The Jargon File v2.2.1 15 DEC 1990, part 3 of 10

[Eric S. Raymond]

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X   featured many references to ADVENT (q.v.) and the immortal line
X   "Eat flaming death, minicomputer mongrels!"  (uttered, of course,
X   by an IPM stormtrooper). It is alleged that the author subsequently
X   received a letter of appreciation on IBM company stationery from
X   the then-head of IBM's Thomas J. Watson research laboratories (then
X   as now one of the few islands of true hackerdom in the IBM
X   archipelago). The lower loop of the `B' in the IBM logo, it is
X   said, had been carefully whited out. See EAT FLAMING DEATH, X!.
X
XCRACKER n. One who breaks security on a system.  Coined c.1985 by
X   hackers in defense against journalistic misuse of HACKER, (q.v.,
X   sense #7).
X
XCRANK [from automotive slang] vt. Verb used to describe the performance
X   of a machine, especially sustained performance. "This box cranks
X   about 6 MegaFLOPS, with a burst mode of twice that on vectorized
X   operations."
X
XCRASH 1. n. A sudden, usually drastic failure.  Most often said of the
X   system (q.v., definition #1), sometimes of magnetic disk drives.
X   "Three lusers lost their files in last night's disk crash."  A
X   disk crash which entails the read/write heads dropping onto the
X   surface of the disks and scraping off the oxide may also be
X   referred to as a "head crash", whereas the term "system crash"
X   usually, though not always, implies that the operating system or
X   other software was at fault.  2. vi. To fail suddenly.  "Has the
X   system just crashed?"  Also used transitively to indicate the
X   cause of the crash (usually a person or a program, or both).
X   "Those idiots playing SPACEWAR crashed the system."  3. Sometimes
X   said of people hitting the sack after a long HACKING RUN, see GRONK
X   OUT.
X
XCRASH AND BURN vi.,n. A spectacular crash, in the mode of the
X   conclusion of the car chase scene from Steve McQueen's "Bullitt".
X   Sun-3 monitors losing the flyback transformer and lightning strikes
X   on VAX-11/780 backplanes are notable crash and burn generators.
X
XCRAWLING HORROR n. Ancient crufty hardware or software that forces
X   beyond the control of the hackers at a site refuse to let die.
X   Like DUSTY DECK or GONKULATOR, but connotes that the thing
X   described is not just an irritation but an active menace to health
X   and sanity.  "Mostly we code new stuff in C, but they pay us to
X   maintain one big Fortran II application from nineteen-sixty-X
X   that's a real crawling horror...".  Compare WOMBAT.
X
XCRAY /kray/ n. 1. One of the line of supercomputers designed by Cray
X   Research. 2. Any supercomputer at all.
X
XCRAYOLA n. A super-mini or -micro computer that provides some
X   reasonable percentage of supercomputer perfermance for an
X   unreasonably low price. Now known also as KILLER MICROS.
X
XCRAYON n. Someone who works on Cray supercomputers.  More specifically
X   implies a programmer, probably of the CDC ilk, probably male, and
X   almost certainly wearing a tie (irrespective of gender).  Unicos
X   systems types who have a Unix background tend not to be described
X   as crayons.
X
XCREEPING FEATURITIS /kree'ping fee-ch at r-ie't at s/ n. 1. Describes a
X   systematic tendency to load more CHROME onto systems at the expense
X   of whatever ELEGANCE they may have posessed when originally
X   designed.  See FEEPING CREATURITIS.  "You know, the main problem
X   with BSD UNIX has always been creeping featuritis".  At MIT, this
X   tends to be called CREEPING FEATUR*ISM* (and likewise, FEEPING
X   CREATURISM). (After all, -ism means "condition" whereas -itis
X   usually means "inflammation of"...) 2. More generally, The
X   tendency for anything complicated to become even more complicated
X   because people keep saying, "Gee, it would be even better if it
X   had this feature too."  (See FEATURE.)  The result is usually a
X   patchwork because it grew one ad-hoc step at a time, rather than
X   being planned.  Planning is a lot of work, but it's easy to add
X   just one extra little feature to help someone... and then
X   another...  and another....  When creeping featurism gets out of
X   hand it's like a cancer.  Usually this term is used to describe
X   computer programs, but it could also be said of the federal
X   government, the IRS 1040 form, and new cars.
X
XCRETIN /kre'tn/ or /kree'tn/ n. Congenital LOSER (q.v.); an obnoxious
X   person; someone who can't do anything right. It has been observed
X   that American hackers tend to favor the British pronunciation
X   /kret'n/ over standard American /kreet'n/; it is thought this may
X   be due to the phonetic influence Monty Python's Flying Circus.
X
XCRETINOUS /kre't at n-us/ or /kree't at n-us/ adj. Wrong; non-functional;
X   very poorly designed (Also used pejoratively of people).  Synonyms:
X   BLETCHEROUS, BAGBITING, LOSING, BRAIN-DAMAGED.
X
XCRIPPLEWARE n. 1. SHAREWARE which has some important functionality
X   deliberately removed, so as to entice potential users to pay for a
X   working version.  See also GUILTWARE.  2. [Cambridge] GUILTWARE
X   (q.v.) which exhorts you to donate to some charity.
X
XCRLF /ker'l at f/, sometimes /kru'l at f/ n. A carriage return (CR) followed
X   by a line feed (LF).  More loosely, whatever it takes to get you
X   from the end of one line of text to the beginning of the next line.
X   See NEWLINE, TERPRI.  Under UNIX influence this usage has become
X   less common (UNIX uses a bare line feed as its `CRLF').
X
XCROCK [from the obvious mainstream scatologism] n. 1. An awkward
X   feature or programming technique that ought to be made cleaner.
X   Example: Using small integers to represent error codes without the
X   program interpreting them to the user (as in, for example, UNIX
X   make(1)) is a crock.  2. Also, a technique that works acceptably
X   but which is quite prone to failure if disturbed in the least, for
X   example depending on the machine opcodes having particular bit
X   patterns so that you can use instructions as data words too; a
X   tightly woven, almost completely unmodifiable structure.  See
X   KLUGE.  Also in the adjectives CROCKISH, CROCKY and the noun
X   CROCKITUDE.
X
XCROSS-POST [USENET] v.  To post a single article directed to several
X   newsgroups.  Distinguished from posting the article repeatedly,
X   once to each newsgroup, which causes people to see it multiple
X   times.
X
XCRUDWARE n. Pejorative term for the hundreds of megabytes of
X   low-quality FREEWARE circulated by user's groups and BBS systems in
X   the micro-hobbyist world. "Yet *another* set of disk catalog
X   utilities for MS-DOS?  What crudware!" The related usage "fuckware"
X   is reported for software so bad it mutilates your disk, broadcasts
X   to the Internet, or some similar fiasco.
