FEEP
\fˈiːp], \fˈiːp], \f_ˈiː_p]\
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/feep/ 1. The soft electronic "bell" sound of a displayterminal (except for a VT-52); a beep (in fact, themicrocomputer world seems to prefer beep).2. To cause the display to make a feep sound. ASR-33s (theoriginal TTYs) do not feep; they have mechanical bells thatring. Alternate forms: beep, "bleep", or just aboutanything suitably onomatopoeic. (Jeff MacNelly, in his comicstrip "Shoe", uses the word "eep" for sounds made by computerterminals and video games; this is perhaps the closest writtenapproximation yet.) The term "breedle" was sometimes heard atSAIL, where the terminal bleepers are not particularly soft(they sound more like the musical equivalent of a raspberry orBronx cheer; for a close approximation, imagine the sound of aStar Trek communicator's beep lasting for five seconds). The"feeper" on a VT-52 has been compared to the sound of a '52Chevy stripping its gears. See also ding.
By Denis Howe
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