From: "Damian Yerrick" <web DOT poison AT pineight DOT 8m DOT com>
Newsgroups: comp.os.msdos.djgpp
Subject: Re: off topic: what is foo?
Date: Fri, 1 Oct 1999 13:15:32 -0500
Organization: Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
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<chongkong AT my-deja DOT com> wrote in message news:7t2er4$uoq$1 AT nnrp1 DOT deja DOT com...
> can anyone explain to me just why is so many sample code uses foo as a
> variable or function name?

1. It has nothing to do with the rock band Foo Fighters.
http://www.foofighters.com/
2. foo, bar, etc. are common metasyntactic variables used in
programming examples.
3. foo and bar are commonly thought to derive from the military
acronym FUBAR (fouled up beyond all recognition/repair).
4. For more information, look at the Jargon File.
http://www.ude.org/jargon/jargon.html#metasyntactic%20variable


Damian Yerrick
http://come.to/yerrick