The Daily WTF: Curious Perversions in Information Technology

Mike R · 2005-10-04 Reply Admin

The argument that the code was generated/preprocessor output/written by evil spirits etc... is preposterous. This is simply a shining example as to why you shouldn't program for job security. (It leaves a mess)

Judging by the comments, its quite effective. No one has any idea what it does, how it works, or even how to refactor it to behave in the same way it once did. I'm sure the author who wrote this gem had many episodes of epic heroism until he was called out as the hack he is.

Enric Naval · 2005-10-04 Reply Admin

Alexis de Torquemada:
Enric Naval:

See, Alexis, if you can't get the most basic things right... :)

Both results are correct (in case you didn't notice). I only decided to give emptyset the benefit of the doubt that he meant something else when he originally wrote that "5 and (1)" = 1. That is, that "bit 1" somehow refers to the number 4 (of course, typically bit 1 refers to 1 << 1, e.g. 2, but that's another story).

Anyway, it's human to err, but when someone else points out a potential mistake, and the person in question justifies it with another mistake, then it's obvious that said person has no idea what (s)he is talking about.

You're right. However, when I saw you make your small mistake, I'm afraid I couldn't resist making that easy joke :)

I believe the problem is that we are confusing these operations:

100&001=000 the bitwise AND

100+001=101 the addition operation

add(), per specification, has to implement the bitwise AND, but its name strongly suggests that it implements the arithmetic addition. The WTF here is misleading people by naming it "add" instead of "and".

I can imagine a language written like this

add() implements AND

and() implements add operation :)

substract() implements XOR

xor() implements substraction

open() creates a new object

new opens a new connection

delete closes the connection

close() destroys the object

2005-10-04 Reply Admin

Maybe its not the additions that are important here, but the execution of operator +( ) ?  I mean, what better way to make sure you operator is called exactly 8 times before indexing a table value.. I have a rich imagination, I know.  Frightning, isnt it..

Thuktun · 2005-10-04 Reply Admin

Anonymous:
This was probably (originally) machine-generated code and never meant for human maintenance.

Then the human who wrote the awful code generator is at fault.

emptyset · 2005-10-04 Reply Admin

Enric Naval:
and() implements add operation :)

no, my original intent was to have the accumulator unable to preform addition.

2005-10-04 Reply Admin

This needs to be reclassified as an "I Don't Care To Know what this does." - a DCTK. It is just that awful.

Alexis de Torquemada · 2005-10-04 Reply Admin

emptyset:
yeah, if i felt i needed to save face, i would have told you the 'and()' function preformed as stated and had little to do with bitwise 'and'.

Please forgive me for overlooking the mathematical definition of "emptysetsspecialandfunctionthatbehavesquitedifferentlythanplainoldboringbitwiseand" you in fact didn't give.

Alexis de Torquemada · 2005-10-04 Reply Admin

emptyset:
this is a great illustration of why any (human) code that uses bit manipulation can't be trusted. whenever i see code logic based on bits, i destroy it with great magnitude. abstraction is friend.

Who needs TCP/IP stacks anyway? Burn all bits!

foxyshadis · 2005-10-04 Reply Admin

Anonymous:
foxyshadis:
What is this bitmask bullshit everyone is spouting. 1+1+1+1 does not equal 7 (0x1111).

Umm... 0x1111 is not 7.. I'm going to pretend you don't know that "0x" typically means hex (where 0x1111 = 4369), and that you think it means binary. If that were the case, 0x1111 would be 15, and 0x0111 would be 7..

And who claimed 1+1+1+1 was equal to 7 anyway?

Yes, I was half-asleep when I wrote that (should have been 15, and the hex notation when I meant binary was obviously dumb), but people were claiming that 0+1+1+... was "a way to visualize a bitmask" which is just a bizarre conclusion to come to. I should have quoted one of those messages.

2005-10-05 Reply Admin

this code rocks it a machine intuprait code but means how are u it is increpted 4 times then each letter is incripted twice

brazzy · 2005-10-05 Reply Admin

Anonymous:
this code rocks it a machine intuprait code but means how are u it is increpted 4 times then each letter is incripted twice

+++ SYNTAX ERROR - REDO FROM START +++

larsrc · 2005-10-05 Reply Admin

Especially since there's also the reference just before: "all alone in the system". And I think there may be one more hidden in there.