X
XCRUFT /kruhft/ 1. [back-formation from CRUFTY] n. 1. An unpleasant
X   substance.  The dust that gathers under your bed is cruft.  2. n.
X   The results of shoddy construction.  3. v. [from hand cruft, pun on
X   hand craft] to write assembler code for something normally (and
X   better) done by a compiler (see HAND HACKING).
X
XCRUFT TOGETHER, CRUFT UP /kruhft too-ge'thr/, /kruhft uhp/ vt. To
X   throw together something ugly but temporarily workable.  Like v.
X   KLUGE, but more pejorative.  "There isn't any program now to
X   reverse all the lines of a file, but I can probably cruft one
X   together in about ten minutes." See CRUFTY.
X
XCRUFTSMANSHIP n. [from CRUFT] The antithesis of craftsmanship.
X
XCRUFTY /kruhf'tee/ [origin unknown; poss. from "crusty" or
X   "cruddy"] adj. 1.  Poorly built, possibly overly complex.  The
X   CANONICAL example is "This is standard old crufty DEC software".
X   In fact, one theory of the origin of "crufty" holds that was
X   originally a mutation of "crusty" applied to DEC software so old
X   that the Ss were tall and skinny, looking more like Fs.  Hence
X   CRUFT, n. shoddy construction.  2.  Unpleasant, especially to the
X   touch, often with encrusted junk.  Like spilled coffee smeared with
X   peanut butter and catsup.  3.  Generally unpleasant.  CRUFTY or
X   CRUFTIE n.  A small crufty object (see FROB); often one which
X   doesn't fit well into the scheme of things.  "A LISP property list
X   is a good place to store crufties (or, random cruft)."
X
XCRUMB n. Two binary digits; a quad.  Larger that a BIT, smaller than a
X   NYBBLE (q.v.).
X
XCRUNCH 1. vi. To process, usually in a time-consuming or complicated
X   way.  Connotes an essentially trivial operation which is
X   nonetheless painful to perform.  The pain may be due to the
X   triviality being imbedded in a loop from 1 to 1000000000.
X   "FORTRAN programs do mostly number crunching."  2. vt. To reduce
X   the size of a file by a complicated scheme that produces bit
X   configurations completely unrelated to the original data, such as
X   by a Huffman code.  (The file ends up looking like a paper document
X   would if somebody crunched the paper into a wad.)  Since such
X   compression usually takes more computations than simpler methods
X   such as counting repeated characters (such as spaces) the term is
X   doubly appropriate.  (This meaning is usually used in the
X   construction "file crunch(ing)" to distinguish it from "number
X   crunch(ing)".)  See COMPRESS.  3. n. The character "#".  Usage:
X   used at Xerox and CMU, among other places.  See ASCII.  4.
X   [Cambridge] To squeeze program source into a minimum-size
X   representation that will still compile. The term came into being
X   specifically for a famous program on the BBC micro which crunched
X   Basic source in order to make it run more quickly (it was a
X   wholly-interpretive basic).
X
XCRUNCHA CRUNCHA CRUNCHA /kruhn'chah kruhn'chah kruhn'chah/ interj. An
X   encouragement sometimes muttered to a machine bogged down in
X   serious GROVELLING.  Also describes a notional sound made by
X   grovelling hardware.  See WUGGA WUGGA, GRIND GRIND.
X
XCRYONICS n. The practice of freezing oneself in hopes of being revived
X   in the future by CELL-REPAIR MACHINES.  A possible route to
X   technological immortality already taken by 1990 by more than a
X   handful of persons with terminal illnesses.
X 
XCRYPPIE /krip'ee/ n. A cryptographer. One who hacks or implements
X   cryptographic software or hardware.
X
XCTSS /see-tee-ess-ess/ n. Compatible Time-Sharing System.  An early
X   (1963) experiment in the design of interactive time-sharing
X   operating systems.  Cited here because it was ancestral to MULTICS,
X   UNIX, and ITS (q.v.).
X
XCTY /sit'ee/ or /see tee wie/ n. [MIT] The terminal physically
X   associated with a computer's operating console.  The term is a
X   contraction of "Console TTY", that is, "Console TeleTYpe".
X   This ITS and TOPS-10-associated term has become less common than
X   formerly, as most UNIX hackers simply refer to the CTY as `the
X   console'.
X
XCUBING [parallel with "tubing"] vi. 1. Hacking on an IPSC (Intel
X   Personal SuperComputer) hypercube.  "Louella's gone cubing
X   AGAIN!!"  2. An indescribable form of self-torture (see sense #1).
X
XCUSPY /kuhs'pee/ [coined at WPI from the DEC acronym CUSP, for
X   Commonly Used System Program, i.e., a utility program used by many
X   people] adj. 1.  (of a program) Well-written.  2. Functionally
X   excellent.  A program which performs well and interfaces well to
X   users is cuspy.  See RUDE.  2. [NYU] An attractive woman,
X   especially one regarded as available.
X
XCYBERPUNK /sie'ber-puhnk/ [orig. by SF critic Gardner Dozois] n.,adj.
X   A subgenre of SF launched in 1982 by William Gibson's epoch-making
X   novel _Neuromancer_.  Gibson's near-total ignorance of computers
X   and the present-day hacker culture enabled him to speculate about
X   the role of computers and hackers in futures in ways hackers have
X   since found both irritatingly naive and tremendously stimulating.
X   Gibson's work was widely imitated, in particular by the short-lived
X   but innovative "Max Headroom" TV series.  See CYBERSPACE, ICE, GO
X   FLATLINE.
X
XCYBERSPACE /sie'ber-spays/ n. Notional "information-space" loaded
X   with visual cues and navigable with brain-computer interfaces
X   called "cyberspace decks"; a characteristic prop of CYBERPUNK SF.
X   At time of writing (1990) serious efforts to construct VIRTUAL
X   REALITY interfaces modelled explicitly on CYBERSPACE are already
X   under way, using more conventional devices such as glove sensors
X   and binocular TV headsets.  Few hackers are prepared to outright
X   deny the possibility of a cyberspace someday evolving out of THE
X   NETWORK.
X
XCYCLE n. The "basic unit of computation".  What every hacker wants
X   more of.  One might think that single machine instructions would be
X   the measure of computation, and indeed computers are often compared
X   by how many instructions they can process per second, but some
X   instructions take longer than others.  Nearly all computers have an
X   internal clock, though, and you can describe an instruction as
X   taking so many "clock cycles".  Frequently the computer can
X   access its memory once on every clock cycle, and so one speaks also
X   of "memory cycles".  These are technical meanings of "cycle".
