[W/K] :: {EBCDIC

  EBCDIC \EBCDIC\ ([e^]b"s[e^]*d[i^]k`), n. [acronym from Extended
     Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code.] (Computers)
     a 8-bit code for representing alphanumerical information in a
     digital information storage medium. It was used expecially on
     IBM mainframes, and differed substantially from the ASCII
     code. [acronym]
     [PJC]

  EBCDIC
       Extended Binary-Coded Decimal Interchange Code
       
       

  EBCDIC /eb's*-dik/, /eb'see`dik/, or /eb'k*-dik/ n. [abbreviation,
     Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code] An alleged character set
     used on IBM dinosaurs. It exists in at least six mutually incompatible
     versions, all featuring such delights as non-contiguous letter sequences
     and the absence of several ASCII punctuation characters fairly important
     for modern computer languages (exactly which characters are absent
     varies according to which version of EBCDIC you're looking at). IBM
     adapted EBCDIC from {punched card code in the early 1960s and
     promulgated it as a customer-control tactic (see connector
     conspiracy), spurning the already established ASCII standard. Today,
     IBM claims to be an open-systems company, but IBM's own description of
     the EBCDIC variants and how to convert between them is still internally
     classified top-secret, burn-before-reading. Hackers blanch at the very
     _name_ of EBCDIC and consider it a manifestation of purest evil. See
     also fear and loathing.
  
  

  EBCDIC
       
          Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code