hosed

2 definitions found

hosed - Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (26 May 2007) :

  hosed
  
     <jargon> A somewhat humorous variant of "down", used
     primarily by Unix hackers.  "Hosed" implies a condition
     thought to be relatively easy to reverse.  It is also widely
     used of people in the mainstream sense of "in an extremely
     unfortunate situation".  The term was popularised by fighter
     pilots refering to being hosed by machine gun fire (date?).
     Usage in hackerdom dates back to CMU in the 1970s or
     earlier.
  
     "Acronyms and Abbreviations" from UCC, Ireland (http://ucc.ie/cgi-bin/acronym)
      expands it as "Hardware
     Or Software Error Detected", though this is probably a
     back-formation.
  
     The Jargon File version 4.1.4 1999-06-17 says that it was
     probably derived from the Canadian slang "hoser" (meaning "a
     man, esp. one who works at a job that uses physical rather
     than mental skills and whose habits are slightly offensive but
     amusing").
  
     One correspondant speculates about an allusion to a hose-like
     body part.
  
     Once upon a time, a Cray that had been experiencing periodic
     difficulties crashed, and it was announced to have been hosed.
     It was discovered that the crash was due to the disconnection
     of some coolant hoses.  The problem was corrected, and users
     were then assured that everything was OK because the system
     had been rehosed.  See also dehose.
  
     See also: hose.
  
     (1999-10-28)
  

hosed - Jargon File (4.4.4, 14 Aug 2003) :

  hosed
   adj.
  
     Same as down. Used primarily by Unix hackers. Humorous: also
  implies
     a condition thought to be relatively easy to reverse. Probably
  derived
     from the Canadian slang `hoser' popularized by the Bob and Doug
     Mackenzie skits on SCTV, but this usage predated SCTV by years in
     hackerdom (it was certainly already live at CMU in the 1970s). See
     hose. It is also widely used of people in the mainstream sense of
     `in an extremely unfortunate situation'.
  
     Once upon a time, a Cray that had been experiencing periodic
     difficulties crashed, and it was announced to have been hosed. It was
     discovered that the crash was due to the disconnection of some
  coolant
     hoses. The problem was corrected, and users were then assured that
     everything was OK because the system had been rehosed. See also
     dehose.