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From: mjt@adc.com (Mike J Tietel)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.shell,comp.os.linux.misc,comp.os.linux.x,alt.os.linux,comp.unix.bsd.misc,comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc,gnu.misc.discuss,comp.unix.solaris
Subject: Re: unix acronyms -collecting a list?
Date: 16 May 1997 14:25:52 GMT
Organization: ADC Telecommunications, Inc.
Lines: 31
Sender: mjt@laguna (Mike J Tietel)
Distribution: inet
Message-ID: <5lhqpg$lkj4@mercury.adc.com>
References: <5kd2ng$c8b$1@rzsun02.rrz.uni-hamburg.de> <5l37jg$87j$1@wuff.mayn.de> <5l7jvt$q8b$10@halon.vggas.com> <33776BE4.6883@ford.com> <337C64F0.41C6@cs.ucc.ie>
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In article <337C64F0.41C6@cs.ucc.ie>, lumpy <lumpy@cs.ucc.ie> writes:
>
> biff ?? Does it mean anything?
>
Grrrr...
Does anyone read the FAQs anymore???
Excerpt from the "UNIX - FAQ" at
http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/hypertext/faq/usenet/unix-faq
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biff = "BIFF"
This command, which turns on asynchronous mail notification,
was actually named after a dog at Berkeley.
I can confirm the origin of biff, if you're interested.
Biff was Heidi Stettner's dog, back when Heidi (and I, and
Bill Joy) were all grad students at U.C. Berkeley and the
early versions of BSD were being developed. Biff was
popular among the residents of Evans Hall, and was known
for barking at the mailman, hence the name of the command.
Confirmation courtesy of Eric Cooper, Carnegie Mellon University
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--
mike_tietel@adc.com