:p:u:z:z:l:e:b:o:x: wiki: Glossary

Many of these entries are for common terms that anyone in the Mess will probably become familiar with before long. However, various people and cliques will have their own words or new definitions for common words and those are also appropriate for this glossary. Details like who uses the term and the origin of the term are also good to include.

Bithead n.: Someone who spends more time tweaking their own OS, running self-diagnostics, or immersed in the datasphere than they spend interacting with actual people. Sometimes abbreviated to "bit." Examples: "Come on, bithead. Let's get you out and go somewhere.", "You won't get any attention from him, he's just a bit."
Carnimorph n.: A term, usually derisive, for those who manifest exclusively as organic flesh.
Crash (krash) n,v.: Used by Zee and perhaps as common language within the Star-Lemur Faction, seeming to refer to something or someone which has achieved a state of Excellence. For example, "Starfish hats are soooo crash!" Ataxia has taken a liking to the term, and would love to see it used more!
eStranged transitive v.: To create feelings of mutual enmity or indifference through expressions of Strangeviraled behaviour in non-hosts where there had formerly been love, affection, or friendliness. Term first used by Torque.
Gephardtize v.: To induce an individual to take on one or more traits diametrically opposed to its original personality. An obscure reference to First Echo political culture. (Borrowed gratefully from Berke Breathed.)
Imipolex n.: A putty-like computing medium that can also act as a display.
Imilexene n.: An nth-generation descendent of rubber and imipolex; an artificial resin seeded with a presentient magic mirror preparation that allows it to reshape itself instantly and respond to the desires of its user via voice command or neural impulse.
Instantiator n.: A device or system which creates objects on demand from a base material (similar to the replicators from Star Trek); Puzzlebox's instantiator system is built into the atmosphere and allows most sentients to summon material objects of reasonable complexity at will (but item templates of high craftsmanship or very specific function are deliberately disabled, for the sake of the local artisan communities).
Magic Mirror n.: A liquid biocybernetic supercomputing medium of almost magical levels of complexity and flexibility; can also be used to reconstruct matter and energy from a pattern, so it forms the basis of the Mess's transit system as well.
Neffish adj.: Invented by Torque and Trilogee to describe the emotional being on the border of a transformation. The sensation of being between failure, success, unchanging, good, bad, neutral, and any other odd possibilities out there. Anxious and frightened.
Oneirochronic adj.: "Of the dreamtime," magical; taking place in a surreal environment where rules of reality, history, and causality are entirely subject to the will and desires of sentient beings.
Oneirotronic adj.: A technology, like those common on Puzzlebox, powered by dreams or functioning on dreamlike rather than rational causality.
Persona shock n.: The experience of a sudden and disturbing inner change to one's identity and beliefs. May be caused by integration with dissimilar personae.
Pile n.: 1)A construction of closely-spaced electronics used for the purpose of expanding one's memory and learning capabilities. Used by Clockwork in reference to it's electronic jumble. 2) Any set of electronics that could be included in a Pile(ex: keyboards, monitors, giant robots that shoot lasers out of their eyes)
Pretzel n,v.: Used first by Kelly?'s suit to describe strange, lewd, or possibly sexual situations, and is a term also known by Blue, Kehari?, System and Omni. The sentience of the suit was spawned by a strange drug-induced situation between Kehari? and Omni involving various acts with the doughy shape.
Saizho noun.: First mentioned by Frostbyte in communication with Roque in regards to her conflict with Orange, it is a state of being where one is totally divorced from physics-oriented thought and has infinite confidence in their capabilities. Frost refers to it as 'the ultimate martial art' and that it renders all other forms of combat useless. It does, however, seem to be draining.
Spark, Steel, Rust: The three Gridshaman qualities, occasionally used to describe a non-member's attitude or outlook.
Tasp n.: A device which stimulates a sentient (but not necessarily organic) being's pleasure center; available in a dizzying variety of forms on Puzzlebox, from small bliss-wands, to rifles and crowd-control devices, to sky-mounted bombing platforms. (RL etymology: Coined by Larry Niven?)
unCharm adj..: First mentioned by Frostbyte in communication with Squeak and System in regards to memetic virii. Effectively, it translates to "related to or in the category of stuff that sucks, is no fun, or is mean."