calcifer 
Computer
Lptputer
(For the 5 people who get this joke: psst we’re old)
Kelson
mcSlibinas@calcifer imagine this: live so long to understand the joke and hearing the joke for the first time.
Oblomov@mcSlibinas @calcifer I wonder if there are greybeards who are old enough to get the joke, but don't get it because they never used DOS, only other operating systems.
M-A.Delsuc@oblomov @mcSlibinas @calcifer
I am !
never used DOS and barely Windows actually.
Even though, got my hand first on PDP-11 running RTX-11M (in 1978), got my personal ZX81 (in 1981!) were I wrote my first Fourier transform algo, Used RTX-11M, CP/M, Apple ][, Adakos (Bruker), VMS, CTSS (Cray), Unix (many flavors), Unice, Basic, Forth, Linux, MacOs 6 to 10, Android, e/os (in chronological order)... but no DOS ever.
@ma_delsuc @mcSlibinas @calcifer
oh wow. So, do you want the joke explained? 8-D
@ma_delsuc @mcSlibinas @calcifer
well, comp was a DOS command, but the joke is that COM[1-9] was the designator for the serial ports, and LPT[1-9] the one for parallel ports (the list of such reserved names also includes CON, AUX, PRN, NUL). They are basically the equivalent of the /dev/* stuff in Unix and similar systems, but they were first introduced in DOS when it didn't even have the concept of a directory so they're in the global namespace for files.
@ma_delsuc @mcSlibinas @calcifer
Fun fact: because of backwards compatibility the names are reserved in Windows too.
Tim ChaseBonus fun fact: because IIS can still use path-traversal for finding scripts you can encounter pages at microsoft-dot-com where swapping a directory in the path component for garbage will give you a 404, but swapping it for one of those reserved names will give you a 5xx error. So if
microsoft.com/path/to/location
has problems, using
microsoft.com/path/asdfasdf/location
will 404, but using
microsoft.com/path/lpt1/location
will give a 5xx error. 😆 (I usually use NUL when testing, but there are also CLOCK$, AUX, PRN as well)
@oblomov @mcSlibinas @calcifer
I forgot one - the batch OS from the old IBM mainframe, with "control card" - what's its name... God I hated that one !
I forgot one - the batch OS from the old IBM mainframe, with "control card" - what's its name... God I hated that one !
Bill@ma_delsuc @oblomov @mcSlibinas @calcifer
Are you thinking ofJCL? Officially Job Creation Language, but frequently called Job Creation Language.
🇺🇦 haxadecimal 🚫👑@oblomov @mcSlibinas @calcifer
I didn't get it until you mentioned DOS.
I've used PC-DOS/MS-DOS some, all the way back to August 12, 1981, the day the IBM PC was introduced, and my boss bought one that day.
But the vast majority of my experience is with DEC operating systems, and UNIX and UNIX-like systems (including Linux).
PC-DOS and MS-DOS aren't even the operating systems that first come to my mind when I just see "DOS". I'm more likely to think of Apple DOS, or even IBM mainframe DOS.
I didn't get it until you mentioned DOS.
I've used PC-DOS/MS-DOS some, all the way back to August 12, 1981, the day the IBM PC was introduced, and my boss bought one that day.
But the vast majority of my experience is with DEC operating systems, and UNIX and UNIX-like systems (including Linux).
PC-DOS and MS-DOS aren't even the operating systems that first come to my mind when I just see "DOS". I'm more likely to think of Apple DOS, or even IBM mainframe DOS.
Zilahu
Josh Dinsdale@calcifer ps2puter? Irdaputer??
randomized@calcifer
I hate you
I hate you
Elric
chfkch 
Hubert Figuière@calcifer the modern version is usbputer.
Andreas Mathe
Ozzelot 
mirabilos@mirabilos Alter, bitte. Du hast es verstanden, also bist du alt. Akzeptiere das.
YourName
Jon (Snarf) Mason