Computer Jargon: A Look Back

Edit: I still find this interesting, the file probably needs to be updated.

Originally posted October 23, 2012 on AIXchange

Years ago when I worked for IBM I read and enjoyed a file called the “IBM Jargon and General Computing Dictionary.” It seems to be making the rounds again, at least if recent emails and tweets I’ve seen are any indication.

The dictionary’s tenth edition, published back in 1990, is still preserved online. While terms like “back to back remote,” “brass tag” and “Charlie letter” are old school, many of these words and expressions hold up and are still in use today.

Here’s a bit of the editor’s introduction:

“… This edition follows the markup and format of the last (Ninth) edition, and has more than one hundred and seventy new entries (bringing the total to over fourteen hundred entries).

 “This is not only the tenth edition of the dictionary, but is also its tenth year; the first edition was compiled and distributed in 1980. At that time the use of jargon was on the increase, but I now observe that the quantity and use of jargon appears to be decreasing – perhaps as computing becomes less of a specialist discipline. Not only does this make my task as editor of the dictionary a little easier, but it might also imply that the computing industry is at last getting better at communicating with its customers!”

This resonates with me. Most people use computing devices in their daily lives now. People and their cell phones or Smartphones are basically inseparable. Twenty-some years ago, being the “computer guy” had very different connotations. He — and it was pretty much strictly “he” — was usually much more technical than the rest of humanity. He often had a different way of talking, and if you didn’t know the lingo and the acronyms, you had a tough time even understanding him.

More from the dictionary:

“The items in this dictionary have been selected from the huge vocabulary of computer-related terms used in IBM. To be included here, a word or phrase must either have originated in IBM, or (more commonly) its meaning or usage in IBM must be different from the usual. Acronyms and abbreviations are not included except where they are necessary for cross-references, or are used as true words in their own right (for example, “APAR”).

“This dictionary is intended both to inform and to entertain. Each entry has a definition, which is usually supplemented by an explanation and an example of usage. Formal etymologies are not included, since in most cases the etymology is either unknown or disputed. In many cases, a meaning or usage is so subtle or bizarre that a light treatment is more appropriate (and conveys the sense better) than an attempt to define the term formally. As a result, this compilation is not just a source of information but is also a window on the IBM culture, as reflected in its language.”

Unfortunately the dictionary is no longer updated, and this seems to be something of a trend. From what I can tell, the (non-IBM specific) Jargon File was last updated in 2003. Here’s version 4.4.7.

Has the language evolved so much that we no longer need reference materials to help us make sense of the computing world? If you work with Power Systems regularly, do terms like IVM, HMC, KVM, FSM, VIOS, APV and SEA need entries these days, or do you just know what all of these acronyms mean today? Are there others that drive you crazy when you hear them?

Twenty-some years from now, will people be trying to make sense of what we were talking about with our abbreviations and lingo? Will we still rack and stack servers, or will everything be in the cloud?

If the IBM jargon dictionary was still being maintained, which words and terms and abbreviations would you want to add to it? I recently came across a term that would be a natural fit. Ask me about it the next time you see me.

Do any of the the IBM jargon dictionary terms bring back good memories for you?