I first heard it in 1966 when I joined the Air Force; I am sure that it had been around for a long time before that. I would also guess that it started in the military. G.I.s love to use acronyms. After my curiosity got the better of me, I started checking and this site http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/0,,sid9_gci748437,00.html says that it started in the military. Have Fun, Larry Casey <aspnet at thecrookstons.com> wrote: I know what it stands for.. just wondering how it got to be so widely used in the development world as the standard fill-in for variables and such. The first time I heard of it was in Saving Private Ryan. Happy middle of the week to everyone. -- * * Please support the community that supports you. * * http://evolt.org/help_support_evolt/ For unsubscribe and other options, including the Tip Harvester and archives of thelist go to: http://lists.evolt.org Workers of the Web, evolt !