-Lars

larsrc · 2005-10-05 Reply Admin

Anonymous:
Anonymous:
What movie is that quote from?!?! "...things...terrible things...unspeakable things..." It's driving me insane.

5 secs with google.com says Babylon 5.

Especially since the title is "All alone in the code", which is also a B5 reference.

-Lars

larsrc · 2005-10-05 Reply Admin

Anonymous:
This was probably (originally) machine-generated code and never meant for human maintenance.

I agree. In particular, I think is a simple-minded code generator that can turn symbolic constants into numerals, but not optimize them, and for some reason the index is the sum of a lot of those constants.

-Lars

emptyset · 2005-10-05 Reply Admin

Alexis de Torquemada:
emptyset:

yeah, if i felt i needed to save face, i would have told you the 'and()' function preformed as stated and had little to do with bitwise 'and'.

Please forgive me for overlooking the mathematical definition of "emptysetsspecialandfunctionthatbehavesquitedifferentlythanplainoldboringbitwiseand" you in fact didn't give.

you totally didn't understand what i was saying. yes - i'm admitting to having fuggered up the 'and' function when i first stated it. it was amusing. if richard nixon were here, it would be enough evidence for him to assert his superiority over everyone. like the libertarian he is.

by saying "if i felt i needed to save face" i assumed that would be taken to mean i had no intention to defend my knowledge of bitwise operands using some magical scheme personally designed to confuse you.

i'm dyslexic. this makes me particularly unsuited to deal with bitwise operations in code. that's all i'm saying.

2005-10-05 Reply Admin

Anonymous:
This was probably (originally) machine-generated code and never meant for human maintenance.

Hardly. Generated code is ugly, but not stupid.

If you look at the code, sysobjs is actually an array of structs, and some members are actually pointers. Then the array got flattened and the pointer arithmetics expanded to index arithmetics. The only question is, why would anyone ever write it this way?!

I think, this was written by a quite capable programmer, and he wrote it using structs, as any sane person would do. After so many "your code is sooo complicated, what do all the pointers do?" and "I've never got the hand of this linked list business, can't you use an array?"'s from his cow-orkers his patience ran out, and he transformed it to the crap you see, exclaiming: "Look, it doesn't even need large numbers like 2 anymore!!!1"

2005-10-05 Reply Admin

brazzy:
Anonymous:
this code rocks it a machine intuprait code but means how are u it is increpted 4 times then each letter is incripted twice

+++ SYNTAX ERROR - REDO FROM START +++

This is at least an out of cheese error. Possibly even of the "Reboot universe" class.

2005-10-06 Reply Admin

Not the exact wording, but its from Predator, when the girls describing what happens to men in her village when it gets hot bla bla bla.

2005-10-06 Reply Admin

you are right it is a machine generated code and it is a fake it is a cover for an amazing virus called meder-bites it is 3 words converted in to html then it is incripted eight times then each incription letter is incripted a further 4 times then converted to pnnd. the 3 words are how are you.

how do i know this you ask well it is because meder-bites is my verry oxn creation.

2005-10-06 Reply Admin

u sit their thinking u know it and u dont if u wanna know what the code is mail me if not fine but dont down load it contact me on [email protected] and no thats not my name i dont exist any moore my death certificate is on my wall next too me i cant exist i am the greatest hacker since.........mmmm.......errr........ ever

2005-10-06 Reply Admin

u die u coppied what i said anyway that was wreong coppie my new one if u wanna be a fake mail me [email protected] and no that isnt my name i dont exist cos my death certificate is next to me now

2005-10-06 Reply Admin

Anonymous:
u die u coppied what i said anyway that was wreong coppie my new one if u wanna be a fake mail me [email protected] and no that isnt my name i dont exist cos my death certificate is next to me now

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

emptyset · 2005-10-07 Reply Admin

Anonymous:
u sit their thinking u know it and u dont if u wanna know what the code is mail me if not fine but dont down load it contact me on [email protected] and no thats not my name i dont exist any moore my death certificate is on my wall next too me i cant exist i am the greatest hacker since.........mmmm.......errr........ ever

next: pool springs a leak and makes angelina jolie pout.

