bang
1. A common spoken name for "!" (ASCII 33), especially when used in pronouncing
a bang path in spoken hackish. In elder days this was considered a CMUish usage,
with MIT and Stanford hackers preferring excl or shriek; but the spread of Unix
has carried "bang" with it (especially via the term bang path) and it is now
certainly the most common spoken name for "!". Note that it is used exclusively
for non-emphatic written "!"; one would not say "Congratulations bang" (except
possibly for humorous purposes), but if one wanted to specify the exact
characters "foo!" one would speak "Eff oh oh bang".
See pling, shriek, ASCII.
2. An exclamation signifying roughly "I have achieved enlightenment!", or "The
dynamite has cleared out my brain!" Often used to acknowledge that one has
perpetrated a thinko immediately after one has been called on it.
[Jargon File]
(1995-01-31)
Nearby terms:
banana label « banana problem « bandwidth « bang
» bang on » bang path » banner
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