some simple procedure shown
to have been effective in the past. Used of an algorithm, this is not
necessarily pejorative; it recalls `Harvey Wallbanger', the winning
robot in an early AI contest (named, of course, after the cocktail).
Harvey successfully solved mazes by keeping a `finger' on one wall and
running till it came out the other end. This was inelegant, but it was
mathematically guaranteed to work on simply-connected mazes -- and, in
fact, Harvey outperformed more sophisticated robots that tried to
`learn' each maze by building an internal representation of it. Used
of humans, the term is pejorative and implies an uncreative,
bureaucratic, by-the-book mentality. See also [14418]code grinder;
compare [14419]droid.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wall time, Next:[14420]wall wart, Previous:[14421]wall follower,
Up:[14422]= W =

wall time n.

(also `wall clock time') 1. `Real world' time (what the clock on the
wall shows), as opposed to the system clock's idea of time. 2. The
real running time of a program, as opposed to the number of
[14423]ticks required to execute it (on a timesharing system these
always differ, as no one program gets all the ticks, and on
multiprocessor systems with good thread support one may get more
processor time than real time).
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wall wart, Next:[14424]wallpaper, Previous:[14425]wall time,
Up:[14426]= W =

wall wart n.

A small power-supply brick with integral male plug, designed to plug
directly into a wall outlet; called a `wart' because when installed on
a power strip it tends to block up at least one more socket than it
uses.. These are frequently associated with modems and other small
electronic devices which would become unacceptably bulky or hot if
they had power supplies on board (there are other reasons as well
having to do with the cost of UL certification).
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wallpaper, Next:[14427]wango, Previous:[14428]wall wart,
Up:[14429]= W =

wallpaper n.

1. A file containing a listing (e.g., assembly listing) or a
transcript, esp. a file containing a transcript of all or part of a
login session. (The idea was that the paper for such listings was
essentially good only for wallpaper, as evidenced at Stanford, where
it was used to cover windows.) Now rare, esp. since other systems have
developed other terms for it (e.g., PHOTO on TWENEX). However, the
Unix world doesn't have an equivalent term, so perhaps
[14430]wallpaper will take hold there. The term probably originated on
ITS, where the commands to begin and end transcript files were :WALBEG
and :WALEND, with default file WALL PAPER (the space was a path
delimiter). 2. The background pattern used on graphical workstations
(this is techspeak under the `Windows' graphical user interface to
MS-DOS). 3. `wallpaper file' n. The file that contains the wallpaper
information before it is actually printed on paper. (Even if you don't
intend ever to produce a real paper copy of the file, it is still
called a wallpaper file.)
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wango, Next:[14431]wank, Previous:[14432]wallpaper, Up:[14433]= W
=

wango /wang'goh/ n.

Random bit-level [14434]grovelling going on in a system during some
unspecified operation. Often used in combination with [14435]mumble.
For example: "You start with the `.o' file, run it through this
postprocessor that does mumble-wango -- and it comes out a snazzy
object-oriented executable."
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wank, Next:[14436]wannabee, Previous:[14437]wango, Up:[14438]= W
=

wank /wangk/ n.,v.,adj.

[Columbia University: prob. by mutation from Commonwealth slang v.
`wank', to masturbate] Used much as [14439]hack is elsewhere, as a
noun denoting a clever technique or person or the result of such
cleverness. May describe (negatively) the act of hacking for hacking's
sake ("Quit wanking, let's go get supper!") or (more positively) a
[14440]wizard. Adj. `wanky' describes something particularly clever (a
person, program, or algorithm). Conversations can also get wanky when
there are too many wanks involved. This excess wankiness is signalled
by an overload of the `wankometer' (compare [14441]bogometer). When
the wankometer overloads, the conversation's subject must be changed,
or all non-wanks will leave. Compare `neep-neeping' (under
[14442]neep-neep). Usage: U.S. only. In Britain and the Commonwealth
this word is extremely rude and is best avoided unless one intends to
give offense. Adjectival `wanky' is less offensive and simply means
`stupid' or `broken' (this is mainstream in Great Britain).
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wannabee, Next:[14443]war dialer, Previous:[14444]wank,
Up:[14445]= W =

wannabee /won'*-bee/ n.

