2014-04-26 10:52:28 -04:00
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out-of-band
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2014-04-26 11:54:15 -04:00
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adj. [from telecommunications and network theory] 1. In software, describes
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values of a function which are not in its natural range of return values,
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but are rather signals that some kind of exception has occurred. Many C
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functions, for example, return a nonnegative integral value, but indicate
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failure with an out-of-band return value of 1. Compare hidden flag , green
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bytes , fence. 2. Also sometimes used to describe what communications people
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call shift characters , such as the ESC that leads control sequences for
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many terminals, or the level shift indicators in the old 5-bit Baudot codes.
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3. In personal communication, using methods other than email, such as
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telephones or snail-mail.
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