Gophered Meaning: Definition, Examples, and Translations
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gophered
[ˈgɒfərd ]
Definition
computer usage
Gophered refers to the act of using the Gopher protocol, a distributed document delivery system designed for the Internet. It allows users to search and retrieve documents from remote servers using a hierarchical menu system. Although it was popular in the early 1990s, Gopher has largely been replaced by the World Wide Web. Despite this, some dedicated enthusiasts still use it today, and it serves as a historical stepping stone in the evolution of Internet technologies.
Synonyms
accessed, retrieved, searched.
Examples of usage
- They gophered through the archives for old documents.
- She gophered to find relevant research articles.
- The team gophered various servers for data analysis.
Translations
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Origin of 'gophered'
The term 'gophered' comes from the Gopher protocol, which was developed at the University of Minnesota in the early 1990s. Named after the university's mascot, the gopher, this system enabled users to access and retrieve documents across the expanding internet in a simple, text-based format. Gopher utilized a menu-driven interface that sorted documents into directories, making it easier to navigate than the more chaotic early web. As the World Wide Web gained popularity in the mid-1990s, the Gopher protocol began to decline in usage, falling out of favor in the face of more advanced hypertext technologies, notably HTML. Despite its decline, Gopher represents a significant moment in the history of online information retrieval, and its influence can still be observed in some internet protocols today.