(also, more plausibly, spelled `wannabe') [from a term recently used
to describe Madonna fans who dress, talk, and act like their idol;
prob. originally from biker slang] A would-be [14446]hacker. The
connotations of this term differ sharply depending on the age and
exposure of the subject. Used of a person who is in or might be
entering [14447]larval stage, it is semi-approving; such wannabees can
be annoying but most hackers remember that they, too, were once such
creatures. When used of any professional programmer, CS academic,
writer, or [14448]suit, it is derogatory, implying that said person is
trying to cuddle up to the hacker mystique but doesn't, fundamentally,
have a prayer of understanding what it is all about. Overuse of terms
from this lexicon is often an indication of the [14449]wannabee
nature. Compare [14450]newbie.

Historical note: The wannabee phenomenon has a slightly different
flavor now (1993) than it did ten or fifteen years ago. When the
people who are now hackerdom's tribal elders were in [14451]larval
stage, the process of becoming a hacker was largely unconscious and
unaffected by models known in popular culture -- communities formed
spontaneously around people who, as individuals, felt irresistibly
drawn to do hackerly things, and what wannabees experienced was a
fairly pure, skill-focused desire to become similarly wizardly. Those
days of innocence are gone forever; society's adaptation to the advent
of the microcomputer after 1980 included the elevation of the hacker
as a new kind of folk hero, and the result is that some people
semi-consciously set out to be hackers and borrow hackish prestige by
fitting the popular image of hackers. Fortunately, to do this really
well, one has to actually become a wizard. Nevertheless, old-time
hackers tend to share a poorly articulated disquiet about the change;
among other things, it gives them mixed feelings about the effects of
public compendia of lore like this one.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:war dialer, Next:[14452]-ware, Previous:[14453]wannabee,
Up:[14454]= W =

war dialer n.

A cracking tool, a program that calls a given list or range of phone
numbers and records those which answer with handshake tones (and so
might be entry points to computer or telecommunications systems). Some
of these programs have become quite sophisticated, and can now detect
modem, fax, or PBX tones and log each one separately. The war dialer
is one of the most important tools in the [14455]phreaker's kit. These
programs evolved from early [14456]demon dialers.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:-ware, Next:[14457]warez, Previous:[14458]war dialer, Up:[14459]=
W =

-ware suff.

[from `software'] Commonly used to form jargon terms for classes of
software. For examples, see [14460]annoyware, [14461]careware,
[14462]crippleware, [14463]crudware, [14464]freeware,
[14465]fritterware, [14466]guiltware, [14467]liveware,
[14468]meatware, [14469]payware, [14470]psychedelicware,
[14471]shareware, [14472]shelfware, [14473]vaporware, [14474]wetware.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:warez, Next:[14475]warez d00dz, Previous:[14476]-ware,
Up:[14477]= W =

warez /weirz/ n.

Widely used in [14478]cracker subcultures to denote cracked version of
commercial software, that is versions from which copy-protection has
been stripped. Hackers recognize this term but don't use it
themselves. See [14479]warez d00dz, [14480]courier, [14481]leech,
[14482]elite.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:warez d00dz, Next:[14483]warez kiddies, Previous:[14484]warez,
Up:[14485]= W =

warez d00dz /weirz doodz/ n.

A substantial subculture of [14486]crackers refer to themselves as
`warez d00dz'; there is evidently some connection with [14487]B1FF
here. As `Ozone Pilot', one former warez d00d, wrote:

Warez d00dz get illegal copies of copyrighted software. If it has
copy protection on it, they break the protection so the software
can be copied. Then they distribute it around the world via several
gateways. Warez d00dz form badass group names like RAZOR and the
like. They put up boards that distribute the latest ware, or pirate
program. The whole point of the Warez sub-culture is to get the
pirate program released and distributed before any other group. I
know, I know. But don't ask, and it won't hurt as much. This is how
they prove their poweress [sic]. It gives them the right to say, "I
released King's Quest IVXIX before you so obviously my testicles
are larger." Again don't ask...

