Notes on  HA HA ONLY SERIOUS 

[from SF fandom, orig. as mutation of HHOK, `Ha Ha Only Kidding'] A
phrase (often seen abbreviated as HHOS) that aptly captures the
flavor of much hacker discourse. Applied especially to parodies,
absurdities, and ironic jokes that are both intended and perceived to
contain a possibly disquieting amount of truth, or truths that are
constructed on in-joke and self-parody. This lexicon contains many
examples of ha-ha-only-serious in both form and content. Indeed, the
entirety of hacker culture is often perceived as ha-ha-only-serious
by hackers themselves; to take it either too lightly or too seriously
marks a person as an outsider, a WANNABEE, or in LARVAL STAGE.
For further enlightenment on this subject, consult any Zen master.
See also HACKER HUMOR, and KOAN.

J3N Research Labs

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