X   The slang meaning comes from the observation that there are only so
X   many cycles per second, and when you are sharing a computer, the
X   cycles get divided up among the users.  The more cycles the
X   computer spends working on your program rather than someone else's,
X   the faster your program will run.  That's why every hacker wants
X   more cycles: so he can spend less time waiting for the computer to
X   respond.
X
XCYCLE CRUNCH n. The situation where the number of people trying to use
X   the computer simultaneously has reached the point where no one can
X   get enough cycles because they are spread too thin.  Usually the
X   only solution is to buy more computer.  Happily, this has rapidly
X   become easier in recent years, so much so that the very term CYCLE
X   CRUNCH now has a faintly archaic flavor (most hackers now use
X   workstations or personal computers as opposed to traditional
X   timesharing systems).
X
XCYCLE DROUGHT n. A scarcity of cycles.  It may be due to a CYCLE
X   CRUNCH, but could also occur because part of the computer is
X   temporarily not working, leaving fewer cycles to go around.
X   Example: "The HIGH MOBY is DOWN, so we're running with only half
X   the usual amount of memory.  There will be a CYCLE DROUGHT until
X   it's fixed."
X
X                                {= D =}
X
XDAEMON /day'mun/ or /dee'mun/ [Disk And Execution MONitor] n. A
X   program which is not invoked explicitly, but which lies dormant
X   waiting for some condition(s) to occur.  The idea is that the
X   perpetrator of the condition need not be aware that a daemon is
X   lurking (though often a program will commit an action only because
X   it knows that it will implicitly invoke a daemon).  For example,
X   under ITS writing a file on the LPT spooler's directory would
X   invoke the spooling daemon, which prints the file.  The advantage
X   is that programs which want (in this example) files printed need
X   not compete for access to the lpt.  They simply enter their
X   implicit requests and let the daemon decide what to do with them.
X   Daemons are usually spawned automatically by the system, and may
X   either live forever or be regenerated at intervals.  Usage: DAEMON
X   and DEMON (q.v.) are often used interchangeably, but seem to have
X   distinct connotations.  DAEMON was introduced to computing by CTSS
X   people (who pronounced it dee'mon) and used it to refer to what is
X   now called a DRAGON or PHANTOM (q.v.).  The meaning and
X   pronunciation have drifted, and we think this glossary reflects
X   current usage.
X
XDAY MODE n. See PHASE (of people).
X
XDD /dee-dee/ [from IBM JCL via archaic UNIX dd(1)] vt. Equivalent to
X   CAT or BLT.  A specialized UNIX copy command for block-oriented
X   devices. Often used in heavy-handed system abuse, as in "Let's dd
X   the root partition onto a tape, then use the boot prom to load it
X   back on to a new disk".  The UNIX dd(1) was originally written
X   with a weird, distinctly non-UNIXy keyword option syntax
X   reminiscent of IBM System/360 JCL (which had a similar DD command);
X   though the command filled a need the design choice looks to have
X   been somebody's joke.  The slang usage is now very rare outside
X   UNIX sites and now nearly obsolescent even there, as dd(1) has been
X   DEPRECATED for a long time (though it has no replacement).
X   Replaced by BLT or simple English `copy'.
X
XDDT /dee'dee'tee'/ n. 1. Generic term for a program that helps you to
X   debug other programs by showing individual machine instructions in
X   a readable symbolic form and letting the user change them.  In this
X   sense the term DDT is now slightly archaic, having been widely
X   displaced by `debugger' 2. [ITS] Under MIT's fabled ITS operating
X   system (q.v.), its DDT was also used as the SHELL or top level
X   command language used to execute other programs. 3. Any one of
X   several specific DDTs (sense 1) supported on early DEC hardware.
X   The DEC PDP-10 Reference Handbook (1969) contained a footnote on
X   the first page of the documentation for DDT which illuminates the
X   origin of the term:
X
X     Historical footnote: DDT was developed at MIT for the PDP-1
X     computer in 1961.  At that time DDT stood for "DEC Debugging
X     Tape".  Since then, the idea of an on-line debugging program
X     has propagated throughout the computer industry.  DDT programs
X     are now available for all DEC computers.  Since media other
X     than tape are now frequently used, the more descriptive name
X     "Dynamic Debugging technique" has been adopted, retaining
X     the DDT acronym.  Confusion between DDT-10 and another well
X     known pesticide, dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane
X     (C14-H9-Cl5) should be minimal since each attacks a different,
X     and apparently mutually exclusive, class of bugs.
X
X   Sadly, this quotation was removed from later editions of the
X   handbook as DEC became much more "businesslike".
X
XDEADLOCK n. 1. A situation wherein two or more processes are unable to
X   proceed because each is waiting for another to do something.  A
X   common example is a program communicating to a server, which may
X   find itself waiting for output from the server before sending
X   anything more to it, while the server is similarly waiting for more
X   input from the controlling program before outputting anything.  (It
X   is reported that this particular flavor of deadlock is sometimes
X   called a "starvation" deadlock, though that term is more properly
X   used for situations where a program can never run simply because it
X   never gets high enough priority.  Another common flavor is
X   "constipation", where each process is trying to send stuff to the
X   other, but all buffers are full because nobody is reading
X   anything.)  See DEADLY EMBRACE.  2. Also used of deadlock-like
X   interactions between humans, as when two people meet in a narrow
X   corridor, and each tries to be polite by moving aside to let the
X   other pass, but they end up swaying from side to side without
X   making any progress because they always both move the same way at
X   the same time.
X
XDEADLY EMBRACE n. Same as DEADLOCK (q.v.), though usually used only
X   when exactly two processes are involved.  DEADLY EMBRACE is the
X   more popular term in Europe; DEADLOCK in the United States.  Also
X   DEADLY EMBRACE is often restricted to the case where exactly two
X   processes are involved, while DEADLOCK can involve any number.
X
XDEATH STAR [from the movie _Star_Wars_] The AT&T corporate logo, which
X   appears on computers sold by AT&T and bears an uncanny resemblence
X   to the "Death Star" in the movie.  This usage is particularly
X   common among partisans of BSD UNIX, who tend to regard the AT&T
X   versions as inferior and AT&T as a bad guy.
X
XDEC WARS n. A 1983 USENET posting by Alan Hastings and Steve Tarr,
X   spoofing the _Star_Wars_ movies in hackish terms. Some years later,
X   ESR (disappointed by Hastings/Tarr's failure to exploit a great
X   premise more thoroughly) posted a three-times-longer complete
X   rewrite called `UNIX WARS'; the two are often confused.
X
XDECKLE /dek'l/ n. Two NICKLES; 10 bits. Reported among developers for
X   Mattel's GI 1600 (the Intellivision games processor), a chip with
X   16-bit-wide RAM but 10-bit-wide ROM.