The studly thing to do if one is a warez d00d, it appears, is emit
`0-day warez', that is copies of commercial software copied and
cracked on the same day as its retail release. Warez d00ds also hoard
software in a big way, collecting untold megabytes of arcade-style
games, pornographic JPGs, and applications they'll never use onto
their hard disks. As Ozone Pilot acutely observes:

[BELONG] is the only word you will need to know. Warez d00dz want
to belong. They have been shunned by everyone, and thus turn to
cyberspace for acceptance. That is why they always start groups
like TGW, FLT, USA and the like. Structure makes them happy. [...]
Warez d00dz will never have a handle like "Pink Daisy" because
warez d00dz are insecure. Only someone who is very secure with a
good dose of self-esteem can stand up to the cries of fag and
girlie-man. More likely you will find warez d00dz with handles
like: Doctor Death, Deranged Lunatic, Hellraiser, Mad Prince,
Dreamdevil, The Unknown, Renegade Chemist, Terminator, and Twin
Turbo. They like to sound badass when they can hide behind their
terminals. More likely, if you were given a sample of 100 people,
the person whose handle is Hellraiser is the last person you'd
associate with the name.

The contrast with Internet hackers is stark and instructive. See
[14488]cracker, [14489]wannabee, [14490]handle, [14491]elite,
[14492]courier, [14493]leech; compare [14494]weenie, [14495]spod.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:warez kiddies, Next:[14496]warlording, Previous:[14497]warez
d00dz, Up:[14498]= W =

warez kiddies n.

Even more derogatory way of referring to [14499]warez d00dz; refers to
the fact that most warez d00dz are around the age of puberty. Compare
[14500]script kiddies.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:warlording, Next:[14501]warm boot, Previous:[14502]warez kiddies,
Up:[14503]= W =

warlording v.

[from the Usenet group alt.fan.warlord] The act of excoriating a
bloated, ugly, or derivative [14504]sig block. Common grounds for
warlording include the presence of a signature rendered in a
[14505]BUAF, over-used or cliched [14506]sig quotes, ugly [14507]ASCII
art, or simply excessive size. The original `Warlord' was a
[14508]B1FF-like [14509]newbie c.1991 who featured in his sig a
particularly large and obnoxious ASCII graphic resembling the sword of
Conan the Barbarian in the 1981 John Milius movie; the group name
alt.fan.warlord was sarcasm, and the characteristic mode of warlording
is devastatingly sarcastic praise.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:warm boot, Next:[14510]wart, Previous:[14511]warlording,
Up:[14512]= W =

warm boot n.

See [14513]boot.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wart, Next:[14514]washing machine, Previous:[14515]warm boot,
Up:[14516]= W =

wart n.

A small, [14517]crocky [14518]feature that sticks out of an otherwise
[14519]clean design. Something conspicuous for localized ugliness,
especially a special-case exception to a general rule. For example, in
some versions of csh(1), single quotes literalize every character
inside them except !. In ANSI C, the ?? syntax used for obtaining
ASCII characters in a foreign environment is a wart. See also
[14520]miswart.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:washing machine, Next:[14521]washing software,
Previous:[14522]wart, Up:[14523]= W =

washing machine n.

1. Old-style 14-inch hard disks in floor-standing cabinets. So called
because of the size of the cabinet and the `top-loading' access to the
media packs -- and, of course, they were always set on `spin cycle'.
The washing-machine idiom transcends language barriers; it is even
used in Russian hacker jargon. See also [14524]walking drives. The
thick channel cables connecting these were called `bit hoses' (see
[14525]hose, sense 3). 2. [CMU] A machine used exclusively for
[14526]washing software. CMU has clusters of these.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:washing software, Next:[14527]water MIPS, Previous:[14528]washing
machine, Up:[14529]= W =

washing software n.

The process of recompiling a software distribution (used more often
when the recompilation is occuring from scratch) to pick up and merge
together all of the various changes that have been made to the source.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:water MIPS, Next:[14530]wave a dead chicken,
Previous:[14531]washing software, Up:[14532]= W =

water MIPS n.

