Old software (especially applications) which one is obliged to remain
compatible with, or to maintain ({DP} types call this legacy code, a
term hackers consider smarmy and excessively reverent). The term
implies that the software in question is a holdover from card-punch
days. Used esp. when referring to old scientific and
{number-crunching} software, much of which was written in FORTRAN and
very poorly documented but is believed to be too expensive to
replace. See {fossil}; compare {crawling horror}.
[glossary]
[Reference(s) to this entry by made by: {crawling horror}{deprecated}{fossil}{punched card}]