X
XDEFENESTRATION [from the traditional Czechoslovak method of
X   assassinating prime ministers, via ESR and SF fandom] n. 1. Proper
X   karmic retribution for an incorrigible punster. "Oh, ghod, that
X   was *awful*!" "Quick! Defenestrate him!"  See also H INFIX.
X   2. [proposed] The requirement to support a command-line interface. As:
X   "It has to run on a VT100." "Curses! I've been defenestrated".
X
XDEFINED AS adj. Currently in the role of, usually in an
X   off-the-organization-chart sense.  "Pete is currently defined as
X   bug prioritizer".  From the C language MACRO feature.
X
XDEHOSE vt. To clear a HOSED condition.
X
XDELINT vt. To modify code to remove problems detected when linting.
X   See LINT.
X
XDEEP MAGIC n. An awesomely arcane technique central to a program or
X   system, esp. one not generally published and available to hackers
X   at large (compare BLACK ART). one which could only have been
X   uttered by a true WIZARD.  Compiler optimization techniques and
X   many aspects of OS design used to be DEEP MAGIC; many techniques in
X   cryptography, signal processing, graphics and AI still are. Compare
X   HEAVY WIZARDRY. Esp. found in comments of the form "Deep magic
X   begins here...".
X
XDEEP SPACE adj. 1. Describes the "location" of any program which has
X   gone OFF THE TROLLEY (q.v.).  Esp. used of programs which just sit
X   there silently grinding long after either failure or some output is
X   expected. Compare BUZZ, CATATONIA.  2. The metaphorical
X   "location" of a human so dazed and/or confused or caught up in
X   some esoteric form of BOGOSITY that he/she no longer responds
X   coherently to normal communication.  Compare PAGE OUT.
X
XDELTA n. 1. A change, especially a small or incremental change.
X   Example: "I just doubled the speed of my program!"  "What was
X   the delta on program size?"  "About thirty percent."  (He
X   doubled the speed of his program, but increased its size by only
X   thirty percent.) 2. [UNIX] A DIFF (q.v.), especially a DIFF stored
X   under the set of version-control tools called SCCS (Source Code
X   Control System).  3. n. A small quantity, but not as small as
X   EPSILON.  The slang usage of DELTA and EPSILON stems from the
X   traditional use of these letters in mathematics for very small
X   numerical quantities, particularly in so-called "epsilon-delta"
X   proofs in the differential calculus.  DELTA is often used once
X   EPSILON has been mentioned to mean a quantity that is slightly
X   bigger than EPSILON but still very small.  For example, "The cost
X   isn't epsilon, but it's delta" means that the cost isn't totally
X   negligible, but it is nevertheless very small.  Compare WITHIN
X   DELTA OF, WITHIN EPSILON OF: that is, close to and even closer to.
X
XDEMENTED adj. Yet another term of disgust used to describe a program.
X   The connotation in this case is that the program works as designed,
X   but the design is bad.  For example, a program that generates large
X   numbers of meaningless error messages implying it is on the point
X   of imminent collapse.
X
XDEMIGOD n. Hacker with years of experience, a national reputation, and
X   a major role in the development of at least one design, tool or
X   game used by or known to more than 50% of the hacker community.  To
X   qualify as a genuine demigod, the person must recognizably identify
X   with the hacker community and have helped shape it.  Major demigods
X   include Ken Thompson and Dennis Ritchie (co-inventors of UNIX and
X   C) and Richard M. Stallman (inventor of EMACS).  In their hearts of
X   hearts most hackers dream of someday becoming demigods themselves,
X   and more than one major software project has been driven to
X   completion by the author's veiled hopes of apotheosis.  See also
X   NET.GOD, TRUE-HACKER.
X
XDEMON n. 1. [MIT] A portion of a program which is not invoked
X   explicitly, but which lies dormant waiting for some condition(s) to
X   occur.  See DAEMON.  The distinction is that demons are usually
X   processes within a program, while daemons are usually programs
X   running on an operating system.  Demons are particularly common in
X   AI programs.  For example, a knowledge manipulation program might
X   implement inference rules as demons.  Whenever a new piece of
X   knowledge was added, various demons would activate (which demons
X   depends on the particular piece of data) and would create
X   additional pieces of knowledge by applying their respective
X   inference rules to the original piece.  These new pieces could in
X   turn activate more demons as the inferences filtered down through
X   chains of logic.  Meanwhile the main program could continue with
X   whatever its primary task was. 2. [outside MIT] Often used
X   equivalently to DAEMON, especially in the UNIX world where the
X   latter spelling and pronunciation is considered mildly archaic.
X
XDEPRECATED n. Said of a program or feature that is considered
X   obsolescent and in the process of being phased out, usually in
X   favor of a specified replacement.  Deprecated features can,
X   unfortunately, linger on for many years.
X
XDE-REZZ, DEREZ /dee rez/ [from the movie TRON] 1. vi. To disappear or
X   dissolve; the image that goes with it is of an object breaking up
X   into raster lines and static and then dissolving.  Occasionally
X   used of a person who seems to have suddenly "fuzzed out" mentally
X   rather than physically.  Usage: extremely silly, also rare.  This
X   verb was actually invented as *fictional* hacker slang, and adopted
X   in a spirit of irony by real hackers years after the fact.  2. vt.
X   On a Macintosh, the data is compiled separately from the program,
X   in small segments of the program file known as "resources". The
X   standard resource compiler is Rez. The standard resource decompiler
X   is DeRez. Usage: very common.
X
XDEVO /dee'vo/ [orig. in-house slang at Symbolics] n.  A person in a
X   development group.  See also DOCO and MANGO.
X
XDICKLESS WORKSTATION n. Extremely pejorative hackerism for "diskless
X   workstation", a class of botches including the Sun 3/50 and other
X   machines designed exclusively to network with an expensive central
X   disk server.  These combine all the disadvantages of time-sharing
X   with all the disadvantages of distributed personal computers.
X
XDIDDLE 1. vt. To work with in a not particularly serious manner.  "I
X   diddled a copy of ADVENT so it didn't double-space all the time."
X   "Let's diddle this piece of code and see if the problem goes
X   away."  See TWEAK and TWIDDLE. 2. n. The action or result of
X   diddling. See also TWEAK, TWIDDLE, FROB.
X
XDIFFS n. 1. Differences, especially difference in source code or
X   documents.  Includes additions. "Send me your diffs for the jargon
X   file!" 2. (often in the singular DIFF) the output from the diff(1)
X   utility, esp. when used as specification input to the patch(1)
X   utility (which can actually perform the mods).  This is a common
X   method of distributing patches and source updates in the UNIX/C
X   world.