(see [14533]MIPS, sense 2) Large, water-cooled machines of either
today's ECL-supercomputer flavor or yesterday's traditional
[14534]mainframe type.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wave a dead chicken, Next:[14535]weasel, Previous:[14536]water
MIPS, Up:[14537]= W =

wave a dead chicken v.

To perform a ritual in the direction of crashed software or hardware
that one believes to be futile but is nevertheless necessary so that
others are satisfied that an appropriate degree of effort has been
expended. "I'll wave a dead chicken over the source code, but I really
think we've run into an OS bug." Compare [14538]voodoo programming,
[14539]rain dance; see also [14540]casting the runes.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:weasel, Next:[14541]web pointer, Previous:[14542]wave a dead
chicken, Up:[14543]= W =

weasel n.

[Cambridge] A naive user, one who deliberately or accidentally does
things that are stupid or ill-advised. Roughly synonymous with
[14544]loser.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:web pointer, Next:[14545]web toaster, Previous:[14546]weasel,
Up:[14547]= W =

web pointer n.

A World Wide Web [14548]URL. See also [14549]hotlink, which has
slightly different connotations.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:web toaster, Next:[14550]webify, Previous:[14551]web pointer,
Up:[14552]= W =

web toaster n.

A small specialized computer, shipped with no monitor or keyboard or
any other external peripherals, pre-configured to be controlled
through an Ethernet port and function as a WWW server. Products of
this kind (for example the Cobalt Qube) are often about the size of a
toaster. See [14553]toaster; compare [14554]video toaster.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:webify, Next:[14555]webmaster, Previous:[14556]web toaster,
Up:[14557]= W =

webify n.

To put a piece of (possibly already existing) material on the WWW.
Frequently used for papers ("Why don't you webify all your
publications?") or for demos ("They webified their 6.866 final
project"). This term seems to have been (rather logically)
independently invented multiple times in the early 1990s.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:webmaster, Next:[14558]web ring, Previous:[14559]webify,
Up:[14560]= W =

webmaster n.

[WWW: from [14561]postmaster] The person at a site providing World
Wide Web information who is responsible for maintaining the public
pages and keeping the Web server running and properly configured.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:web ring, Next:[14562]wedged, Previous:[14563]webmaster,
Up:[14564]= W =

web ring n.

Two or more web sites connected by prominent links between sites
sharing a common interest or theme. Usually such cliques have the
topology of a ring, in order to make it easy for visitors to navigate
through all of them.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wedged, Next:[14565]wedgie, Previous:[14566]web ring, Up:[14567]=
W =

wedged adj.

1. To be stuck, incapable of proceeding without help. This is
different from having crashed. If the system has crashed, it has
become totally non-functioning. If the system is wedged, it is trying
to do something but cannot make progress; it may be capable of doing a
few things, but not be fully operational. For example, a process may
become wedged if it [14568]deadlocks with another (but not all
instances of wedging are deadlocks). See also [14569]gronk,
[14570]locked up, [14571]hosed, [14572]hung (wedged is more severe
than [14573]hung). 2. Often refers to humans suffering misconceptions.
"He's totally wedged -- he's convinced that he can levitate through
meditation." 3. [Unix] Specifically used to describe the state of a
TTY left in a losing state by abort of a screen-oriented program or
one that has messed with the line discipline in some obscure way.

There is some dispute over the origin of this term. It is usually
thought to derive from a common description of recto-cranial
inversion; however, it may actually have originated with older
`hot-press' printing technology in which physical type elements were
locked into type frames with wedges driven in by mallets. Once this
had been done, no changes in the typesetting for that page could be
made.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wedgie, Next:[14574]wedgitude, Previous:[14575]wedged,
Up:[14576]= W =

wedgie n.

[Fairchild] A bug. Prob. related to [14577]wedged.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wedgitude, Next:[14578]weeble, Previous:[14579]wedgie,
Up:[14580]= W =

wedgitude /wedj'i-t[y]ood/ n.

The quality or state of being [14581]wedged.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:weeble, Next:[14582]weeds, Previous:[14583]wedgitude, Up:[14584]=
W =

weeble /weeb'l/ interj.

