frobnicate /frob'ni-kayt/ vt.
[Poss. derived from
frobnitz, and usually abbreviated to frob, but
`frobnicate' is recognized as the official full form.] To
manipulate or adjust, to tweak. One frequently frobs bits or other
2-state devices. Thus: "Please frob the light switch" (that is,
flip it), but also "Stop frobbing that clasp; you'll break it".
One also sees the construction `to frob a frob'. See tweak
and twiddle.
Usage: frob, twiddle, and tweak sometimes connote points along a
continuum. `Frob' connotes aimless manipulation; `twiddle'
connotes gross manipulation, often a coarse search for a proper
setting; `tweak' connotes fine-tuning. If someone is turning a
knob on an oscilloscope, then if he's carefully adjusting it, he is
probably tweaking it; if he is just turning it but looking at the
screen, he is probably twiddling it; but if he's just doing it
because turning a knob is fun, he's frobbing it. The variant
`frobnosticate' has been recently reported.
[Poss. derived from
frobnitz, and usually abbreviated to frob, but
`frobnicate' is recognized as the official full form.] To
manipulate or adjust, to tweak. One frequently frobs bits or other
2-state devices. Thus: "Please frob the light switch" (that is,
flip it), but also "Stop frobbing that clasp; you'll break it".
One also sees the construction `to frob a frob'. See tweak
and twiddle.
Usage: frob, twiddle, and tweak sometimes connote points along a
continuum. `Frob' connotes aimless manipulation; `twiddle'
connotes gross manipulation, often a coarse search for a proper
setting; `tweak' connotes fine-tuning. If someone is turning a
knob on an oscilloscope, then if he's carefully adjusting it, he is
probably tweaking it; if he is just turning it but looking at the
screen, he is probably twiddling it; but if he's just doing it
because turning a knob is fun, he's frobbing it. The variant
`frobnosticate' has been recently reported.
Related:
- frobnicate: /frob'ni-kayt/ vt. [Poss. derived from
{frobnitz},
and usually abbreviated to {frob}, but `frobnicate'... - Frobnicate, v.:
To manipulate or adjust, to tweak.
Derived from FROBNITZ. Usually abbreviated to FROB... - Frobnicate, v.:
To manipulate or adjust, to tweak.
Derived from FROBNITZ. Usually abbreviated... - diddle
1. vt. To work with or modify in a not particularly
serious manner.
"I diddled a copy of ADVENT so it didn't double... - frob /frob/ 1. n.
[MIT; very common] The TMRC
definition was "FROB = a protruding arm or trunnion";
by metaphoric extension, a `frob' is any random... - frob: /frob/ 1. n. [MIT] The {TMRC} definition was "FROB = a
protruding arm or trunnion";
by metaphoric extension, a `frob' is any random... - twiddle: n. 1. Tilde (ASCII 1111110, `~'). Also
called `squiggle',
`sqiggle' (sic --- pronounced /skig'l/), and `twaddle'... - diddle: 1. vt. To work with or modify in a not particularly
serious manner.
"I diddled a copy of {ADVENT} so it didn't double... - twiddle n.
1. Tilde (ASCII 1111110, ~). Also called
`squiggle',
`sqiggle' (sic -- pronounced /skig'l/), and `twaddle'...
