PIP

tool Peripheral Interchange Program.

A program on CP/M, RSX-11, RSTS/E, TOPS-10, and OS/8

(derived from a utility on the PDP-6) that was used for file

copying (and in OS/8 and RT-11 for just about every other file

operation you might want to do). It is said that when the

program was written, during the development of the PDP-6 in

1963, it was called ATLATL ("Anything, Lord, to Anything,

Lord"; this played on the Nahuatl word "atlatl" for a

spear-thrower, with connotations of utility and primitivity

that were no doubt quite intentional).

See also BLT, dd, cat.

[Jargon File]

(1995-03-28)