xyzzy


xyzzy

(games)The canonical "magic word" from the ADVENTadventure game, in which the idea is to explore an undergroundcave with many rooms and to collect the treasures you findthere. If you type "xyzzy" at the appropriate time, you canmove instantly between two otherwise distant points. If,therefore, you encounter some bit of magic, you might remarkon this quite succinctly by saying simply "Xyzzy!""Ordinarily you can't look at someone else's screen if he hasprotected it, but if you type quadruple-bucky-clear the systemwill let you do it anyway." "Xyzzy!" Xyzzy has actually beenimplemented as an undocumented no-op command on several OSes;in Data General's AOS/VS, for example, it would typicallyrespond "Nothing happens", just as ADVENT did if the magicwas invoked at the wrong spot or before a player had performedthe action that enabled the word. In more recent 32 bitversions, by the way, AOS/VS responds "Twice as much happens".See also plugh.

XYZZY

A magic word in the Colossal Cave Adventure game that lets you move instantly between distant places if entered at the right time. Because the game would respond with "Nothing Happens" if entered at the wrong time, the word was used as a mnemonic for a no-op (no operation) instruction in Data General's AOS operating system. It is also a popular variable name in programming. See no-op and mnemonic.