X
XDIKE vt. To remove or disable a portion of something, as a wire from a
X   computer or a subroutine from a program.  A standard slogan runs:
X   "When in doubt, dike it out."  (The implication is that it is
X   usually more effective to attack software problems by reducing
X   complexity rather than increasing it).  The word "dikes" is
X   widely used among mechanics and engineers to mean "diagonal
X   cutters", a heavy-duty metal-cutting device; to "dike something
X   out" means to use such cutters to remove something.  Among hackers
X   this term has been metaphorically extended to non-physical objects
X   such as sections of code.
X
XDING /ding/ n.,v. 1. Synonym for FEEP (q.v.). Usage: rare among
X   hackers, but commoner in THE REAL WORLD. 2. DINGED: What happens
X   when someone in authority gives you a minor bitching about
X   something, esp. something you consider trivial.  "I was dinged for
X   having a messy desk".
X
XDINOSAUR n. Any hardware requiring raised flooring and special power.
X   Used especially of old minis and mainframes when contrasted with
X   newer microprocessor-based machines.  In a famous quote from the
X   '88 UNIX EXPO, Bill Joy compared the mainframe in the massive IBM
X   display with a grazing dinosaur, "with a truck outside pumping its
X   bodily fluids through it".  IBM was not amused.  Compare BIG IRON.
X
XDINOSAUR PEN n. A traditional mainframe computer room complete with
X   raised flooring, special power, its own ultra-heavy-duty air
X   conditioning, and a side order of Halon fire extinguishers.  See
X   BOA.
X
XDISCORDIANISM /dis-kor'di-uhn-ism/ n. The veneration of ERIS, aka
X   Discordia; widely popular among hackers.  Popularized by Robert
X   Anton Wilson's _Illuminatus!_ trilogy as a sort of self-subverting
X   dada-Zen for Westerners --- it should on no account be taken
X   seriously but is far more serious than most jokes.  Usually
X   connected with an elaborate conspiracy theory/joke involving
X   millenia-long warfare between the anarcho-surrealist partisans of
X   Eris and a malevolent, authoritarian secret society called the
X   Illuminati.  See Appendix C, CHURCH OF THE SUB-GENIUS, and HA HA
X   ONLY SERIOUS.
X
XDISPLAY HACK n. A program with the same approximate purpose as a
X   kaleidoscope: to make pretty pictures.  Famous display hacks
X   include MUNCHING SQUARES, SMOKING CLOVER, the BSD UNIX rain(6)
X   program, worms(6) on miscellaneous UNIXes, and the X kaleid
X   program.  Display hacks can also be implemented without programming
X   by creating text files containing numerous escape sequences for
X   interpretation by a video terminal; one notable example displayed,
X   on any VT100, a christmas tree with twinkling lights and a toy
X   train circling its base.
X
XDOCO /do'ko/ [orig. in-house slang at Symbolics] n.  A documentation
X   writer.  See also DEVO and MANGO.
X
XDO PROTOCOL [from network protocol programming] vt.  To perform an
X   interaction with somebody or something that follows a clearly
X   defined procedure.  For example, "Let's do protocol with the
X   check" at a restaurant means to ask the waitress for the check,
X   calculate the tip and everybody's share, generate change as
X   necessary, and pay the bill.
X
XDODGY adj. Syn. with FLAKEY (q.v.). Preferred outside the U.S.
X
XDOGWASH [From a quip in the "urgency" field of a very optional
X   software change request, about 1982.  It was something like,
X   "Urgency: Wash your dog first."] n. A project of minimal
X   priority, undertaken as an escape from more serious work.  Also, to
X   engage in such a project.  Many games and much FREEWARE gets
X   written this way.
X
XDON'T DO THAT, THEN [from an old doctor's office joke about a patient
X   with a trivial complaint] interj. Stock response to a user
X   complaint.  "When I type control-S, the whole system comes to a
X   halt for thirty seconds."  "Don't do that, then." Compare RTFM.
X
XDONGLE /don-gl/ n. 1. A security device for commercial microcomputer
X   programs consisting of a serialized EPROM and some drivers in an
X   RS-232 connector shell.  Programs that use a dongle query the port
X   at startup and programmed intervals thereafter, and terminate if it
X   does not respond with the dongle's programmed validation code.
X   Thus, users could make as many copies of the program as they want
X   but must pay for each dongle.  The idea was clever but initially a
X   failure, as users disliked tying up a serial port this way.  Most
X   dongles on the market today (1990) will pass through the port, and
X   monitor for "magic codes" (and combinations of status lines) with
X   minimal if any interference with devices further down the line
X   (this innovation was necessary to allow daisy chained dongles for
X   multiple pieces of software).  The devices are still not widely
X   used, as the industry has trended away from copy-protection schemes
X   in general. 2. By extension, any physical electronic key or
X   transferrable ID required for a program to function.  See
X   DONGLE-DISK.
X
XDONGLE-DISK /don'g at l disk/ n. See DONGLE; a DONGLE-DISK is a floppy
X   disk with some coding which allows an application to identify it
X   uniquely.  It can therefore be used as a DONGLE.  Also called a
X   "key disk".
X
XDONUTS n. Collective noun for any set of memory bits.  This is really
X   archaic and may no longer be live slang; it dates from the days of
X   ferrite-core memories in which each bit was represented by a
X   donut-shaped magnetic flip-flop.  Compare CORE.
X
XDOORSTOP n. Used to describe equipment that is non-functional and
X   halfway expected to remain so, especially obsolescent equipment
X   kept around for political reasons or ostensibly as a backup.
X   "When we get another Wyse-50 in here that ADM3 will turn into a
X   doorstop." Compare BOAT ANCHOR.
X
XDOT FILE [UNIX] n. A file that is not visible to normal
X   directory-browsing tools (on UNIX, files named beginning with a dot
X   are normally invisible).
X
XDOUBLE BUCKY: adj. Using both the CTRL and META keys.  "The command
X   to burn all LEDs is double bucky F."  See also META BIT,
X   COKEBOTTLE, QUADRUPLE BUCKY, SPACE-CADET KEYBOARD.  The following
X   lyrics were written on May 27, 1978, in celebration of the Stanford
X   keyboard.  A typical MIT comment was that the Stanford BUCKY BITS
X   (control and meta shifting keys) were nice, but there weren't
X   enough of them; you could only type 512 different characters on a
X   Stanford keyword.  An obvious thing was simply to add more shifting
X   keys, and this was eventually done; one problem, is that a keyboard
X   with that many shifting keys is hard on touch-typists, who don't
X   like to move their hands away from the home position on the
X   keyboard.  It was half-seriously suggested that the extra shifting
X   keys be pedals; typing on such a keyboard would be very much like
X   playing a full pipe organ.  This idea is mentioned below, in a
X   parody of a very fine song by Jeffrey Moss called "Rubber
X   Duckie", which was published in "The Sesame Street Songbook".
X
X     			Double Bucky
X
X     	Double bucky, you're the one!
