black art
A collection of arcane, unpublished, and (by implication) mostly ad-hoc
techniques developed for a particular application or systems area (compare black
magic). VLSI design and compiler code optimisation were (in their beginnings)
considered classic examples of black art; as theory developed they became deep
magic, and once standard textbooks had been written, became merely heavy
wizardry. The huge proliferation of formal and informal channels for spreading
around new computer-related technologies during the last twenty years has made
both the term "black art" and what it describes less common than formerly. See
also voodoo programming.
[Jargon File]
Nearby terms:
bj « Bjarne Stroustrup « BJC4000 « black art
» black box » black-box testing » Black Data
Processing Associates
|