[Cambridge] Used to denote frustration, usually at amazing stupidity.
"I stuck the disk in upside down." "Weeble...." Compare [14585]gurfle.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:weeds, Next:[14586]weenie, Previous:[14587]weeble, Up:[14588]= W
=

weeds n.

1. Refers to development projects or algorithms that have no possible
relevance or practical application. Comes from `off in the weeds'.
Used in phrases like "lexical analysis for microcode is serious
weeds...." 2. At CDC/ETA before its demise, the phrase `go off in the
weeds' was equivalent to IBM's [14589]branch to Fishkill and
mainstream hackerdom's [14590]jump off into never-never land.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:weenie, Next:[14591]Weenix, Previous:[14592]weeds, Up:[14593]= W
=

weenie n.

1. [on BBSes] Any of a species of luser resembling a less amusing
version of [14594]B1FF that infests many [14595]BBS systems. The
typical weenie is a teenage boy with poor social skills travelling
under a grandiose [14596]handle derived from fantasy or heavy-metal
rock lyrics. Among sysops, `the weenie problem' refers to the
marginally literate and profanity-laden [14597]flamage weenies tend to
spew all over a newly-discovered BBS. Compare [14598]spod,
[14599]computer geek, [14600]terminal junkie, [14601]warez d00dz. 2.
[Among hackers] When used with a qualifier (for example, as in
[14602]Unix weenie, VMS weenie, IBM weenie) this can be either an
insult or a term of praise, depending on context, tone of voice, and
whether or not it is applied by a person who considers him or herself
to be the same sort of weenie. Implies that the weenie has put a major
investment of time, effort, and concentration into the area indicated;
whether this is good or bad depends on the hearer's judgment of how
the speaker feels about that area. See also [14603]bigot. 3. The
semicolon character, ; (ASCII 0111011).
_________________________________________________________________

Node:Weenix, Next:[14604]well-behaved, Previous:[14605]weenie,
Up:[14606]= W =

Weenix /wee'niks/ n.

1. [ITS] A derogatory term for [14607]Unix, derived from [14608]Unix
weenie. According to one noted ex-ITSer, it is "the operating system
preferred by Unix Weenies: typified by poor modularity, poor
reliability, hard file deletion, no file version numbers, case
sensitivity everywhere, and users who believe that these are all
advantages". (Some ITS fans behave as though they believe Unix stole a
future that rightfully belonged to them. See [14609]ITS, sense 2.) 2.
[Brown University] A Unix-like OS developed for tutorial purposes at
Brown University. See
[14610]http://www.cs.brown.edu/courses/cs167/weenix.html. Named
independently of the ITS usage.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:well-behaved, Next:[14611]well-connected, Previous:[14612]Weenix,
Up:[14613]= W =

well-behaved adj.

1. [primarily [14614]MS-DOS] Said of software conforming to system
interface guidelines and standards. Well-behaved software uses the
operating system to do chores such as keyboard input, allocating
memory and drawing graphics. Oppose [14615]ill-behaved. 2. Software
that does its job quietly and without counterintuitive effects. Esp.
said of software having an interface spec sufficiently simple and
well-defined that it can be used as a [14616]tool by other software.
See [14617]cat. 3. Said of an algorithm that doesn't [14618]crash or
[14619]blow up, even when given [14620]pathological input. Implies
that the stability of the algorithm is intrinsic, which makes this
somewhat different from [14621]bulletproof.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:well-connected, Next:[14622]wetware,
Previous:[14623]well-behaved, Up:[14624]= W =

well-connected adj.

Said of a computer installation, asserts that it has reliable email
links with the network and/or that it relays a large fraction of
available [14625]Usenet newsgroups. `Well-known' can be almost
synonymous, but also implies that the site's name is familiar to many
(due perhaps to an archive service or active Usenet users).
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wetware, Next:[14626]whack, Previous:[14627]well-connected,
Up:[14628]= W =

wetware /wet'weir/ n.

[prob. from the novels of Rudy Rucker] 1. The human nervous system, as
opposed to computer hardware or software. "Wetware has 7 plus or minus
2 temporary registers." 2. Human beings (programmers, operators,
administrators) attached to a computer system, as opposed to the
system's hardware or software. See [14629]liveware, [14630]meatware.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:whack, Next:[14631]whack-a-mole, Previous:[14632]wetware,
Up:[14633]= W =

whack v.

