:hosed: adj. Same as {down}. Used primarily by UNIX hackers.
Humorous: also implies a condition thought to be relatively easy to
reverse. Probably derived from the Canadian slang `hoser'
popularized by the Bob and Doug Mackenzie skits on SCTV, but this
usage predated SCTV by years in hackerdom (it was certainly already
live at CMU in the 1970s). See {hose}. It is also widely used
of people in the mainstream sense of `in an extremely unfortunate
situation'.
Once upon a time, a Cray that had been experiencing periodic
difficulties crashed, and it was announced to have been hosed.
It was discovered that the crash was due to the disconnection of
some coolant hoses. The problem was corrected, and users were then
assured that everything was OK because the system had been rehosed.
See also {dehose}.
-- The AI Hackers Dictionary
