THE WHATIS.COM WORD-OF-THE-DAY July 25, 2003 kludge
________________ SPONSORED BY: Microsoft The Quick Guide to Windows Server 2003. Get the latest information on installation, new features and training. Click here! http://WhatIs.com/r/0,,16216,00.htm?microsoft ________________ TODAY'S WORD: kludge See our complete definition with hyperlinks at http://searchcio.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid19_gci212446,00.html In information technology, a kludge (pronounced KLOOdzh) is an awkward or clumsy (but at least temporarily effective) solution to a programming or hardware design or implementation problem. According to Eric Raymond, the term is indirectly derived from the German klug meaning clever. Raymond considers "kludge" an incorrect spelling of kluge, a term of the 1940s with the same general meaning and possibly inspired by the Kluge paper feeder, a "fiendishly complex assortment of cams, belts, and linkages...devilishly difficult to repair...but oh, so clever!" A kludge originates because another, more elegant or appropriate solution is not currently possible (perhaps because of time constraints). Hardware and software products are sometimes the result of adding a new and basically incompatible design to the original design rather than redesigning the product completely. What is a kludge can be a matter of opinion. Users often have a different opinion than the designers, who understand the problems that had to be overcome. To the extent that information technology products are combinations of elements originating from a variety of design philosophies and constraints, almost any product is bound to contain some element of kludginess. A kludge could be considered a type of workaround. ______________________ RELATED TERMS: workaround http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/0,,sid9_gci868091,00.html ______________________ TODAY'S TECH NEWS: REDMOND'S RESTRUCTURING DRAWS PRAISE News that Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer will appoint executives to independently oversee the finances of the company's business units was well received by customers and analysts. http://searchwin2000.techtarget.com/originalContent/0,289142,sid1_gci916068,00.html EMC ENTERS THE CAPACITY-ON-DEMAND FRAY EMC has taken a new tack toward on-demand storage. The company is offering an automated billing system that tracks storage usage of every component in a customer's SAN and allows new components to be activated and billed for instantaneously. http://searchstorage.techtarget.com/originalContent/0,289142,sid5_gci916018,00.html USERS WANT TO CAN SPAM WITH NATIONAL REGISTRY A new study shows that people want the government to deal with spam the same way it's dealing with annoying telemarketing calls. http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/originalContent/0,289142,sid14_gci916077,00.html >> Catch up on all the latest IT news at http://searchtechtarget.techtarget.com/ ______________________ Information Kit | Linux, Unix, and all the little ixes Get up to speed quickly, and be the Linux/Unix Know-IT-All at your office. http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/0,,sid9_gci915803,00.html ______________________ Secret Word-of-the-Day | What is it? This is a basic Internet program that lets you verify that a particular IP address exists and can accept requests. >> Think you know the secret word? Click here to find out. http://searchnetworking.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid7_gci214297,00.html _____________________ Quiz #5 | General IT terms Do you know how the Internet works? Take this week's quiz and find out! >> Click to take the quiz http://searchnetworking.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid7_gci553879,00.html ______________________________ RECENT ADDITIONS AND UPDATES [1] Direct-to-Edit http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/0,,sid9_gci915303,00.html [2] assistive technology http://searchcio.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid19_gci914775,00.html [3] FireWire http://searchnetworking.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid7_gci212126,00.html [4] cache cramming http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid14_gci914394,00.html [5] Government Information Awareness http://searchcio.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid19_gci914344,00.html ____________________________________________________________________ ::::::::::::::::::: WHATIS.COM CONTACTS ::::::::::::::::::: LOWELL THING, Site Editor ([EMAIL PROTECTED]) ____________________________________________________________________ MARGARET ROUSE, Associate Editor ([EMAIL PROTECTED]) ::::::::::::::::::::: ABOUT THIS NEWSLETTER :::::::::::::::::::::: This newsletter is published by TechTarget, the most targeted IT media. http://www.techtarget.com Copyright 2003 TechTarget. All rights reserved. Unsubscribe from 'Word of the Day' - Simply Reply to this E-mail with REMOVE within the Body or Subject > or - Go to: http://WhatIs.techtarget.com/register - Log in to edit your profile. - Click on the link to Edit email subscriptions. - Uncheck the box next to the newsletter you wish to unsubscribe from. - When finished, click "Save Changes to My Profile."
