1. Executable code, especially a "pure code" portion shared between multiple instances of a program running in a multitasking operating system .
Compare English .
2. Textual material in the mainstream sense; data in ordinary ASCII or EBCDIC representation (see flat ASCII ). "Those are text files; you can review them using the editor."
These two contradictory senses confuse hackers too.
[ Jargon File ]
(1995-03-16)