X     	You make my keyboard lots of fun.
X     	    Double bucky, an additional bit or two:
X     	(Vo-vo-de-o!)
X     	Control and meta, side by side,
X     	Augmented ASCII, nine bits wide!
X     	    Double bucky!  Half a thousand glyphs, plus a few!
X     		Oh,
X     		I sure wish that I
X     		Had a couple of
X     		    Bits more!
X     		Perhaps a
X     		Set of pedals to
X     		Make the number of
X     		    Bits four:
X     		Double double bucky!
X     	Double bucky, left and right
X     	OR'd together, outta sight!
X     	    Double bucky, I'd like a whole word of
X     	    Double bucky, I'm happy I heard of
X     	    Double bucky, I'd like a whole word of you!
X
X     	--- The Great Quux (with apologies to Jeffrey Moss)
X
X[This is, by the way, an excellent example of computer FILK --- ESR]
X
XDOUBLED SIG /duh'b at ld sig/ [USENET] n.  A SIG BLOCK (q.v.) that has
X   been included twice in a USENET article or, less frequently, in an
X   electronic mail message.  An article or message with a doubled sig
X   can be caused by improperly configured software.  More often,
X   however, it reveals the author's lack of experience in electronic
X   communication.  See BIFF, PSEUDO.
X
XDOWN 1. adj. Not working.  "The up escalator is down."  That is
X   considered a humorous thing to say, but "The elevator is down"
X   always means "The elevator isn't working" and never refers to
X   what floor the elevator is on. 2. GO DOWN vi. To stop functioning;
X   usually said of the SYSTEM.  The message every hacker hates to hear
X   from the operator is, "The system will go down in five minutes."
X   3.  TAKE DOWN, BRING DOWN vt. To deactivate purposely, usually for
X   repair work. "I'm taking the system down to work on that bug in
X   the tape drive."
X
XDOWNLOAD vt. To transfer data or (esp.) code from a larger `host'
X   system (esp. a mainframe) over a digital comm link to a smaller
X   `client' system, esp. a microcomputer or specialized peripheral
X   device.  Oppose UPLOAD.
X
XDRAGON n. [MIT] A program similar to a "daemon" (q.v.), except that
X   it is not invoked at all, but is instead used by the system to
X   perform various secondary tasks.  A typical example would be an
X   accounting program, which keeps track of who is logged in,
X   accumulates load-average statistics, etc.  Under ITS, many
X   terminals displayed a list of people logged in, where they are,
X   what they're running, etc. along with some random picture (such as
X   a unicorn, Snoopy, or the Enterprise) which is generated by the
X   "NAME DRAGON".  See PHANTOM.  Usage: rare outside MIT --- under
X   UNIX and most other OSs this would be called a `background DEMON'
X   or `DAEMON' (q.v).
X
XDRAGON BOOK, THE n. Aho, Sethi and Ullman's classic compilers text
X   _Principles_Of_Compiler_Design_, so called because of the cover
X   design depicting a knight slaying a dragon labelled "compiler
X   complexity".  See also BLUE BOOK, RED BOOK, GREEN BOOK, SILVER
X   BOOK, PURPLE BOOK, ORANGE BOOK, WHITE BOOK, PINK-SHIRT BOOK.
X
XDRAIN [IBM] v. Syn. for FLUSH (sense 4).
X
XDREAD HIGH BIT DISEASE n. A condition endemic to PRIME (formerly
X   PR1ME) minicomputers which results in all the characters having
X   their high (\200) bit ON rather than OFF.  This of course makes
X   transporting files to other systems much more difficult, not to
X   mention talking to true eightbit devices.  It is reported that
X   PRIME adopted the reversed eight bit convention in order to save 25
X   cents/serial line/machine.  This probably qualifies as one of the
X   most CRETINOUS design tradeoffs ever made.  See META BIT.
X
XDRECNET /drek'net/ [fr. Yiddish `dreck'] n. Deliberate distortion of
X   DECNET, a networking protocol used in the VMS community.  So-called
X   because DEC helped write the Ethernet specification, and then
X   (either stupidly or as a malignant customer-control tactic)
X   violated that spec in the design of DRECNET (among other things,
X   they implemented the wrong HEARTBEAT speed). See also CONNECTOR
X   CONSPIRACY.
X
XDROOL-PROOF PAPER n. Documentation which has been obsessively dumbed
X   down, to the point where only a CRETIN could bear to read it, is
X   said to have succumbed to the "drool-proof paper syndrome" or to
X   have been "written on drool-proof paper".  For example, this is
X   an actual quote from Apple's LaserWriter manual: "Do not expose
X   your LaserWriter to open fire or flame."
X
XDROP ON THE FLOOR vt. To react to an error condition by silent
X   discarding messages or other valuable data.  Example: "The gateway
X   ran out of memory, so it just started dropping packets on the
X   floor."  Also frequently used of faulty mail and netnews relay
X   sites that lose messages.  See also BLACK HOLE.
X
XDRUGGED adj., also ON DRUGS.  1. Conspicuously stupid, heading towards
X   BRAIN DAMAGE.  Often accompanied by a pantomime of toking a joint.
X   2. Of hardware, very slow relative to normal preformance.
X
XDRUNK MOUSE SYNDROME n.  A malady exhibited by the mouse pointing
X   device of some workstations.  The typical symptom is for the mouse
X   cursor on the screen to move to random directions and not in sync
X   with the moving of the actual mouse.  Can usually be corrected by
X   unplugging the mouse and plugging it back again. Another
X   recommended fix is to the rotate optical mouse pad 90 
X   degrees.
X
XDUMBASS ATTACK /duhm'ass @-tak'/ [Purdue] n. A novice's mistake made
X   by the experienced, especially one made by running as root under
X   UNIX, eg. typing "rm *" or mkfs on a mounted file system. Compare
X   ADGER.
X
XDUSTY DECK n. Old software (especially applications) with which one is
X   obliged to remain compatible.  The term implies that the software
X   in question is a holdover from card-punch days.  Used esp. when
X   referring to old scientific and number-crunching software, much of
X   which was written in FORTRAN and very poorly documented but would
X   be too expensive to replace.  See FOSSIL.
X
XDWIM /dwim/ [Do What I Mean] 1. adj. Able to guess, sometimes even
X   correctly, what result was intended when provided with bogus input.
X   Often suggested in jest as a desired feature for a complex program;
X   also occasionally described as the single instruction the ideal
X   computer would have (back when proof of program correctness were in
X   vogue, there were also jokes about DWIMC: Do What I Mean,
X   Correctly).  A related term, more often seen as a verb, is DTRT (Do
X   The Right Thing), see RIGHT THING, THE.  2. n. The INTERLISP
X   function that attempts to accomplish this feat by correcting many
X   of the more common errors.  See HAIRY.
