(users)

1. <person> Someone doing "real work" with the computer, using it as a means rather than an end. Someone who pays to use a computer. A programmer who will believe anything you tell him. One who asks silly questions without thinking for two seconds or looking in the documentation. Someone who uses a program, however skillfully, without getting into the internals of the program. One who reports bugs instead of just fixing them. See also luser, real user. Users are looked down on by hackers to some extent because they don't understand the full ramifications of the system in all its glory. The term is relative: a skilled hacker may be a user with respect to some program he himself does not hack. A LISP hacker might be one who maintains LISP or one who uses LISP (but with the skill of a hacker). A LISP user is one who uses LISP, whether skillfully or not. Thus there is some overlap between the two terms; the subtle distinctions must be resolved by context. 2. <jargon> Any person, organisation, process, device, program, protocol, or system which uses a service provided by others. The term "client" (as in "client-server" systems) is rather more specific, usually implying two processes communicating via some protocol. [Jargon File] (1996-04-28)

<operating system, security> (Or "logon") A unique name for each user of computer services which can be accessed by several persons. Users need to identify themselves for accounting, security, logging, and resource management. Usually a person must also enter a password in order to access a service. Once the user has logged on the operating system will often use a (short) user identifier, e.g. an integer, to refer to them rather than their user name. User names can usually be any short string of alphanumeric characters. Common choices are first name, initials, or some combination of first name, last name, initials and an arbitrary number. User names are often assigned by {system administrators} according to some local policy, or they may be chosen by the users themselves. User names are often also used as mailbox names in electronic mail addresses. (1997-03-16)

User was an ancient Egyptian nomarch (governor) of the Eight Dynasty. User is mainly known from a false door found at Khozam (ancient Iushenshen) in 1884.

A power user is a user of computers, software and other electronic devices, who uses advanced features of computer hardware, operating systems, programs, or websites which are not used by the average user. A power user might not have extensive technical knowledge of the systems they use but is rather characterized by competence or desire to make the most intensive use of computer programs or systems.

In computing, a user agent is any software, acting on behalf of a user, which "retrieves, renders and facilitates end-user interaction with Web content". A user agent is therefore a special kind of software agent.

user identifier

<operating system> 1. (Or "uid", "user id") A number or name which is unique to a particular user of a computer or group of computers which share user information. The {operating system} uses the uid to represent the user in its data structures, e.g. the owner of a file or process, the person attempting to access a system resource etc. A user database, e.g. Unix's /etc/passwd file or NIS, maps the uid to other information about that user such as their user name, password, home directory and real name. 2. user name. (1997-03-01)