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The Computer Contradictionary

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Description

"Ascertain the meaning before consulting this dictionary," warns the author of this collection of deliberately satirical misdefinitions. New computer cultures and their jargons have burgeoned since this book's progenitor, The Devil's D.P. Dictionary, was published in 1981. This updated version of Stan Kelly-Bootle's romp through the data processing "laxicon" is a response to the "Unix pandemic" that has swept academia and government, to the endlessly hyped panaceas offered to the MIS, and to the P.C. explosion that has brought computer terminology to a "hugely bewildered, lay audience." The original dictionary, an urbane and witty pastiche of Ambrose Bierce's famous work, parried chiefly the mainframe and mini-folklore of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. This long-awaited revision adds over 550 new entries and enhances many of the original definitions. Key targets are "a host of new follies crying out for cynical lexicography [including] the G.U.I.-Phooey iconoclasts, object orienteering, and the piping of Blobs down the Clinton-Gore InfoPike." ack n. [Origin: back-formed negation of nak.] A signal indicating that the error- detection circuits have failed. computer science n. [Origin: possibly Prof. P. B. Fellgett's rhetorical question, "Is computer science? "] A study akin to numerology and astrology, but lacking the precision of the former and the success of the latter. multimedia n. An application attacking all five senses of the user--sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch-but especially, smell. Read more

Publisher ‏ : ‎ MIT Press


Publication date ‏ : ‎ April 10, 1995


Edition ‏ : ‎ 2nd


Language ‏ : ‎ English


Print length ‏ : ‎ 260 pages


ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0262611120


ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 21


Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12 ounces


Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.59 x 8.9 inches


Best Sellers Rank: #4,052,100 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #1,484 in Computers & Internet Humor #12,588 in Dictionaries & Thesauruses (Books) #22,099 in Fiction Satire


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Top Amazon Reviews


  • New & Improved Rev. 2.0!!
Format: Paperback
This is "The Devils DP Dictionary" Rev.2.0 not to be missed by anybody who has been around for long enough to not trust Rev.2.0 of anything. All known bugs have been fixed and countless new features added. Year 2000 compliant, biodegradable and politically incorrect. (Do not lend this book to anybody, you will not get it back.) ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on April 22, 1998 by Poul-Henning Kamp

  • Very dated, but hilarious nonetheless.
Format: Paperback
Stan KB is a one of a kind. Whether it's his music or his witty quips, you'll find none better. A lot of the terms defined in this book are now many decades past their prime but the humour is still wonderful. I don't think my favourite one is in this volume, but it will still give you a taste of the man : "Should array indices start at 0 or 1? My compromise of 0.5 was rejected without, I thought, proper consideration." ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on January 31, 2015 by Seb Rose

  • IT and data processing jokes explained
Format: Paperback
Amusing. The perfect gift for an IT professional of advanced age, i.e., one who has been around long enough to get all of the archaic computer and data processing references.
Reviewed in the United States on September 25, 2018 by John Waidner

  • A Good Book for Geeks Who Love to Laugh
Format: Paperback
This little bit of whimsy is a lot of fun. It's a fun book to keep on the shelf for those times you're too frustrated to go on coding and you need just a bit of comic relief.
Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2002 by Cindi A. Knox

  • A Classic Book
Format: Paperback
This is a bit late review as I bought this book from Amazon 22 years ago. Fun to read even after all these years.
Reviewed in the United States on June 8, 2021 by GR

  • Definately NOT a waste of money! Very funny!
Format: Paperback
I read The Devil's DP Dictionary in 1981 when it was first published and absolutely loved it. (I'm a computer nerd so that's to be expected.) Since then that book has gotten a bit dated and I've been waiting for Kelly-Bootle to update it. Let me say that The Computer Contradictionary is everything that I hoped it would be and more. I must also strongly disagree with the customer reviewer who stated "Don't waste your money". I've read the Jargon File (a.k.a. The New Hacker's Dictionary) and while I rate it as highly as the book in question I must say that one really cannot compare the two. The Jargon File, while extremely funny, is a real dictionary with real definitions of hacker jargon. The Computer Contradictionary on the other hand is not intended to give real definitions at all. It exists simply to make us laugh through satire, irony, and Kelly-Bootle's irreverent wit. In fact it's required that one already know the definitions of the words he "defines" or they wouldn't be funny. This was also the requirement of the work that Kelly-Bootle paid homage to in this, and his first book, namely The Devil's Dictionary by Ambrose Bierce. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on December 31, 1998 by Amazon Customer

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