1. Executable code, especially a "pure code" portion shared
	between multiple instances of a program running in a
	{multitasking} {operating system}.

	Compare {English}.

	2. Textual material in the mainstream sense; data in ordinary
	{ASCII} or {EBCDIC} representation (see {flat ASCII}).  "Those
	are text files; you can review them using the editor."

	These two contradictory senses confuse hackers too.

	[{Jargon File}]

	(1995-03-16)

<networking> {ATM}'s term for a {packet}.

	(1996-08-21)

<spelling> American spelling of {colour}.

	(1996-12-13)

1. <operating system> A task running in the background (a
	background task) is detached from the terminal where it was
	started (and often running at a lower priority); opposite of
	{foreground}.  This means that the task's input and output
	must be from/to files (or other processes).

	Nowadays this term is primarily associated with {Unix}, but it
	appears to have been first used in this sense on {OS/360}.

	Compare {amp off}, {batch}, {slopsucker}.

	2. <jargon> For a human to do a task "in the background" is to
	do it whenever {foreground} matters are not claiming your
	undivided attention, and "to background" something means to
	relegate it to a lower priority.  "For now, we'll just print a
	list of nodes and links; I'm working on the graph-printing
	problem in the background."  Note that this implies ongoing
	activity but at a reduced level or in spare time, in contrast
	to mainstream "back burner" (which connotes benign neglect
	until some future resumption of activity).  Some people prefer
	to use the term for processing that they have queued up for
	their unconscious minds (often a fruitful tack to take upon
	encountering an obstacle in creative work).

	(1996-05-28)

(Unix) On a {time-sharing} system, a task executing in
	foreground is one able to accept input from and return output
	to the user in contrast to one running in the {background}.
	Nowadays this term is primarily associated with {Unix}, but it
	appears first to have been used in this sense on {OS/360}.
	Normally, there is only one foreground task per terminal (or
	terminal window).  Having multiple processes simultaneously
	reading the keyboard is confusing.

	[{Jargon File}]

	(1994-10-24)

1. <programming> An {address}, from the point of view of a
	programming language.  A pointer may be typed, with its {type}
	indicating the type of data to which it points.

	The terms "pointer" and "reference" are generally
	interchangable although particular programming languages often
	differentiate these two in subtle ways.  For example, {Perl}
	always calls them references, never pointers.  Conversely, in
	C, "pointer" is used, although "a reference" is often used to
	denote the concept that a pointer implements.

	{Anthony Hoare} once said:

	Pointers are like jumps, leading wildly from one part of the
	data structure to another.  Their introduction into high-level
	languages has been a step backward from which we may never
	recover.

	[C.A.R.Hoare "Hints on Programming Language Design", 1973,
	Prentice-Hall collection of essays and papers by Tony Hoare].

	2. <operating system> (Or "mouse pointer") An {icon}, usually
	a small arrow, that moves on the screen in response to
	movement of a {pointing device}, typically a {mouse}.  The
	pointer shows the user which object on the screen will be
	selected etc. when a mouse button is clicked.

	(1999-07-07)

<programming> An {object} adhering to a {component
	architecture}.

	(1997-11-20)