Buzz
This list delves into the origins of ten terms related to computing. The entries here aren’t purely focused on etymology, but rather attempt to trace the words back to their creators or their first appearances in the world of technology. I've selected terms that are widely recognized, mixing both technical jargon and more casual expressions. If you feel there are any I’ve missed or if I’ve made any errors, feel free to share your thoughts in the comments! Without further ado, here are the stories behind ten computer-related terms, listed in no particular order.
10. Cookies
I’ve chosen this term first because its origins are somewhat unclear. Let’s first talk about HTTP cookies. Cookies are used to store a user’s information and pass it between a website and a browser. This can be for authenticating a user, easing access to password-protected sites, or saving user preferences. The reason it’s called a ‘cookie’ seems to come from comparing it to fortune cookies — the sweet treat often found in Chinese take-out that holds a small slip of paper with a fortune inside. Early internet developers likely saw the similarity between a program storing information within its code and the way fortunes are stored inside cookies. Incidentally, the cookies shown here are bacon and chocolate chip cookies drizzled with maple glaze [recipe].
9. Hotmail/Google
I’ve decided to group these together, as they’re not strictly computer terms but rather the names of companies, though certainly in the tech world. Remember Hotmail? It was one of the earliest widely used email services, and the name was chosen by co-founder Sabeer Bhatia. When he was brainstorming names for his new service, he landed on Hotmail because it included the letters HTML, which is a fundamental language used to create web pages. In fact, the name was originally stylized as “HoTMaiL” to emphasize the reference to HTML for those who might have missed it at first.
The origin of Google’s name isn’t too surprising. It was meant as a boast about the vast amount of information the new search engine could index and present. Google is a misspelling of the word “googol,” which refers to the number represented by a 1 followed by 100 zeros. When you think about the engine’s original name, “Backrub,” Google definitely seems like the superior choice.
Speaking of Google – if you have a Google+ account, feel free to add Mytour (via Jamie Frater until business accounts are launched) to one of your circles – we always re-circle those who add us. If you don’t have an account and want one, you can go here to get a free invite. There are only 100 left so get in quick.
8. Bug
This is likely the most famous term, thanks to its fascinating origin. While Grace Hopper, a trailblazer in computer programming, was working on the Harvard Mark II, she traced a malfunction to an actual moth stuck in a relay. The very moth she discovered is still displayed at the Smithsonian Museum. While some may rush to point out that the word “bug” wasn’t first used in this context, as Thomas Edison, for instance, used the term in his notebooks, we credit Admiral Hopper for bringing the term into the realm of computing as we know it today.
7. Bit
A bit is a fundamental unit of computing. When the first computer languages were being developed, binary emerged as the most straightforward and efficient system to control computers. A bit is essentially a shortened form of the words “binary digit.” The same reasoning applies to the word “byte,” which represents multiple units of data, typically eight. However, since “byte” is derived from “bit,” it seemed appropriate to give the spotlight to the bit itself in this list.
6. Wiki
If you're familiar with the concept of a wiki, it refers to a collection of interconnected sites built through user contributions. Wikipedia, Encyclopedia Dramatica, and Metapedia are prime examples of the “wiki” model. The name comes from the Hawaiian phrase “wiki wiki,” which means “quick.” Creator Ward Cunningham chose this name for an online platform that would provide a fast and easy way to access and modify multiple sites and pieces of information.
5. Ping
Pings became notorious as a popular tool for hacker groups (or “hacktivists,” depending on your perspective) like Anonymous, often used in DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks. Originally, though, they were a simple way to test whether a host or IP address was reachable by sending a message and measuring the time it took for a response to return. For our more astute readers, this might sound similar to sonar, with the word “ping” mimicking the sound of a sonar system in action. In fact, this was the inspiration behind the term, as creator Mike Muuss designed the ping for this exact purpose. True to form for computer terminology, a backronym was suggested: “Packet InterNet Groper,” though, as with many such acronyms, it felt a bit contrived.
4. Firewall
A firewall is a security measure designed to protect networks from unauthorized access or interference. In the real world, firewalls are physical structures built to stop fires or other destructive forces from spreading. In computing, their job is much the same: instead of stopping fires, they block harmful elements like viruses, hackers, and worms (which are similar to viruses but can spread much faster because they don't need to attach to existing data). The analogy to fire is fitting, as both firewalls and real-life fire barriers serve to contain and prevent damage to their respective networks.
3. Troll
While the origin of the word may seem fairly simple, its evolution is more nuanced than just linking the internet’s “ugly, annoying monsters” to the trollish figures in Norse mythology. While that connection certainly plays a role, more crucially, the verb “to troll” refers to a fishing method in which bait is slowly dragged behind a boat to catch unsuspecting fish. This mirrors the behavior of an internet troll, who lures others into reacting to provocative or offensive comments. The resemblance to the troll from “The Three Billy Goats Gruff” is also worth noting, as both types of trolls take over public space for their own amusement, much like the bridge troll claimed ownership over the passage in the story.
However, internet trolling wasn’t always seen in a negative light. As noted on Wikipedia, the word’s roots likely trace back to the phrase “trolling for newbies,” which became popular in the early 1990s on the Usenet group alt.folklore.urban (AFU). In this community, experienced users would throw out an inside joke or worn-out topic, and newcomers, unaware of the context, would respond seriously. The newcomers were then revealed as “n00bs,” or newbies, a term more familiar in today’s internet culture. These light-hearted “noob hunts” were more playful than harmful, and nowhere near the malicious trolling we encounter today.
2. Spam
Spam is awful, both in its digital form and as the rubbery pink meat. But surprisingly, these two types of spam have more in common than one might think. The computer variety actually gets its name from a Monty Python sketch set in a café where the entire menu is based on Spam. As is typical in Monty Python fashion, the sketch features a chorus of Vikings singing almost exclusively the word “spam,” thus “spamming” the dialogue. Although the sketch commented on the overabundance of canned meats in the US during a period of agricultural recovery, the term found its way into the digital world to describe the excessive and unwanted influx of emails or advertisements. In the 1980s, online ad companies tried to reframe the term as “Sales Promotion And Marketing,” but as we know, the Monty Python-inspired definition stuck.
1. Virus
A computer virus functions much like a biological virus. Both inject foreign code into normally operating systems, causing disruptions and multiplying themselves. The term ‘virus’ was first academically used in 1984 by Fred Cohen in his paper “Experiments with Computer Viruses.” However, the word had been used earlier by science fiction writer David Gerrold in the 1970s, where a computer program called VIRUS infiltrates a computer and is eventually vanquished by a program named ANTIBODY (no one claimed Gerrold was a master of sci-fi writing). The term also made an appearance in a 1982 X-Men comic.
