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...a word which I first encountered in a level-guide reference to
manipulating objects in Thief, 'frob', here's what an online dictionary
has to say:
"frobnicate - /frob'ni-kayt/ (Possibly from frobnitz, and usually
abbreviated to frob, but "frobnicate" is recognised as the official full
form). To manipulate or adjust, to tweak. One frequently frobs bits or
other 2-state devices. Thus: "Please frob the light switch" (that is,
flip it), but also "Stop frobbing that clasp; you'll break it". One also
sees the construction "to frob a frob".
Usage: frob, twiddle, and tweak sometimes connote points along a
continuum. "Frob" connotes aimless manipulation; "twiddle" connotes
gross manipulation, often a coarse search for a proper setting; "tweak"
connotes fine-tuning. If someone is turning a knob on an oscilloscope,
then if he's carefully adjusting it, he is probably tweaking it; if he
is just turning it but looking at the screen, he is probably twiddling
it; but if he's just doing it because turning a knob is fun, he's
frobbing it. The variant "frobnosticate" has also been reported."
(brought up because in a MU*, someone was trying to debug a light switch
someone else had made and couldn't figure out the syntax; I suggested
"flip switch", "toggle switch" (the command used), and "frob switch". hehe.
--
Tim Cook
http://home.bellsouth.net/p/PWP-empyrean
-----BEGIN GEEK CODE BLOCK-----
Version: 3.12
GFA dpu- s: a?-- C++(++++) U P? L E--- W++(+++)>$
N++ o? K- w(+) O? M-(--) V? PS+(+++) PE(--) Y(--)
PGP-(--) t* 5++>+++++ X+ R* tv+ b++(+++) DI
D++(---) G(++) e*>++ h+ !r--- !y--
------END GEEK CODE BLOCK------
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Tim Cook wrote:
> "frobnicate - /frob'ni-kayt/ (Possibly from frobnitz, and usually
> abbreviated to frob, but "frobnicate" is recognised as the official full
> form). To manipulate or adjust, to tweak. One frequently frobs bits or
> other 2-state devices. Thus: "Please frob the light switch" (that is,
> flip it), but also "Stop frobbing that clasp; you'll break it". One also
> sees the construction "to frob a frob".
I suppose these sentences illustrate the proper use of the word:
To complete a render is divine; to frobnicate one is vanity.
It was a frobbish mishandling of data which led to the explosion.
Neighbors found him frobbing himself behind a bush. They promptly
called the police.
And from a recent post at the LightWave message boards:
"Nib frobn plok partkle poit, yip yip yip !!!!"
He was angry with how his polygons were turning out.
Sam
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Tim Cook wrote:
> ...a word which I first encountered in a level-guide reference to
> manipulating objects in Thief, 'frob', here's what an online dictionary
> has to say:
That entry comes from the "Jargon file" AKA "The hacker's dictonary" the
latter name was used for the printed version
(http://www.amazon.co.uk/New-Hackers-Dictionary-Guy-Steele/dp/0262680920)
Most, if not all, of the Jargon file is nowadays included in wikipedia
(as a community effort it far predates wikis), but I recommend browsing
the original on-line to learn a bit more about the origin of words that
are now common in computer science. Not recommended at work, your
grinning, chuckling and sniggering may distract co-workers.
[snip]
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