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drool-proof paper n. Whimsical paper said to be used in electronic equipment manuals that are so dumbed-down and simplistic as to be of no use whatsoever. —adj.

Example Citation:
Documentation that has been obsessively dumbed down i.e., simplified to the point where only a cretin someone who can't do anything right could bear to read it, is said to have succumbed to the "drool-proof paper syndrome" or to have been "written on drool-proof paper." For example, this is an actual quote from Apple's LaserWriter manual: "Do not expose your LaserWriter to open fire or flame."
—Robert L. Tennant, "The Computer Glossary," Technical Communication, November 1994

Earliest Citation:
It was in this world that "user friendly" was first translated to "dumbed down," where "drool-proof paper" was coined to describe documentation (computer hardware and software instructions) that had been dumbed down to the point where only a cretin could bear to read it.
—Clarence Peterson, "Paperbacks," Chicago Tribune, December 1, 1991

Related Words:
404
bozon
elder-proof
electronic paper
Hanlon's Razor
ignoranus
stupid line
Stupids
zipperhead

Subject Categories:
Language - Insults
Technology - General

Posted on March 4, 1996


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