Blinkenlights
Encyclopedia
Blinkenlights is a hacker's neologism for diagnostic lights on old mainframe
computers and modern network
hardware
.
The Jargon File
provides the following etymology
:
Although the sign might initially appear to be in German
and uses an approximation of German grammar
, it is composed largely of words that are either near-homonyms of English words or (in the cases of the longer words) actual English words that are rendered in a faux-German spelling. As such, the sign is generally comprehensible by many English speakers regardless of whether they have any fluency in German. Much of the humor in these signs was their intentionally incorrect language.
The sign is also reported to have been seen on an Electron microscope
at the Cavendish Laboratory
in the 1950s. Such pseudo-German parodies were common in Allied
machine shops during and following World War II
, and an example photocopy is shown in the Jargon File.
The Jargon File also mentions that German hackers have developed their own versions of the blinkenlights poster, in fractured English:
in computer processors, the traditional front-panel "blinkenlights" soon became useless for watching to monitor computations and diagnose software bugs. Still, they remain useful for indicators of power on/off status and hard-disk usage on most personal computers. There are a number of other notable later uses of blinking lights in computers, as well.
The Connection Machine
, a 65,536-processor parallel computer designed in the mid-1980s, was a black cube with one side covered with a grid of red blinkenlights; the sales demo had them evolving Conway's Game of Life
patterns.
The CPU
load monitors on the front of BeBox
es were also called “blinkenlights”.
This word gave its name to several projects, including screen savers, hardware gadgets, and other nostalgic things. Some notable enterprises include Project Blinkenlights
and the Blinkenlights Archaeological Institute
. Also, a telnet
site, called [telnet://towel.blinkenlights.nl towel.blinkenlights.nl], has an ASCIImation of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
on port 23 and a BOFH excuse server on port 666.
Mainframe computer
Mainframes are powerful computers used primarily by corporate and governmental organizations for critical applications, bulk data processing such as census, industry and consumer statistics, enterprise resource planning, and financial transaction processing.The term originally referred to the...
computers and modern network
Computer network
A computer network, often simply referred to as a network, is a collection of hardware components and computers interconnected by communication channels that allow sharing of resources and information....
hardware
Hardware
Hardware is a general term for equipment such as keys, locks, hinges, latches, handles, wire, chains, plumbing supplies, tools, utensils, cutlery and machine parts. Household hardware is typically sold in hardware stores....
.
The Jargon File
Jargon File
The Jargon File is a glossary of computer programmer slang. The original Jargon File was a collection of terms from technical cultures such as the MIT AI Lab, the Stanford AI Lab and others of the old ARPANET AI/LISP/PDP-10 communities, including Bolt, Beranek and Newman, Carnegie Mellon...
provides the following etymology
Etymology
Etymology is the study of the history of words, their origins, and how their form and meaning have changed over time.For languages with a long written history, etymologists make use of texts in these languages and texts about the languages to gather knowledge about how words were used during...
:
Although the sign might initially appear to be in German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
and uses an approximation of German grammar
German grammar
This page outlines the grammar of the German language.-Nouns:A German noun has one of three specific grammatical genders . Nouns are declined for case and grammatical number. All nouns are capitalized.-Genders:...
, it is composed largely of words that are either near-homonyms of English words or (in the cases of the longer words) actual English words that are rendered in a faux-German spelling. As such, the sign is generally comprehensible by many English speakers regardless of whether they have any fluency in German. Much of the humor in these signs was their intentionally incorrect language.
The sign is also reported to have been seen on an Electron microscope
Electron microscope
An electron microscope is a type of microscope that uses a beam of electrons to illuminate the specimen and produce a magnified image. Electron microscopes have a greater resolving power than a light-powered optical microscope, because electrons have wavelengths about 100,000 times shorter than...
at the Cavendish Laboratory
Cavendish Laboratory
The Cavendish Laboratory is the Department of Physics at the University of Cambridge, and is part of the university's School of Physical Sciences. It was opened in 1874 as a teaching laboratory....
in the 1950s. Such pseudo-German parodies were common in Allied
Allies
In everyday English usage, allies are people, groups, or nations that have joined together in an association for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out between them...
machine shops during and following World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and an example photocopy is shown in the Jargon File.
The Jargon File also mentions that German hackers have developed their own versions of the blinkenlights poster, in fractured English:
Actual blinkenlights
With dramatically rising CPU frequenciesClock rate
The clock rate typically refers to the frequency that a CPU is running at.For example, a crystal oscillator frequency reference typically is synonymous with a fixed sinusoidal waveform, a clock rate is that frequency reference translated by electronic circuitry into a corresponding square wave...
in computer processors, the traditional front-panel "blinkenlights" soon became useless for watching to monitor computations and diagnose software bugs. Still, they remain useful for indicators of power on/off status and hard-disk usage on most personal computers. There are a number of other notable later uses of blinking lights in computers, as well.
The Connection Machine
Connection Machine
The Connection Machine was a series of supercomputers that grew out of Danny Hillis' research in the early 1980s at MIT on alternatives to the traditional von Neumann architecture of computation...
, a 65,536-processor parallel computer designed in the mid-1980s, was a black cube with one side covered with a grid of red blinkenlights; the sales demo had them evolving Conway's Game of Life
Conway's Game of Life
The Game of Life, also known simply as Life, is a cellular automaton devised by the British mathematician John Horton Conway in 1970....
patterns.
The CPU
Central processing unit
The central processing unit is the portion of a computer system that carries out the instructions of a computer program, to perform the basic arithmetical, logical, and input/output operations of the system. The CPU plays a role somewhat analogous to the brain in the computer. The term has been in...
load monitors on the front of BeBox
BeBox
The BeBox was a short-lived dual processor personal computer, offered by Be Inc. to run the company's own operating system, BeOS. Notable aspects of the system include its CPU configuration, I/O board with "GeekPort", and "Blinkenlights" on the front bezel....
es were also called “blinkenlights”.
This word gave its name to several projects, including screen savers, hardware gadgets, and other nostalgic things. Some notable enterprises include Project Blinkenlights
Project Blinkenlights
Project Blinkenlights was a light installation in the Haus des Lehrers building at the Alexanderplatz in Berlin that transformed the building front into a giant low-resolution monochrome computer screen. The installation was created by the German Chaos Computer Club and went online on September...
and the Blinkenlights Archaeological Institute
Blinkenlights Archaeological Institute
The Blinkenlights Archaeological Institute was established in 1997 to preserve historical computing devices. Its headquarters are in Seattle, Washington, USA...
. Also, a telnet
TELNET
Telnet is a network protocol used on the Internet or local area networks to provide a bidirectional interactive text-oriented communications facility using a virtual terminal connection...
site, called [telnet://towel.blinkenlights.nl towel.blinkenlights.nl], has an ASCIImation of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, originally released as Star Wars, is a 1977 American epic space opera film, written and directed by George Lucas. It is the first of six films released in the Star Wars saga: two subsequent films complete the original trilogy, while a prequel trilogy completes the...
on port 23 and a BOFH excuse server on port 666.