WORDS |
DEFINITIONS |
|---|---|
| Awkwardnym | n. An acronym that is awkward, clumsy, or not helpful. Examples: PCMCIA, CSMA/CD, WWW, EGRPRA |
| Donaldson Index | n. A ratio compiled by dividing a person's income by his or her IQ. Note: Named for a US TV personality whose Donaldson is the highest on the planet. |
| Lucy Button | n: The HELP button on any Microsoft product. Note:Named for Lucy, a character in a famous and well-loved US cartoon strip, Peanuts©. A story line that has run off and on for years is that Charlie Brown, feckless hero, wishes to kick a football and Lucy offers to hold it for him. She never does and Charlie Brown ends up on his back being taunted by Lucy. Why does Charlie Brown keep trying to kick the football? Why does he keep listening to her promises to help? Why do we keep clicking on the HELP (aka "NOHELP") button on any Microsoft product when we know it is of no use? |
| Merl | vt, 1. To gain credit for another's work. 2. To copy without
attribution. Note: Definition 1 is one of the least pleasant aspects of modern bureaucratic life because there are large numbers of bureaucrats who are skilled at doing little work, avoiding blame, while still managing to get credit for other's work. "It was a merl of truly Biblical proportions." Definition 2 is the sincerest form of geek flattery. "I couldn't figure out how to make the program work but saw something neat on the Web and merled it." Named after someone who merled me and thereby, God willing, achieved something beyond fleeting mortality. |
| Merl Index | n. A ratio compiled by dividing the glory for the achievement by the effort one has put into it. Note: A useful theoretical exercise for students is to derive the highest theoretical Merl Index. A good first approximation is that it has a limit of infinity because someone could get all the credit while having done no work. The right answer is -1. This fabled number can be achieved only under these strict conditions:
It may be of interest to note that the groundbreaking for the National Merl Museum will be held on the Mall in Washington DC in the spring of 1998. So far, all but one of the honorees is a professional politician. The one exception is an employee of the FDIC. |