X
XDYNNER /din'r/ 32 bits, by analogy with NYBBLE and BYTE. Usage: rare
X   and extremely silly.  See also PLAYTE.
X
X                                {= E =}
X
XEARTHQUAKE [IBM] n. The ultimate REAL WORLD shock test for computer
X   hardware.  Hacker sources at IBM deny the rumor that the Bay Area
X   quake of 1989 was initiated by the company to test QA at its
X   California plants.
X
XEASTER EGG n. 1. A message hidden in the object code of a program as a
X   joke, intended to be found by persons disassembling or browsing the
X   code. 2. A message, graphic, or sound-effect emitted by a program
X   (or, on a PC, the BIOS ROM) in response to some undocumented set of
X   commands or keystrokes, intended as a joke or to display program
X   credits.  One well-known early easter egg found in a couple of OSs
X   and SOS (q.v.) caused them to respond to the command `make love'
X   with `not war?'.  Many personal computers (other than the IBM PC)
X   have much more elaborate eggs hidden in ROM, including lists of the
X   developers' names, political exhortations, snatches of music, and
X   (in one case) graphics images of the entire development team.
X
XEASTER EGGING [IBM] n. The act of replacing unrelated parts more or
X   less at random in hopes that a malfunction will go away.  Hackers
X   consider this the normal operating mode of FIELD CIRCUS techs and
X   do not love them for it.
X
XEAT FLAMING DEATH, X! expl. A construction popularized among hackers
X   by the infamous DEC WARS comic (q.v.); supposed to derive from a
X   famously turgid line in a WWII-era anti-Nazi propaganda comic
X   in which X was "non-Aryan mongrels" or something of the sort.
X   Used in humorously overblown expressions of hostility. "Eat
X   flaming death, EBCDIC users!"
X
XEIGHTY-COLUMN MIND [IBM] n. The sort said to be employed by persons
X   for whom the transition from card to tape was traumatic (nobody has
X   dared tell them about disks yet).  It is said that these people,
X   like (according to an old joke) the founder of IBM, will be buried
X   `9-EDGE-FORWARD-FACE-DOWN'.  These people are thought by most
X   hackers to dominate IBM's customer base, and its thinking.
X
XEL CAMINO BIGNUM /el' k at -mee'noh big'num/ n. El Camino Real.  El
X   Camino Real is the name of a street through the San Francisco
X   peninsula that originally extended (and still appears in places)
X   all the way down to Mexico City.  Navigation on the San Francisco
X   peninsula is usually done relative to El Camino Real, which is
X   assumed to run north and south even though it doesn't really in
X   many places (see LOGICAL).  El Camino Real runs right past Stanford
X   University, and so is familiar to hackers.  The Spanish word
X   "real" (which has two syllables (ree-ahl')) means "royal"; El
X   Camino Real is "the royal road".  Now the English word "real"
X   is used in mathematics to describe numbers (and by analogy is
X   misused in computer jargon to mean floating-point numbers).  In the
X   FORTRAN language, for example, a "real" quantity is a number
X   typically precise to seven decimal places, and a "double
X   precision" quantity is a larger floating-point number, precise to
X   perhaps fourteen decimal places.  When a hacker from MIT visited
X   Stanford in 1976 or so, he remarked what a long road El Camino Real
X   was.  Making a pun on "real", he started calling it "El Camino
X   Double Precision" --- but when the hacker was told that the road
X   was hundreds of miles long, he renamed it "El Camino Bignum", and
X   that name has stuck.  (See BIGNUM.)
X
XELEGANT [from mathematical usage] adj. Combining simplicity, power,
X   and a certain ineffable grace of design. Higher praise than
X   `clever', `winning' or even CUSPY.
X
XELEPHANTINE adj. Used of programs or systems which are both
X   conspicuous HOGs (due perhaps to poor design founded on BRUTE FORCE
X   AND IGNORANCE) and exceedingly HAIRY in source form.  An
X   elephantine program may be functional and even friendly, but (like
X   the old joke about being in bed with an elephant) it's tough to
X   have around all the same, esp. a bitch to maintain.  In extreme
X   cases, hackers have been known to make trumpeting sounds or perform
X   expressive zoomorphic mime at the mention of the offending program.
X   Usage: semi-humorous.  Compare "has the elephant nature" and the
X   somewhat more pejorative MONSTROSITY.  See also SECOND-SYSTEM
X   SYNDROME.
X
XEMACS /ee'maks/ [from Editing MACroS] n. The ne plus ultra of hacker
X   editors, a program editor with an entire LISP interpreter inside
X   it.  Originally written by Richard Stallman in TECO at the MIT-AI
X   lab, but the most widely used versions now run under UNIX.  It
X   includes facilities to run compilation subprocesses and send and
X   receive mail; many hackers spend up to 80% of their tube time
X   inside it.  Some versions running under window managers iconify as
X   a kitchen sink, perhaps to suggest the one feature the editor
X   doesn't include. See also VI.
X
XEMAIL /ee-mayl/ vt.,n. Electronic mail automatically passed through
X   computer networks and/or via modems common-carrier lines.  Contrast
X   SNAIL-MAIL.  See NETWORK ADDRESS.
X
XEMOTICON /ee-moh'ti-cahn/ n. An ASCII glyph used to indicate an
X   emotional state in email or news.  Hundreds have been proposed, but
X   only a few are in common use.  These include:
X
X     :-)   Smiley face (indicates laughter)
X     :-(   Frowney face (indicates sadness, anger or upset)
X     ;-)   Half-smiley (ha ha only serious), aka winkey face.
X     :-/   Wry face
X
X   Of these, the first two are by far the most frequently encountered.
X   Hyphenless forms of them are common on CompuServe, GEnie and BIX;
X   see also BIXIE.  On USENET, "smiley" is often used as a generic
X   (synonym for emoticon) as well as specifically for the happy-face
X   emoticon.
X
X   Note for the NEWBIE: overuse of the smiley is a mark of loserhood!
X   More than one per paragraph is a sure sign that you've gone over
X   the line.
X
XEMPIRE n. Any of a family of military simulations derived from a game
X   written by Peter Langston many years ago.  There are 5 or 6
X   multi-player variants of varying degrees of sophistication, and one
X   single-player version implemented for both UNIX and VMS which is
X   even available as MS-DOS freeware.  All are notoriously addictive.
X
XENQ /enkw/ [from the ASCII mnemonic for 0000101] 1. An on-line
X   convention for querying someone's availability.  After opening a
X   TALK MODE connection to someone apparently in heavy hack mode, one
X   might type "SYN SYN ENQ?" (the SYNs representing notional
X   synchronization bytes) expecting a return of ACK or NAK depending
X   on whether or not the person felt interruptible. See ACK; compare
X   PING, FINGER, and the usage of `FOO?' listed under TALK MODE.
