Magic String
In computer programming, a magic string is an input that a programmer believes will never come externally and which activates otherwise hidden functionality. A user of this program would likely provide input that gives an expected response in most situations. However, if the user does in fact innocently provide the pre-defined input, invoking the internal functionality, the program response is often quite unexpected to the user (thus appearing "magical"). Background Typically, the implementation of magic strings is due to time constraints. A developer must find a fast solution instead of delving more deeply into a problem and finding a better solution. For example, when testing a program that takes a user's personal details and verifies their credit card number, a developer may decide to add a magic string shortcut whereby entering the unlikely input of "***" as a credit card number would cause the program to automatically proceed as if the card were valid, without spending ti ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Computer Programming
Computer programming is the process of performing a particular computation (or more generally, accomplishing a specific computing result), usually by designing and building an executable computer program. Programming involves tasks such as analysis, generating algorithms, profiling algorithms' accuracy and resource consumption, and the implementation of algorithms (usually in a chosen programming language, commonly referred to as coding). The source code of a program is written in one or more languages that are intelligible to programmers, rather than machine code, which is directly executed by the central processing unit. The purpose of programming is to find a sequence of instructions that will automate the performance of a task (which can be as complex as an operating system) on a computer, often for solving a given problem. Proficient programming thus usually requires expertise in several different subjects, including knowledge of the application domain, specialized algori ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Vehicle Registration Plates
A vehicle registration plate, also known as a number plate (British English), license plate (American English), or licence plate (Canadian English), is a metal or plastic plate attached to a motor vehicle or trailer for official identification purposes. All countries require registration plates for road vehicles such as cars, trucks, and motorcycles. Whether they are required for other vehicles, such as bicycles, boats, or tractors, may vary by jurisdiction. The registration identifier is a numeric or alphanumeric ID that uniquely identifies the vehicle or vehicle owner within the issuing region's vehicle register. In some countries, the identifier is unique within the entire country, while in others it is unique within a state or province. Whether the identifier is associated with a vehicle or a person also varies by issuing agency. There are also electronic license plates. Legal requirements In Europe, most governments require a registration plate to be attached to b ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Canary Value
Canary originally referred to the island of Gran Canaria on the west coast of Africa, and the group of surrounding islands (the Canary Islands). It may also refer to: Animals Birds * Canaries, birds in the genera ''Serinus'' and ''Crithagra'' including, among others: ** Atlantic canary (''Serinus canaria''), a small wild bird *** Domestic canary, ''Serinus canaria domestica'', a small pet or aviary bird, also responsible for the "canary yellow" color term ** Yellow canary (''Serinus flaviventris''), a small bird Fish * Canary damsel (''Similiparma lurida''), fish of the family Pomacentridae, found in the eastern Atlantic Ocean * Canary moray (''Gymnothorax bacalladoi''), an eel of the family Muraenidae * Canary rockfish (''Sebastes pinniger''), of the family Sebastidae, found in the northeast Pacific Ocean People * Canary Burton (born 1942), American keyboardist, composer and writer * Canary Conn (born 1949), American entertainer and author * Bill Canary (fl. 1994), Republican c ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Sentinel Value
In computer programming, a sentinel value (also referred to as a flag value, trip value, rogue value, signal value, or dummy data) is a special value in the context of an algorithm which uses its presence as a condition of termination, typically in a loop or recursive algorithm. The sentinel value is a form of in-band data that makes it possible to detect the end of the data when no out-of-band data (such as an explicit size indication) is provided. The value should be selected in such a way that it is guaranteed to be distinct from all legal data values since otherwise, the presence of such values would prematurely signal the end of the data (the semipredicate problem). A sentinel value is sometimes known as an "Elephant in Cairo," due to a joke where this is used as a physical sentinel. In safe languages, most sentinel values could be replaced with option types, which enforce explicit handling of the exceptional case. Examples Some examples of common sentinel values and their us ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Time Formatting And Storage Bugs
In computer science, time formatting and storage bugs are a class of software bugs that may cause time and date calculation or display to be improperly handled. These are most commonly manifestations of arithmetic overflow, but can also be the result of other issues. The most well-known consequence of bugs of this type is the Y2K problem, but many other milestone dates or times exist that have caused or will cause problems depending on various programming deficiencies. Year 1975 On 4 January 1975, the 12-bit field that had been used for dates in the DECsystem-10 operating systems overflowed. There were numerous problems and crashes related to this bug while an alternative format was developed. Year 1978 The Digital Equipment Corporation OS/8 operating system for the PDP-8 computer used only three bits for the year, representing the years 1970 to 1977. This was recognized when the later COS-310 operating system was developed, and dates were recorded differently. Year 1989 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Magic Number (programming)
