ping
:ping: [from the submariners' term for a sonar pulse] 1. n. Slang term
for a small network message (ICMP ECHO) sent by a computer to check for
the presence and alertness of another. The Unix command `ping(8)' can be
used to do this manually (note that `ping(8)''s author denies the
widespread folk etymology that the name was ever intended as an acronym
for `Packet INternet Groper'). Occasionally used as a phone greeting.
See ACK
, also ENQ
2. vt. To verify the presence of. 3. vt. To get
the attention of. 4. vt. To send a message to all members of a {mailing list}
} requesting an ACK
(in order to verify that everybody's addresses
are reachable). "We haven't heard much of anything from Geoff, but he
did respond with an ACK both times I pinged jargon-friends." 5. n. A
quantum packet of happiness. People who are very happy tend to exude
pings; furthermore, one can intentionally create pings and aim them at a
needy party (e.g., a depressed person). This sense of ping may appear as
an exclamation; "Ping!" (I'm happy; I am emitting a quantum of
happiness; I have been struck by a quantum of happiness). The form
"pingfulness", which is used to describe people who exude pings, also
occurs. (In the standard abuse of language, "pingfulness" can also be
used as an exclamation, in which case it's a much stronger exclamation
than just "ping"!). Oppose blargh
The funniest use of `ping' to date was described in January 1991 by
Steve Hayman on the Usenet group comp.sys.next. He was trying to isolate
a faulty cable segment on a TCP/IP Ethernet hooked up to a NeXT machine,
and got tired of having to run back to his console after each cabling
tweak to see if the ping packets were getting through. So he used the
sound-recording feature on the NeXT, then wrote a script that repeatedly
invoked `ping(8)', listened for an echo, and played back the recording
on each returned packet. Result? A program that caused the machine to
repeat, over and over, "Ping ... ping ... ping ..." as long as the
network was up. He turned the volume to maximum, ferreted through the
building with one ear cocked, and found a faulty tee connector in no
time.
Jargon File Version 4.3.1, 29 JUN 2001 =
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