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Funny Messages in OSS

by Anonymous Monk
on Aug 02, 2003 at 04:20 UTC ( [id://280216]=perlmeditation: print w/replies, xml ) Need Help??

I was reading through the mod_perl tests today looking for the source of a rather strange message, when I found this:

unless (simple_fetch "/test.html") { if ($^O eq "solaris" and $Config{myhostname} eq "ramona") { print "go hang in the chill room $ENV{USER}, ramona is doggin. +.."; } else { print "still waiting for server to warm up..."; }

Rather unexpected, but I got a good laugh out of it. Anyone else found similar strange messages in Perl-related (or other) software?

Replies are listed 'Best First'.
Re: Funny Messages in OSS
by Zaxo (Archbishop) on Aug 02, 2003 at 05:09 UTC

    Linux may tell you "The printer is on fire"

    After Compline,
    Zaxo

        We actually still have one of those drum printers at my office!! We keep it for the rare report from the mainframe. Welp, If it's on fire, I'll know! :)

        mhoward - at - hattmoward.org
Re: Funny Messages in OSS
by Aristotle (Chancellor) on Aug 02, 2003 at 21:13 UTC
Re: Funny Messages in OSS
by CountZero (Bishop) on Aug 02, 2003 at 14:46 UTC

    In the old MSDOS-days if you booted the computer with the keyboard disconnected, the OS said : "Keyboard missing or broken; press any key to continue.".

    CountZero

    "If you have four groups working on a compiler, you'll get a 4-pass compiler." - Conway's Law

      That was the BIOS: Keyboard not found. Press F1 to continue.

      Makeshifts last the longest.

        But that was actually usefull. I see it as an abbreviation - you need to connect the keyboard and then press F1.
Re: Funny Messages in OSS
by Anonymous Monk on Aug 02, 2003 at 11:30 UTC

    Another point that should be explored here is should these messages exist? Does it damage a project's reputation to have these messages? Does it decrease it's usefulness? Or is it all just in good fun?

    I've seen a lot of strange parts to documentation as well, for example in A Linux Kernel HOWTO document listed as reasons to compile a kernel are:

    • It is an International Law (the U.N. laws) - "You cannot use a computer WITHOUT compiling the OS kernel with your own hands". If you disobey this law you will be "punished" with lot of computer problems!! You must compile the kernel with your own hands and not rely on someone else to do it for you!!
    • It is Illegal, Unlawful, Felony and Fraud to use a computer without compiling the OS Kernel with your VERY OWN hands! There is a 6 months imprionment and US$50,000 fine if you use a computer without compiling the the OS Kernel source code. Some states/countries have stringent laws which prohibit using any computer without compiling the kernel source code.
    • In USA, all the corporations mandate compilation of OS kernel before using the computer and hence there is Linux, Linux & Linux everywhere in United States!

    I personally think that's taking it a bit overboard, but then again, they spent the time to write the HOWTO, I didn't.

    Opinions?

      I see it as a geekier form of easter eggs. To my knowledge, easter eggs have done no harm to the products they were found it. So…

      Makeshifts last the longest.

        How do you know they've done no harm? I'm sure there have been examples (probably rare) where they've caused security or stability issues. At best they add bloat (think certain programs with embedded flight simulators) and confuse the user with meaningless error messages.

Re: Funny Messages in OSS
by LazerRed (Pilgrim) on Aug 02, 2003 at 15:59 UTC
    I believe creative people desire to "mark" their creations, making them more personal. That, and geeks generally have a wierd sense of humor. Take Molecular Expressions website as an example.

    Whip me, Beat me, Make me use Y-ModemG.
Re: Funny Messages in OSS
by MrNobo1024 (Hermit) on Aug 02, 2003 at 22:26 UTC
    In Unix edition 5 or 6 when you tried to use "mv" on a directory ending with a dot it would print out the message
    values of β will give rise to dom!
    
    Dennis Ritchie has an explanation at http://cm.bell-labs.com/cm/cs/who/dmr/odd.html. Unfortunately it was removed in version 7 and dosen't seem to be in any modern unixes.
Re: Funny Messages in OSS
by diotalevi (Canon) on Aug 02, 2003 at 16:39 UTC

    While not open source software, I did once include a random Haiku printing easter egg into an e-mail response system. I forgot the required URL parameters and can't trigger it anymore :-(.

Re: Funny Messages in OSS
by halley (Prior) on Aug 04, 2003 at 15:35 UTC

    I don't want to sound like a spoil-sport, but I personally find glib messages and comments to be a major waste of time. People who are not familiar with the particular flavor of idiom used (American or British or French or whatever) often hit these messages with a surprising amount of disorientation and confusion.

    (I'm not casting the same ill sentiments on well-hidden "easter eggs", but on the bulk of the application itself. Easter eggs are fun if kept out of the beaten path.)

    Messages should use consistent terminology, backed by any documentation. Grammar should be simple and easy for the unfamiliar to understand. Use of group or cultural idioms should be minimized. Plays on words require explanations or are ignored with a shrug.

    Visual puns are annoying as well. A button on an IDE has a pine tree. A related button has a pine tree and a saw. You're supposed to realize that these mean, "Save the environment" and "Manage the environment." More than one game has been clever with an animal's footprint to "paws" the action. Try to translate that to Italian or Japanese.

    One IRC-related Perl module I've used has tons of useless IRC chat transcripts, witticisms and "inside jokes." All junk. At least the actual diagnostics and logic were fairly clean.

    A more extreme example I saw was a chemistry suite in FORTRAN where in the margin columns 73-131 of each "card" or source code line was written a fantasy story inspired by Lord of the Rings. Users had to remember that CASTLE.EXE did this and DRAGON.EXE did that. Of course, fixing or reorganizing broken logic meant tearing the tapestry of the story, and so many bugs were left alone in deference to the irrelevant artistry.

    While I hope that developers have fun doing what they do for a living, I also hope they show respect for their users and maintainers.

    --
    [ e d @ h a l l e y . c c ]

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