2014-04-26 10:52:28 -04:00
|
|
|
alt
|
|
|
|
|
|
2014-04-26 11:54:15 -04:00
|
|
|
/awlt/ 1. n. The alt shift key on an IBM PC or clone keyboard; see bucky
|
|
|
|
|
bits , sense 2 (though typical PC usage does not simply set the 0200 bit).
|
|
|
|
|
2. n. The option key on a Macintosh; use of this term usually reveals that
|
|
|
|
|
the speaker hacked PCs before coming to the Mac (see also feature key ,
|
|
|
|
|
which is sometimes incorrectly called alt ). 3. The alt hierarchy on Usenet,
|
|
|
|
|
the tree of newsgroups created by users without a formal vote and approval
|
|
|
|
|
procedure. There is a myth, not entirely implausible, that alt is acronymic
|
|
|
|
|
for anarchists, lunatics, and terrorists ; but in fact it is simply short
|
|
|
|
|
for alternative. 4. n.,obs. Rare alternate name for the ASCII ESC character
|
|
|
|
|
(ASCII 0011011). This use, derives, with the alt key itself, from archaic
|
|
|
|
|
PDP-10 operating systems, especially ITS.
|
|
|
|
|
|
