otaku

[1980s-1990s, Japan.]

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info junkies who trade or sell tidbits (tidbytes?) of information on arcane subjects---otaku---as if they were commodities of value, or items in a gift economy. a new word is invented.

without a name, the exchange of these iotas can’t function efficiently. Information exchange and commentary: another form of packet switching and reassembly at "the other end."

other terms from the archaeology of the Net:


ARPA net
packet switching
protocols

cf. May 1974 Communication [journal]: an influential article on the theory of computer networking
fractal bifurcation veils

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