17 lines
2.9 KiB
HTML
17 lines
2.9 KiB
HTML
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1" standalone="no"?>
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<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><title>Big Red Switch</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="../../jargon.css" type="text/css"/><meta name="generator" content="DocBook XSL Stylesheets V1.61.0"/><link rel="home" href="../index.html" title="The Jargon File"/><link rel="up" href="../B.html" title="B"/><link rel="previous" href="big-iron.html" title="big iron"/><link rel="next" href="Big-Room.html" title="Big Room"/></head><body><div class="navheader"><table width="100%" summary="Navigation header"><tr><th colspan="3" align="center">Big Red Switch</th></tr><tr><td width="20%" align="left"><a accesskey="p" href="big-iron.html">Prev</a> </td><th width="60%" align="center">B</th><td width="20%" align="right"> <a accesskey="n" href="Big-Room.html">Next</a></td></tr></table><hr/></div><dt><a id="Big-Red-Switch"/><dt xmlns="" id="Big-Red-Switch"><b>Big Red Switch</b>: <span xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" class="grammar">n.</span></dt></dt><dd><p> [IBM] The power switch on a computer, esp. the ‘Emergency
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Pull’ switch on an IBM <a href="../M/mainframe.html"><i class="glossterm">mainframe</i></a> or the power
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switch on an IBM PC where it really is large and red. “<span class="quote">This !@%$%
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<a href="bitty-box.html"><i class="glossterm">bitty box</i></a> is hung again; time to hit the Big Red
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Switch.</span>” Sources at IBM report that, in tune with the company's
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passion for <a href="../T/TLA.html"><i class="glossterm">TLA</i></a>s, this is often abbreviated as
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<span class="firstterm">BRS</span> (this has also become established
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on FidoNet and in the PC <a href="../C/clone.html"><i class="glossterm">clone</i></a> world). It is
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alleged that the emergency pull switch on an IBM 360/91 actually fired a
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non-conducting bolt into the main power feed; the BRSes on more recent
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mainframes physically drop a block into place so that they can't be pushed
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back in. People get fired for pulling them, especially inappropriately
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(see also <a href="../M/molly-guard.html"><i class="glossterm">molly-guard</i></a>). Compare <a href="../P/power-cycle.html"><i class="glossterm">power
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cycle</i></a>, <a href="../T/three-finger-salute.html"><i class="glossterm">three-finger salute</i></a>; see also
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<a href="../S/scram-switch.html"><i class="glossterm">scram switch</i></a>.</p></dd><div class="navfooter"><hr/><table width="100%" summary="Navigation footer"><tr><td width="40%" align="left"><a accesskey="p" href="big-iron.html">Prev</a> </td><td width="20%" align="center"><a accesskey="u" href="../B.html">Up</a></td><td width="40%" align="right"> <a accesskey="n" href="Big-Room.html">Next</a></td></tr><tr><td width="40%" align="left" valign="top">big iron </td><td width="20%" align="center"><a accesskey="h" href="../index.html">Home</a></td><td width="40%" align="right" valign="top"> Big Room</td></tr></table></div></body></html>
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