A Short HACKER SPEAK Glossary

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A Short 'HACKERSPEAK' Glossary

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A reference to a few of the terms used by many computer hackers.

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(Researched and compiled by members of the Hollywood User Group)

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arg - (argh) noun.An argument, in the mathematical sense.

automagically - adverb.Automatically, but in a way which, for some

reason (for example, because it's too complicated or too trivial) the

speaker doesn't feel like explaining.

bells and whistles - n.Unnecessary (but often convenient, useful,

good-looking, or amusing) features of a program or other object. Added

to a bare-bones, working program.

bit - n.1) A unit of information obtained by asking a question (e.g.

- 'I need a few bits about Punter protocol')2) A mental flag;

reminder that something should be done eventually.

buffer - verb.The act of saving or setting aside something to be done

later.(e.g. - 'I'm going to buffer that and go eat now').

bug - n.A problem or mistake; unwanted property or side effect.

Usually of a program, but can refer to a person.Can be very simple or

very complicated.Antonym: FEATURE.

bum - v.To improve something by rearranging or removing its parts.

Most often done to a program to increase speed or save memory space,

usually at the expense of clarity.

buzz - v.Of a program, to run without visible progress or certainty

of finishing.Resembles CATATONIA except that a buzzing loop may

eventually end.

canonical - (ki NAHN i kil) adjective.Standard, usual or ordinary way

of doing something.

catatonia - n.A condition in which something is supposed to happen,

but nothing does.(e.g. - Nothing you type will appear on the screen.

It's catatonic.Often means a CRASH has occured.)

crash - 1) n.Sudden, drastic failure.Usually refers to a complete

computer system or program.2) v.To fail suddenly or cause to fail.

3) v.Of people, to go to sleep.

creeping featurism - n.Tendency for anything complicated to become

even more so because people keep saying, 'Hey, it would be terrific if

the program had this feature, and could do this, and...'The result is

a patchwork program, confusing to read, with a lot of 'neat' features.

crock - n.Said of a program that works, but in an extremely awkward

or cumbersome manner.

crunch - v.To process, usually in a time-consuming, complex way.

Example:Performing large, repetitive numerical computations is called

'number crunching'.2) v.To reduce the size of a file (often in a

complicated way) to save space.

dec'ed out - (decked out) adj.Stoned, drunk (and possibly trying to

program, regardless).Uncomplimentary.Derives from the 65-- series

ML opcode DECrement, i.e.: decrease a value.

elegant - adj.Said of a piece of code that does the RIGHT THING in a

way beautiful to look at.

feature - n.An extra property or behaviour added to a program that

already does the job.May or may not be useful, necessary or

convenient.

fencepost error - n.A mathematical 'off-by-one' error.Most often

found in programs that must count loops (it will count one time too

many, or too few).Term comes from the problem:'If you build a fence

100 feet long with posts 10 feet apart, how many posts fo you need?'

Example:Suppose you want to process an array of items x thru y.How

many are there?The correct answer is x-y 1 (not x-y, which would be

off by one).

flavor - n. variety, kind, type.(flavorful - adj.Aesthetically

pleasing).

flush - v.To scratch, delete or destroy something.Often something

superfluous or useless.

fudge - v.Perform in an incomplete, but marginally acceptable way.

'I fudged it, so it works.'

GC - (jee see) 1) v.To clean up, throw away useless things.2) To

forget.GC is an abreviation of the term 'Garbage Collection', the

common method of freeing up memory space.

glitch - n.Sudden interruption in electrical service, common sense,

or program function.Usually happens only when you pray that it

doesn't.

grovel - v.To work interminably, examine minutely or in extreme

detail.

gun - v.To forcibly terminate a program.'It was a boring display,

so I gunned it.'

hack - n.An appropriate application of ingenuity.It could be a

quick-and-dirty bug fix, or a time-consuming and elegant work of art.

A clever technique.

hack value - n.The motivation for expending effort and time toward a

seemingly pointless goal, the point being the resulting hack.

hack attack - n.Period of greatly increased hacking activity.Not to

be confused with a Mac-Attack.

hacker - n.1) One who greatly enjoys learning the details of a

computer system and how to stretch their capabilities (as opposed to

REAL USERS who learn only the minimum amount necessary).2) One who

programs enthusiastically, rather than just theorizing about it.3)

One capable of appreciating HACK VALUE.4) An expert of any kind5) A

malicious or inquisitive meddler (in the case of a 'system hacker' or a

'password hacker').

inc it up - (also 'incing') v.Specifically related to studying,

reading, or learning ML.Derives from the 65-- series ML instruction

INCrement a value; i.e. increase it.

jock - n.Programmer characterized by the large, cumbersome,

brute-force programs he/she writes.The programs may work, but slowly,

inelegantly, or in an ugly way.

kludge - (kloog)1) n.Clever programming trick, most often to fix a

bug.Efficient, but maybe unclear.2) v.To insert a kludge into a

program (to fix a bug or add a feature).

magic - adj.Something as yet unexplained or too complex to imagine.

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