According to arch-hacker James Gosling (designer of [14634]NeWS,
[14635]GOSMACS and Java), to "...modify a program with no idea
whatsoever how it works." (See [14636]whacker.) It is actually
possible to do this in nontrivial circumstances if the change is small
and well-defined and you are very good at [14637]glarking things from
context. As a trivial example, it is relatively easy to change all
stderr writes to stdout writes in a piece of C filter code which
remains otherwise mysterious.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:whack-a-mole, Next:[14638]whacker, Previous:[14639]whack,
Up:[14640]= W =

whack-a-mole n.

[from the carnival game which involves quickly and repeatedly hitting
the heads of mechanical moles with a mallet as they pop up from their
holes.] 1. The practice of repeatedly causing spammers'
[14641]throwaway accounts and drop boxes to be terminated. 2. After
sense 1 became established in the mid-1990s the term passed into more
generalized use, and now is commonly found in such combinations as
`whack-a-mole windows'; the obnoxious pop-ip advertisement windows
spawned in flocks when you surg to sites like Geocities or Tripod.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:whacker, Next:[14642]whales, Previous:[14643]whack-a-mole,
Up:[14644]= W =

whacker n.

[University of Maryland: from [14645]hacker] 1. A person, similar to a
[14646]hacker, who enjoys exploring the details of programmable
systems and how to stretch their capabilities. Whereas a hacker tends
to produce great hacks, a whacker only ends up whacking the system or
program in question. Whackers are often quite egotistical and eager to
claim [14647]wizard status, regardless of the views of their peers. 2.
A person who is good at programming quickly, though rather poorly and
ineptly.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:whales, Next:[14648]whalesong, Previous:[14649]whacker,
Up:[14650]= W =

whales n.

See [14651]like kicking dead whales down the beach.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:whalesong, Next:[14652]What's a spline?, Previous:[14653]whales,
Up:[14654]= W =

whalesong n.

The peculiar clicking and whooshing sounds made by a PEP modem such as
the Telebit Trailblazer as it tries to synchronize with another PEP
modem for their special high-speed mode. This sound isn't anything
like the normal two-tone handshake between conventional V-series
modems and is instantly recognizable to anyone who has heard it more
than once. It sounds, in fact, very much like whale songs. This noise
is also called "the moose call" or "moose tones".
_________________________________________________________________

Node:What's a spline?, Next:[14655]wheel, Previous:[14656]whalesong,
Up:[14657]= W =

What's a spline?

[XEROX PARC] This phrase expands to: "You have just used a term that
I've heard for a year and a half, and I feel I should know, but don't.
My curiosity has finally overcome my guilt." The PARC lexicon adds
"Moral: don't hesitate to ask questions, even if they seem obvious."
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wheel, Next:[14658]wheel bit, Previous:[14659]What's a spline?,
Up:[14660]= W =

wheel n.

[from slang `big wheel' for a powerful person] A person who has an
active [14661]wheel bit. "We need to find a wheel to unwedge the hung
tape drives." (See [14662]wedged, sense 1.) The traditional name of
security group zero in [14663]BSD (to which the major system-internal
users like [14664]root belong) is `wheel'. Some vendors have expanded
on this usage, modifying Unix so that only members of group `wheel'
can [14665]go root.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wheel bit, Next:[14666]wheel of reincarnation,
Previous:[14667]wheel, Up:[14668]= W =

wheel bit n.

