top decoration
greenbytes logo
Salzmannstraße 152, 48159 Münster, Germany
Fon +49 (0) 700 G4R7E3E3N6B2Y9T8ES
Fax +49 (0) 251 2807761
(Karte / Map)
(Wetter)
 

 



From the Jargon File:
green bytes n.     (also `green words') 1. Meta-information embedded in a file, such as the length of the file or its name; as opposed to keeping such information in a separate description file or record. The term comes from an IBM user's group meeting (ca. 1962) at which these two approaches were being debated and the diagram of the file on the blackboard had the `green bytes' drawn in green. 2. By extension, the non-data bits in any self-describing format. "A GIF file contains, among other things, green bytes describing the packing method for the image." Compare out-of-band, zigamorph, fence (sense 1).
Manfred Baedke
Martin Böttcher
Stefan Eissing
Julian Reschke