This is a funny cartoon and subsequent discussion thread from the
Multics discussion group about emacs.
Names and personal info edited out due to archival by unknown parties of
the list and that these folks might not want names and certainly not
email addresses archived. Mentioning that not as a criticism, just to
explain the format. I also edited the thread back to bottom posting.
Original XKCD cartoon link.
https://xkcd.com/378/
>> From: Multicians <snip>
>> Subject: Re: [multicians] Emacs humor
>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Thanks, Gary. As an emacs diehart, I fully appreciate that. In
fact, there is a silly phrase that many emacs users use, when referring
to all the obscure key bindings that you get by default with emacs, or
can create. It.s called:
>>>
>>> Control-Meta-Shift-Cokebottle
>>>
>>> I believe the history (someone can correct me if I.m wrong) is that
Emacs was developed at the MIT AI Lab (by Richard Stallman) and
initially written in Teco. It was developed on Lisp machines, which
sported lots of modification keys on its keyboard. These included
Control, Shift, Hyper, Meta, Super (and perhaps more). Naturally, emacs
took advantage of some of these . at least those that were available on
multiple terminals or could be emulated on lesser terminals. I remember
when I worked at MIT LCS (down the hall from MIT AI), we had a key
binding on our Lisp Machines that called the elevator to the 8th floor.
I don.t remember the key binding, but I.m sure it used a few of these
modification keys (and probably .e. for .elevator. as the modified key).
In any case, the class of these funky key bindings was referred to as
Control-Meta-Shift-Cokebottle.
>>>
>>> I.m sure I.ve gotten some of the facts wrong, but I.m also sure
that at least someone on this list will correct me!
>>>
>>> . Eric
>>
>
>
>> On Dec 1, 2015, at 11:30 AM, Ken <snip>> wrote:
>>
>>
>> I seem to recall that one of the Lisp machine keyboard modifiers was
"Top", and that the phrase was therefore
>>
>>> Control-Shift-Meta-Top-Cokebottle
>>>
>> Where, of course, you were typing the "Cokebottle" key with the
Control, Shift, Meta, and Top modifier keys depressed.
>>
>> I think the elevator hack involved the AI Lab PDP-6 (or maybe,
later, PDP-10), but I wouldn't be surprised if it migrated to the Lisp
machines, too The old -6, especially, had added hardware to enable it
to control the various robot devices the AI lab played with. Some AI
Lab hardware guys gained access to the machinery room on the 10th floor
and added some extra relay circuitry to one of the elevator controllers,
and it wasn't much of a stretch to run the control wires down to the 9th
floor machine room. IIRC it took a few years for whatever company was
responsible for maintaining the elevators to discover the unauthorized
modification and remove it.
>>
>> How long it stayed removed is an entirely different question, of course.
>>
>> Ken
>> MIT-LCS '72-'80
>> Multics ARPANET software
>>
On 12/1/2015 11:42 AM, Eric <snip> [multicians] wrote:
>
>
> I just knew I had that facts wrong! Yes, you.re right. I remember the
Top key now.
>
> I do know that the elevator hack worked on Lisp machines, but I think
you.re right that it also worked on some other interfaces. I remember
getting frustrated when I.d be .ready to leave. (at 2am, or so), and
would call the elevator, and then I.d have to fix .one more bug., and by
the time I got to the elevator, I actually had to push the boring old
button to get the elevator doors to open! :-)
>
> . Eric