2005-10-07 Reply Admin

Anonymous:
u die u coppied what i said anyway that was wreong coppie my new one if u wanna be a fake mail me [email protected] and no that isnt my name i dont exist cos my death certificate is next to me now

omgwtflolkthx

Mike R · 2005-10-10 Reply Admin

Anonymous:
Anonymous:
u die u coppied what i said anyway that was wreong coppie my new one if u wanna be a fake mail me [email protected] and no that isnt my name i dont exist cos my death certificate is next to me now

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

No!!

int i = 10; while(i--) cout << "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.";

2005-10-10 Reply Admin

Hey EmptySet: when you're all doped up does the code become more or less clear?

I'm thinking it probably helps.

emptyset · 2005-10-10 Reply Admin

Anonymous:
Hey EmptySet: when you're all doped up does the code become more or less clear?

I'm thinking it probably helps.

for starters, i've not volunteered any information regarding any drug use. i have the occasionally drink and cigarette.

second, loaded questions are stupid, and make you look like you're in grade school.

third, most of my coding is done at work, and since i'm not an alcoholic, i'm not drinking while at work. i do not have a bottle of patron silver tequila in my drawer.

i can't answer your question because i've never been 'doped up'.

for future reference, here's a short list of famous people that have been 'doped up':

1. kate moss
2. george w. bush
3. stephen king

Mike R · 2005-10-10 Reply Admin

emptyset:
Anonymous:
Hey EmptySet: when you're all doped up does the code become more or less clear?

I'm thinking it probably helps.

for starters, i've not volunteered any information regarding any drug use. i have the occasionally drink and cigarette.

second, loaded questions are stupid, and make you look like you're in grade school.

third, most of my coding is done at work, and since i'm not an alcoholic, i'm not drinking while at work. i do not have a bottle of patron silver tequila in my drawer.

i can't answer your question because i've never been 'doped up'. 

for future reference, here's a short list of famous people that have been 'doped up':

1. kate moss
2. george w. bush
3. stephen king

I'm amazed at how one single offhand remark about someone's seemingly random post can perpetuate an entire belief system. To some it is now proven fact that emptyset is on something.

Though, I do have to wonder about the specificity of the alchoholic beverage [Hint to others: This is a joke]. As for the celebrity list: I have no firsthand knowledge, but it sure explains a lot.

emptyset · 2005-10-10 Reply Admin

Mike R:
I'm amazed at how one single offhand remark about someone's seemingly random post can perpetuate an entire belief system. To some it is now proven fact that emptyset is on something.

it's what i was talking about in another post somewhere.

there's some deep, cultural bullshit in america when anyone who shows off a little creativity is immediately labeled as being on drugs, and with this, some stigma gets added in there as well.

thank you, arcade machines [0]. i thank my lucky stars everyday i'm part of some nebulous generation that narrowly escaped reaganomics and the latest round of parrots that have delightful phrases like "shock and awe" and "support our troops". i don't meet many people in my age group with such retarded world-views.

often, the harshest critics of drugs are people who haven't even seen a drug in their life. it's all ignorance. i bet they're the same people who lock their doors if they see a black guy or a mexican on the side of the road as they zoom by at 70 mph in their SUV. what are parents and teachers saying to children in grade school, middle school - to create such a societal backlash towards creative thinking?

[0] WINNERS DON'T DO DRUGS

Richard Nixon · 2005-10-10 Reply Admin

emptyset:
Mike R:
I'm amazed at how one single offhand remark about someone's seemingly random post can perpetuate an entire belief system. To some it is now proven fact that emptyset is on something.

it's what i was talking about in another post somewhere.

there's some deep, cultural bullshit in america when anyone who shows off a little creativity is immediately labeled as being on drugs, and with this, some stigma gets added in there as well.

thank you, arcade machines [0]. i thank my lucky stars everyday i'm part of some nebulous generation that narrowly escaped reaganomics and the latest round of parrots that have delightful phrases like "shock and awe" and "support our troops". i don't meet many people in my age group with such retarded world-views.

often, the harshest critics of drugs are people who haven't even seen a drug in their life. it's all ignorance. i bet they're the same people who lock their doors if they see a black guy or a mexican on the side of the road as they zoom by at 70 mph in their SUV. what are parents and teachers saying to children in grade school, middle school - to create such a societal backlash towards creative thinking?

[0] WINNERS DON'T DO DRUGS

I haven't found this to be the case at all. I believe it is an overstatement to say that creativity = drug-use is an American ideal. And since we're both citing personal observations, any conclusions about whether this is or isn't a characteristic of American culture is shaky at best.