A privilege bit that allows the possessor to perform some restricted
operation on a timesharing system, such as read or write any file on
the system regardless of protections, change or look at any address in
the running monitor, crash or reload the system, and kill or create
jobs and user accounts. The term was invented on the TENEX operating
system, and carried over to TOPS-20, XEROX-IFS, and others. The state
of being in a privileged logon is sometimes called `wheel mode'. This
term entered the Unix culture from TWENEX in the mid-1980s and has
been gaining popularity there (esp. at university sites). See also
[14669]root.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wheel of reincarnation, Next:[14670]wheel wars,
Previous:[14671]wheel bit, Up:[14672]= W =

wheel of reincarnation

[coined in a paper by T. H. Myer and I.E. Sutherland "On the Design of
Display Processors", Comm. ACM, Vol. 11, no. 6, June 1968)] Term used
to refer to a well-known effect whereby function in a computing system
family is migrated out to special-purpose peripheral hardware for
speed, then the peripheral evolves toward more computing power as it
does its job, then somebody notices that it is inefficient to support
two asymmetrical processors in the architecture and folds the function
back into the main CPU, at which point the cycle begins again.

Several iterations of this cycle have been observed in
graphics-processor design, and at least one or two in communications
and floating-point processors. Also known as `the Wheel of Life', `the
Wheel of Samsara', and other variations of the basic Hindu/Buddhist
theological idea. See also [14673]blitter, [14674]bit bang.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wheel wars, Next:[14675]White Book, Previous:[14676]wheel of
reincarnation, Up:[14677]= W =

wheel wars n.

[Stanford University] A period in [14678]larval stage during which
student hackers hassle each other by attempting to log each other out
of the system, delete each other's files, and otherwise wreak havoc,
usually at the expense of the lesser users.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:White Book, Next:[14679]whitelist, Previous:[14680]wheel wars,
Up:[14681]= W =

White Book n.

1. Syn. [14682]K&R. 2. Adobe's fourth book in the PostScript series,
describing the previously-secret format of Type 1 fonts; "Adobe Type 1
Font Format, version 1.1", (Addison-Wesley, 1990, ISBN 0-201-57044-0).
See also [14683]Red Book, [14684]Green Book, [14685]Blue Book.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:whitelist, Next:[14686]whizzy, Previous:[14687]White Book,
Up:[14688]= W =

whitelist n.

The opposite of a blacklist. That is, instead of being an explicit
list of people who are banned, it's an explicit list of people who are
to be admitted. Hackers use this especially of lists of email
addresses that are explicitly enabled to get past strict anti-spam
filters.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:whizzy, Next:[14689]wibble, Previous:[14690]whitelist,
Up:[14691]= W =

whizzy adj.

(alt. `wizzy') [Sun] Describes a [14692]cuspy program; one that is
feature-rich and well presented.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wibble, Next:[14693]WIBNI, Previous:[14694]whizzy, Up:[14695]= W
=

wibble

[UK, perh. originally from the first "Roger Irrelevant" strip in "VIZ"
comics, spread via "Your Sinclair magazine in the 1980s and early
1990s"] 1. n.,v. Commonly used to describe chatter, content-free
remarks or other essentially meaningless contributions to threads in
newsgroups. "Oh, rspence is wibbling again". 2. [UK IRC] An explicit
on-line no-op equivalent to [14696]humma. 3. One of the preferred
[14697]metasyntactic variables in the UK, forming a series with
wobble, wubble, and flob (attributed to the hilarious historical
comedy "Blackadder"). 4. A pronounciation of the letters "www", as
seen in URLs; i.e., www.[14698]foo.com may be pronounced "wibble dot
foo dot com" (compare [14699]dub dub dub).

The ancestral sense of this word is reported to have been "My brain is
packing it in now. I give up. Tilt! Tilt! Tilt!"
_________________________________________________________________

Node:WIBNI, Next:[14700]widget, Previous:[14701]wibble, Up:[14702]= W
=

WIBNI // n.

[Bell Labs: Wouldn't It Be Nice If] What most requirements documents
and specifications consist entirely of. Compare [14703]IWBNI.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:widget, Next:[14704]wiggles, Previous:[14705]WIBNI, Up:[14706]= W
=

widget n.

1. A meta-thing. Used to stand for a real object in didactic examples
(especially database tutorials). Legend has it that the original
widgets were holders for buggy whips. "But suppose the parts list for
a widget has 52 entries...." 2. [poss. evoking `window gadget'] A user
interface object in [14707]X graphical user interfaces.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:wiggles, Next:[14708]WIMP environment, Previous:[14709]widget,
Up:[14710]= W =

wiggles n.

