Killer micro
[Popularised by Eugene Brooks] A microprocessor-based machine that infringes on mini, mainframe, or supercomputer performance turf. Often heard in “No one will survive the attack of the killer micros!”, the battle cry of the downsizers. Used especially of RISC architectures.
The popularity of the phrase “attack of the killer micros” is doubtless reinforced by the movie title “Attack Of The Killer Tomatoes” (one of the canonical examples of so-bad-it’s-wonderful among hackers). This has even more flavour now that killer micros have gone on the offensive not just individually (in workstations) but in hordes (within massively parallel computers).
[Jargon File]
Read Also:
- Killer poke
A recipe for inducing hardware damage on a machine via insertion of invalid values (see poke) into a memory-mapped control register; used especially of various fairly well-known tricks on bitty boxes without hardware memory management (such as the IBM PC and Commodore PET) that can overload analog electronics in the monitor. See also HCF. (1994-11-04)
- Killer-t-cell
noun 1. a killer cell that destroys target cells only when specifically activated by helper T cells. killer T cell (kĭl’ər) A large differentiated T cell that functions in cell-mediated immunity by attacking and lysing target cells that have specific surface antigens. Also called cytotoxic T cell, killer cell.
- Killer-whale
noun 1. any of several predatory dolphins, especially the black-and-white Orcinus orca, found in all seas. noun 1. a predatory black-and-white toothed whale, Orcinus orca, with a large erect dorsal fin, most common in cold seas: family Delphinidae Also called killer, grampus, orc
- Killfile
noun a computer file for Usenet or newsgroup access that specifies content to be discarded or ignored; also, a similar file used by an e-mail program; also written kill file Word Origin 1984
- Kill file
noun See killfile [Usenet] Per-user file(s) used by some Usenet reading programs (originally Larry Wall’s rn) to discard summarily (without presenting for reading) articles matching some particularly uninteresting (or unwanted) patterns of subject, author, or other header lines. Thus to add a person (or subject) to one’s kill file is to arrange for that person […]