From:	apothegm AT softcom DOT net (Nathan Thompson)
Newsgroups:	comp.os.msdos.djgpp
Subject:	Re: The meaning of FOO and BAR
Date:	Tue, 23 Dec 1997 22:23:26 GMT
Reply-To:	apothegm AT softcom DOT net
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On 23 Dec 1997 20:49:48 GMT, jfn AT enteract DOT com (Jeremy Nelson) wrote:

>You might try reading the "new hacker's dictionary" (eg, the Jargon Lexicon)
>which discusses the entymology of "foo" and "bar" and hundreds of other 
>items which if you have a knowledge of will allow you to have a good working
>knowledge of most of the lingo that unix programmers use.
>
>http://www.wins.uva.nl/~mes/jargon/
>
>Jeremy
The latest official distribution of the Jargon File can also be had at
http://www.ccil.org/jargon/.  In brief, though, 'foo' and 'bar' are
used as placeholders for actual variable, function & file names.  For
example, when someone types "run zippo.exe on your file, like this:
zippo foo", the person using the hypothetical 'zippo' program would
type the actual filename instead of 'foo'.  The words 'foo' and 'bar'
come from the U.S. military's famous acronym, FUBAR ("F'd Up Beyond
All Recognition").

Nathan Thompson

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