[scientific computation] In solving partial differential equations by
finite difference and similar methods, wiggles are sawtooth
(up-down-up-down) oscillations at the shortest wavelength
representable on the grid. If an algorithm is unstable, this is often
the most unstable waveform, so it grows to dominate the solution.
Alternatively, stable (though inaccurate) wiggles can be generated
near a discontinuity by a Gibbs phenomenon.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:WIMP environment, Next:[14711]win, Previous:[14712]wiggles,
Up:[14713]= W =

WIMP environment n.

[acronym: `Window, Icon, Menu, Pointing device (or Pull-down menu)'] A
graphical-user-interface environment such as [14714]X or the Macintosh
interface, esp. as described by a hacker who prefers command-line
interfaces for their superior flexibility and extensibility. However,
it is also used without negative connotations; one must pay attention
to voice tone and other signals to interpret correctly. See
[14715]menuitis, [14716]user-obsequious.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:win, Next:[14717]win big, Previous:[14718]WIMP environment,
Up:[14719]= W =

win

[MIT; now common everywhere] 1. vi. To succeed. A program wins if no
unexpected conditions arise, or (especially) if it sufficiently
[14720]robust to take exceptions in stride. 2. n. Success, or a
specific instance thereof. A pleasing outcome. "So it turned out I
could use a [14721]lexer generator instead of hand-coding my own
pattern recognizer. What a win!" Emphatic forms: `moby win', `super
win', `hyper-win' (often used interjectively as a reply). For some
reason `suitable win' is also common at MIT, usually in reference to a
satisfactory solution to a problem. Oppose [14722]lose; see also
[14723]big win, which isn't quite just an intensification of `win'.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:win big, Next:[14724]win win, Previous:[14725]win, Up:[14726]= W
=

win big vi.

To experience serendipity. "I went shopping and won big; there was a
2-for-1 sale." See [14727]big win.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:win win, Next:[14728]Winchester, Previous:[14729]win big,
Up:[14730]= W =

win win excl.

Expresses pleasure at a [14731]win.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:Winchester, Next:[14732]windoid, Previous:[14733]win win,
Up:[14734]= W =

Winchester n.

Informal generic term for sealed-enclosure magnetic-disk drives in
which the read-write head planes over the disk surface on an air
cushion. There is a legend that the name arose because the original
1973 engineering prototype for what later became the IBM 3340 featured
two 30-megabyte volumes; 30-30 became `Winchester' when somebody
noticed the similarity to the common term for a famous Winchester
rifle (in the latter, the first 30 referred to caliber and the second
to the grain weight of the charge). (It is sometimes incorrectly
claimed that Winchester was the laboratory in which the technology was
developed.)
_________________________________________________________________

Node:windoid, Next:[14735]window shopping, Previous:[14736]Winchester,
Up:[14737]= W =

windoid n.

In the Macintosh world, a style of window with much less adornment
(smaller or missing title bar, zoom box, etc, etc) than a standard
window.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:window shopping, Next:[14738]Windoze, Previous:[14739]windoid,
Up:[14740]= W =

window shopping n.

[US Geological Survey] Among users of [14741]WIMP environments like
[14742]X or the Macintosh, extended experimentation with new window
colors, fonts, and icon shapes. This activity can take up hours of
what might otherwise have been productive working time. "I spent the
afternoon window shopping until I found the coolest shade of green for
my active window borders -- now they perfectly match my medium slate
blue background." Serious window shoppers will spend their days with
bitmap editors, creating new and different icons and background
patterns for all to see. Also: `window dressing', the act of applying
new fonts, colors, etc. See [14743]fritterware, compare
[14744]macdink.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:Windoze, Next:[14745]winged comments, Previous:[14746]window
shopping, Up:[14747]= W =

Windoze /win'dohz/ n.

See [14748]Microsloth Windows.
_________________________________________________________________

Node:winged comments, Next:[14749]winkey, Previous:[14750]Windoze,
Up:[14751]= W =

winged comments n.

Comments set on the same line as code, as opposed to [14752]boxed
comments. In C, for example:
d = sqrt(x*x + y*y); /* distance from origin */

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