X
XEOF /ee-oh-ef/ [UNIX/C] n. End Of File. 1. Refers esp. to whatever
X   pseudo-character value is returned by C's sequential input
X   functions (and their equivalents in other environments) when the
X   logical end of file has been reached (this was 0 under V6 UNIX, is
X   -1 under V7 and all subsequent versions and all non-UNIX C library
X   implementations). 2. Used by extension in non-computer contexts
X   when a human is doing something that can be modelled as a
X   sequential read and can't go further. "Yeah, I looked for a list
X   of 360 mnemonics to post as a joke, but I hit EOF pretty fast, all
X   the library had was a JCL manual."
X
XEPOCH, THE [UNIX] n. The time and date corresponding to zero in an
X   operating system's clock and timestamp values.  Under most UNIX
X   versions, 00:00 of January 1st 1970 GMT.  System time is measured
X   in seconds or TICKS past the era.  Syn. with EPOCH.  See TICKS,
X   WALL TIME.  Note that weird problems may ensue when the clock wraps
X   around, and that this is actually not a rare event; on systems
X   counting 10 TICKS per second, a 32 bit count of ticks is only good
X   for 6.8 years.
X
XEPSILON [from standard mathematical notation for a small quantity] 1.
X   n. A small quantity of anything.  "The cost is epsilon."  2. adj.
X   Very small, negligible; less than marginal.  "We can get this
X   feature for epsilon cost."  3. WITHIN EPSILON OF: Close enough to
X   be indistinguishable for all practical purposes.  This is even
X   closer than being WITHIN DELTA OF.  Example: "That's not what I
X   asked for, but it's within epsilon of what I wanted."
X   Alternatively, it may mean not close enough, but very little is
X   required to get it there: "My program is within epsilon of
X   working." See ASYMPTOTIC.
X
XEPSILON SQUARED n. A quantity even smaller than EPSILON, as small in
X   comparison to it as it is to something normal.  If you buy a
X   supercomputer for a million dollars, the cost of the
X   thousand-dollar terminal to go with it is EPSILON, and the cost of
X   the ten-dollar cable to connect the two is EPSILON SQUARED.
X
XERA, THE n. Syn. for EPOCH.
X
XERIC CONSPIRACY n. Notional group of mustachioed hackers named Eric
X   first pinpointed as a sinister conspiracy by an infamous
X   talk.bizarre posting c. 1986; this was doubtless influenced by the
X   numerous `Eric' jokes in the Monty Python oeuvre.  There do indeed
X   seem to be considerably more mustachioed hacker-Erics than the
X   frequency of these three traits can account for unless they are
X   correlated in some arcane way.  Well known examples include Eric
X   Allman of BSD fame, Erik Fair (coauthor of NNTP) and your editor
X   [ESR]; your editor has heard from about fourteen others by email.
X
XERIS /e'r at s/ pn. The Greco-Roman goddess of Chaos, Discord, Confusion
X   and Things You Know Not Of; aka Discordia.  Not a very friendly
X   deity in the Classical original, she was re-invented as a more
X   benign personification of creative anarchy starting in 1959 by the
X   adherents of DISCORDIANISM and has since been a semi-serious
X   subject of veneration in several `fringe' cultures including
X   hackerdom.  See DISCORDIANISM, CHURCH OF THE SUB-GENIUS.
X
XEROTICS /ee-ro'tiks/ n. Reported from Scandinavia as English-language
X   university slang for electronics. Often used by hackers, maybe
X   because of its exciting aspects.
X
XESSENTIALS n. Things necessary to maintain a productive and secure
X   hacking environment. "A jug of wine, a loaf of bread, a
X   20-megahertz 80386 box with 8 meg of core and a 300-megabyte disk
X   supporting full UNIX with source and X windows and EMACS and UUCP
X   to a friendly Internet site, and thou."
X
XEVIL adj. As used by hackers, implies that some system, program,
X   person or institution is sufficiently mal-designed as to be not
X   worth the bother of dealing with.  Unlike the adjectives in the
X   CRETINOUS/LOSING/BRAIN-DAMAGED series, EVIL does not imply
X   incompetence or bad design, but rather a set of goals or design
X   criteria fatally incompatible with the speaker's.  This is more an
X   esthetic and engineering judgement than a moral one in the
X   mainstream sense. "We thought about adding a BLUE GLUE interface
X   but decided it was too evil to deal with." "TECO is neat, but it
X   can be pretty evil if you're prone to typos." Often pronounced
X   with the first syllable lengthened, as /eeeevil/.
X
XEXAMINING THE ENTRAILS n. The process of rooting through a core dump
X   or hex image in the attempt to discover the bug that brought your
X   program or system down.  Compare RUNES, INCANTATION, BLACK ART.
X
XEXCH /eks'ch@, ekstch/ vt. To exchange two things, each for the other;
X   to swap places.  If you point to two people sitting down and say
X   "Exch!", you are asking them to trade places.  EXCH, meaning
X   EXCHange, was originally the name of a PDP-10 instruction that
X   exchanged the contents of a register and a memory location.
X
XEXCL /eks'kl/ n. Abbreviation for "exclamation point".  See BANG,
X   SHRIEK, WOW.
X
XEXE /ex'ee/ An executable binary file.  Some operating systems
X   (notably MS-DOS) use the extension .EXE to mark such files.  This
X   usage is also occasionally found among UNIX programmers even though
X   UNIX executables don't have any required extension.
X
XEXEC /eg'zek/ [shortened from "executive" or "execute"] vt.,n. 1.
X   [UNIX] Synonym for CHAIN, derives from the exec(2) call. 2. (obs)
X   The command interpreter for an OS (see SHELL); term esp. used on
X   mainframes, and prob. derived from UNIVAC's archaic EXEC 2 and EXEC
X   8 operating systems.
X
X                                {= F =}
X
XFALL OVER [IBM] vi. Yet another synonym for CRASH or LOSE.  `Fall over
X   hard' equates to CRASH AND BURN.
X
XFALL THROUGH vu. 1. To exit a loop by exhaustion, i.e. by having
X   fulfilled its exit condition rather than via a break or exception
X   condition that exits from the middle of it.  This usage appears to
X   be *really* old, as in dating from the '40s and '50s.  It may no
X   longer be live slang. 2. In C, `fall-through' is said to occur when
X   the flow of execution in a switch statement reaches a `case' label
X   for the second or subsequent time, passing a point where one would
X   normally expect to find a `break'. A trivial example:
X
X     switch (color)
SHAR_EOF
chmod 0644 jsplit.ac || echo "restore of jsplit.ac fails"
if [ $TOUCH = can ]
then
    touch -am 1215215290 jsplit.ac
fi
exit 0