In computer programming, a magic number is any of the following: * A unique value with unexplained meaning or multiple occurrences which could (preferably) be replaced with a named constant * A constant numerical or text value used to identify a file format or protocol; for files, see List of file signatures * A distinctive unique value that is unlikely to be mistaken for other meanings (e.g., Globally Unique Identifiers) Unnamed numerical constants The term ''magic number'' or ''magic constant'' refers to the anti-pattern of using numbers directly in source code. This has been referred to as breaking one of the oldest rules of programming, dating back to the COBOL, FORTRAN and PL/1 manuals of the 1960s. The use of unnamed magic numbers in code obscures the developers' intent in choosing that number, increases opportunities for subtle errors (e.g. is every digit correct in 3.14159265358979323846 and is this equal to 3.14159?) and makes it more difficult for the program to be a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Wired (magazine)
''Wired'' (stylized as ''WIRED'') is a monthly American magazine, published in print and online editions, that focuses on how emerging technologies affect culture, the economy, and politics. Owned by Condé Nast, it is headquartered in San Francisco, California, and has been in publication since March/April 1993. Several spin-offs have been launched, including '' Wired UK'', ''Wired Italia'', ''Wired Japan'', and ''Wired Germany''. From its beginning, the strongest influence on the magazine's editorial outlook came from founding editor and publisher Louis Rossetto. With founding creative director John Plunkett, Rossetto in 1991 assembled a 12-page prototype, nearly all of whose ideas were realized in the magazine's first several issues. In its earliest colophons, ''Wired'' credited Canadian media theorist Marshall McLuhan as its "patron saint". ''Wired'' went on to chronicle the evolution of digital technology and its impact on society. ''Wired'' quickly became recognized ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Null Pointer
In computing, a null pointer or null reference is a value saved for indicating that the pointer or reference does not refer to a valid object. Programs routinely use null pointers to represent conditions such as the end of a list of unknown length or the failure to perform some action; this use of null pointers can be compared to nullable types and to the ''Nothing'' value in an option type. A null pointer should not be confused with an uninitialized pointer: a null pointer is guaranteed to compare unequal to any pointer that points to a valid object. However, depending on the language and implementation, an uninitialized pointer may not have any such guarantee. It might compare equal to other, valid pointers; or it might compare equal to null pointers. It might do both at different times; or the comparison might be undefined behaviour. C In C, two null pointers of any type are guaranteed to compare equal. The preprocessor macro NULL is defined as an implementation-defined n ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Wired (website)
''Wired'' (stylized as ''WIRED'') is a monthly American magazine, published in print and online magazine, online editions, that focuses on how emerging technologies affect culture, the economy, and politics. Owned by Condé Nast, it is headquartered in San Francisco, California, and has been in publication since March/April 1993. Several spin-offs have been launched, including ''Wired UK'', ''Wired Italia'', ''Wired Japan'', and ''Wired Germany''. From its beginning, the strongest influence on the magazine's editorial outlook came from founding editor and publisher Louis Rossetto. With founding creative director John Plunkett, Rossetto in 1991 assembled a 12-page prototype, nearly all of whose ideas were realized in the magazine's first several issues. In its earliest colophon (publishing), colophons, ''Wired'' credited Canadian media theorist Marshall McLuhan as its "patron saint". ''Wired'' went on to chronicle the evolution of digital technology and its impact on society. ' ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Hotmail
Outlook.com is a webmail service that is part of the Microsoft 365 product family. It offers mail, Calendaring software, calendaring, Address book, contacts, and Task management, tasks services. Founded in 1996 by Sabeer Bhatia and Jack Smith (Hotmail), Jack Smith as Hotmail, it was acquired by Microsoft in 1997 for an estimated $400 million and relaunched as ''MSN Hotmail'', later rebranded to ''Windows Live Hotmail'' as part of the Windows Live suite of products. Microsoft phased out Hotmail in October 2011, relaunching the service as Outlook.com in 2012. History Launch of Hotmail Hotmail service was founded by Sabeer Bhatia and Jack Smith (Hotmail), Jack Smith, and was one of the first webmail services on the Internet along with RocketMail, Four11's RocketMail (later Yahoo! Mail). It was commercially launched on July 4, 1996, symbolizing "freedom" from Internet service provider, ISP-based email and the ability to access a user's inbox from anywhere in the world. The name ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Traffic Ticket
A traffic ticket is a notice issued by a law enforcement official to a Driving, motorist or other road user, indicating that the user has violated Traffic, traffic laws. Traffic tickets generally come in two forms, citing a moving violation, such as exceeding the speed limit, or a non-moving violation, such as a parking violation, with the ticket also being referred to as a parking citation, or parking ticket. In some jurisdictions, a traffic ticket constitutes a notice that a penalty, such as a fine (penalty), fine or deduction of point system (driving), points, has been or will be assessed against the driver or owner of a vehicle; failure to pay generally leads to prosecution or to civil recovery proceedings for the fine. In others, the ticket constitutes only a citation and summons to appear at traffic court, with a determination of guilt to be made only in court. Australia In Australia, traffic laws are made at the state level, usually in their own consolidated Acts of Parli ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Easter Egg (media)
File:Carl Oswald Rostosky - Zwei Kaninchen und ein Igel 1861.jpg, 250px, An image that reveals an Easter egg when the hedgehog is clicked or tapped. Another Easter egg can be found in a tooltip when a mouse pointer is hovered over the hedgehog. rect 455 383 550 434 I am a hedgehog, NOT an egg! desc none An Easter egg is a message, image, or feature hidden in software, a video game, a film, or another, usually electronic, medium. The term used in this manner was coined around 1979 by Steve Wright, the then-Director of Software Development in the Atari Consumer Division, to describe a hidden message in the Atari video game ''Adventure'', in reference to an Easter egg hunt. The earliest known video game Easter egg is in '' Moonlander'' (1973), in which the player tries to land a Lunar module on the moon; if the player opts to fly the module horizontally through several of the game's screens, they encounter a McDonald's restaurant, and if they land next to it the astronaut will ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |