hamster 1. (programming) (From Fairchild) A particularly slick little piece of code that does one thing well; a small, self-contained hack. The image is of a hamster happily spinning its exercise wheel.
2. (hardware) A tailless mouse; that is, one with an infrared link to a receiver on the machine, as opposed to the conventional cable. 3. (product) (UK) Any item of hardware made by Amstrad, a company famous for its cheap plastic PC-almost-compatibles. [Jargon File] Last updated: 1995-02-16
