dike

To remove or disable a portion of something, as a wire from a

computer or a subroutine from a program. A standard slogan is

"When in doubt, dike it out". (The implication is that it is

usually more effective to attack software problems by reducing

complexity than by increasing it.) The word "dikes" is widely

used among mechanics and engineers to mean "diagonal cutters",

especially the heavy-duty metal-cutting version, but may also

refer to a kind of wire-cutters used by electronics

technicians. To "dike something out" means to use such

cutters to remove something. Indeed, the TMRC Dictionary

defined dike as "to attack with dikes". Among hackers this

term has been metaphorically extended to informational objects

such as sections of code.

[Jargon File]