Retrocomputing
/ret’-roh-k*m-pyoo’ting/ Refers to emulations of way-behind-the-state-of-the-art hardware or software, or implementations of never-was-state-of-the-art; especially if such implementations are elaborate practical jokes and/or parodies, written mostly for hack value, of more “serious” designs. Perhaps the most widely distributed retrocomputing utility was the “pnch(6)” or “bcd(6)” program on V7 and other early Unix versions, which would accept up to 80 characters of text argument and display the corresponding pattern in punched card code. Other well-known retrocomputing hacks have included the programming language INTERCAL, a JCL-emulating shell for Unix, the card-punch-emulating editor named 029, and various elaborate PDP-11 hardware emulators and RT-11 OS emulators written just to keep an old, sourceless Zork binary running.
[Jargon File]
Read Also:
- Retroconduction
retroconduction ret·ro·con·duc·tion (rět’rō-kən-dŭk’shən) n. Conduction backward from the ventricles or from the atrioventricular node into and through the atria.
- Retro-cool
adjective See retro-chic
- Retro-culture
noun nostalgic revival of a cultural style
- Retrocursive
retrocursive ret·ro·cur·sive (rět’rō-kûr’sĭv) adj. Characterized by running backward.
- Retrocuspid papilla
retrocuspid papilla ret·ro·cus·pid papilla (rět’rō-kŭs’pĭd) n. A small tag of tissue on the mandibular gums, lingual to the cuspid teeth, usually bilateral and is considered a normal anatomic structure.