I also find your characterization of the relation between driving an SUV, having paranoid feelings about minorities in the US, and thoughts on drug use to be quite stereotypical. Just as you are chastising SUV drivers for stereotyping all minorities as being dangerous, I will chastise you for stereotyping all people who drive SUVs.

[Now, I'm going to make this statement but given the bullheaded stupidity you've demonstrated in the past, I doubt you'll listen to it. I drive a compact car. It gets pretty good gas mileage.]

(People often defend other people who aren't homogeneous to them. You fail to be able to grasph this. I would defend a Nazi's freedom of speech and then you would conclude I was a Nazi, right?)

emptyset · 2005-10-10 Reply Admin

Richard Nixon:
I haven't found this to be the case at all. I believe it is an overstatement to say that creativity = drug-use is an American ideal.

i agree it's an overstatement, since that's not what i said at all. i don't even see how that phrase makes sense: "creativity == drug use is an american ideal".

the observation i am making about americans is that creative people are readily labeled as drug users, and that there's this implicit stigma associated with it. i've seen people do this everywhere i go in america, and even on this forum. such labeling contributes to a culture of ignorance. in the same manner as racism.

Richard Nixon:
And since we're both citing personal observations, any conclusions about whether this is or isn't a characteristic of American culture is shaky at best.

true.

Richard Nixon:
I also find your characterization of the relation between driving an SUV, having paranoid feelings about minorities in the US, and thoughts on drug use to be quite stereotypical. Just as you are chastising SUV drivers for stereotyping all minorities as being dangerous, I will chastise you for stereotyping all people who drive SUVs.

and i will chastise you for being a libertarian, thus completing the wheel in the sky.

Richard Nixon:
[Now, I'm going to make this statement but given the bullheaded stupidity you've demonstrated in the past, I doubt you'll listen to it. I drive a compact car. It gets pretty good gas mileage.]

what are you trying to prove by saying you drive a compact car that gets good milage? is this supposed to give you better arguing credentials?

it's kind of like saying, "look, i plant a ton of trees every weekend. but seriously guys, these loggers are in the right! they're getting dicked over by environmentalists!" - without clearly addressing why the loggers are right in cutting down the forest.

Richard Nixon:
(People often defend other people who aren't homogeneous to them. You fail to be able to grasph this. I would defend a Nazi's freedom of speech and then you would conclude I was a Nazi, right?)

no, of course not. as a libertarian, you would let the free market decide which race of people to eliminate.

i don't understand how you manage to land on the stupid squares of the jump to conclusions mat. when have i demonstrated i don't comprehend your arguments? i may choose to ignore some parts of them to suit my own purposes (humor), but that doesn't mean i don't comprehend them. i don't think you can prove if i comprehend your arguments or not.

Savior · 2005-10-10 Reply Admin

I think we should start a campaign to ban emptyset.
His posts are annoying and pointless.
I vote YES! [:D][Y]

2005-10-10 Reply Admin

I say we karate chop him!

Hyyy-yah!

Back on up punk.

Savior · 2005-10-10 Reply Admin

Anonymous:
I say we karate chop him!

Hyyy-yah!

Back on up punk.

FATALITY!!

emptyset · 2005-10-11 Reply Admin

Savior:

Anonymous:
I say we karate chop him!

Hyyy-yah!

Back on up punk.

FATALITY!!

yup. i'm the one that's 13.

go back to slashdot.

2005-10-11 Reply Admin

Hey EmptySet, you make me laugh. A lot.

Otto · 2005-10-11 Reply Admin

To give emptyset some credit, I've written some of my best code when I was drunk as hell. [:D]

emptyset · 2005-10-11 Reply Admin

Otto:

To give emptyset some credit, I've written some of my best code when I was drunk as hell. [:D]

compilers are written with blood, sweat, tears, and hundreds if not thousands of long island ice teas.

Mike R · 2005-10-11 Reply Admin

emptyset:
Otto:

To give emptyset some credit, I've written some of my best code when I was drunk as hell. [:D]

compilers are written with blood, sweat, tears, and hundreds if not thousands of long island ice teas.

Or: margaritas, piña coladas, jack & cokes, beers... etc... [:)]

2009-10-19 Reply Admin

Andir:
Of course!! It's Binary math.

Wow this is hilarious. I think maybe just maybe boolean thatis first bit is alive, second is poisoned

Alone In The Code

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