sanjiva@sbcs.sunysb.edu (Sanjiva Prasad) (04/09/90)
Hi,
Some time ago Richard O'Keefe had asked some questions about the
first usages of certain commonly used terms. I think it is
worthwhile to compile a "computer science jargon vocabulary/lexicon",
complete with references to when and where a term was first
used, in what context, and who coined it. If any word maven
knows of such a compilation having been undertaken before,
please send me a reference. I also have some questions...
1) COMPILER: when was this term first used? What were the reasons
for choosing this name, if any?
2) INTERPRETER: same questions as above. Was the choice of this term
solely because of the anthropomorphic imagery of
an agent who interactively translates a conversation
between two participants, or was there some
deeper connection with "interpretation" in the
model theory sense?
3) INSTANTIATE, ~TION: Who first used these terms? Are they
computer science inventions (OED does not
list them -- "instance" suffices as both
verb and noun)? Or did some philosophers/logicians
e.g. Logical Positivists use this term earlier?
Please reply by e-mail to: sanjiva@sbcs.sunysb.edu
Thanks.
--
Net: sanjiva@sbcs.sunysb.edu or ...!rutgers!philabs!sbcs!sanjivaphipps@garth.UUCP (Clay Phipps) (04/12/90)
In article <7509@sbcs.sunysb.edu>, sanjiva@sbcs.sunysb.edu (Sanjiva Prasad) writes: > >Some time ago Richard O'Keefe had asked some questions about >the first usages of certain commonly used terms. [...] it is worthwhile >to compile a "computer science jargon vocabulary/lexicon", There is a technical report from ANSI (1430 Broadway, NYC, NY 10018): X3/TR77: _Dictionary for Information Processing_. >complete with references to when and where a term was first used, >in what context, and who coined it. >[Was] such a compilation [...] undertaken before [?] My recollection is that X3/TR77 does not provide etymology. As a starting point, you may wish to check Jean E. Sammet: _Programming Languages: History And Fundamentals_, Prentice-Hall, 1969 (Library of Congress num. 68-28110). for references to the age of "stone knives and bearskins" for programming languages in the U.S.A. Terms differed between different native-English-speaking nations (e.g.: "coding" vs. "programming"). The book that was derived from the History of Programming Languages Conference (HOPL) in August 1978--proceedings were _SIGPLan Notices_ vol. 13 num. 8, same year & month, may not be as helpful as Sammet. Not as many years ago, someone published a multivolume _Annals of the History of Computing_. Perhaps it was ACM or IFIPS. I don't have a more exact reference. -- [The foregoing may or may not represent the position, if any, of my employer, ] [ who is identified solely to allow the reader to account for personal biases.] Clay Phipps Intergraph APD: 2400#4 Geng Road, Palo Alto, CA 94303; 415/852-2327 UseNet (Intergraph internal): ingr!apd!phipps UseNet (external): {apple,pyramid,sri-unix}!garth!phipps EcoNet: cphipps