ARPAWOCKY
A poem that recasts ARPANET terms in a nonsense-verse style.
Merryman, R., "ARPAWOCKY", RFC 527, DOI 10.17487/RFC0527, May 1973, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc527>.
@misc{rfc527,
series = {Request for Comments},
number = 527,
howpublished = {RFC 527},
publisher = {RFC Editor},
doi = {10.17487/RFC0527},
url = {https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc527},
author = {R. Merryman},
title = {{ARPAWOCKY}},
pagetotal = 1,
year = 1973,
month = may,
} RFC text
Network Working Group R. Merryman (UCSD-CC)
Request for Comments: 527 6/22/73
ARPAWOCKY
Twas brillig, and the Protocols
Did USER-SERVER in the wabe.
All mimsey was the FTP,
And the RJE outgrabe,
Beware the ARPANET, my son;
The bits that byte, the heads that scratch;
Beware the NCP, and shun
the frumious system patch,
He took his coding pad in hand;
Long time the Echo-plex he sought.
When his HOST-to-IMP began to limp
he stood a while in thought,
And while he stood, in uffish thought,
The ARPANET, with IMPish bent,
Sent packets through conditioned lines,
And checked them as they went,
One-two, one-two, and through and through
The IMP-to-IMP went ACK and NACK,
When the RFNM came, he said "I'm game",
And sent the answer back,
Then hast thou joined the ARPANET?
Oh come to me, my bankrupt boy!
Quick, call the NIC! Send RFCs!
He chortled in his joy.
Twas brillig, and the Protocols
Did USER-SERVER in the wabe.
All mimsey was the FTP,
And the RJE outgrabe.
D.L. COVILL
May 1973
ISO Plain Language
On this page
§1ARPAWOCKY
RFC 527, titled ARPAWOCKY, is a poem in verse. It repeats the line about protocols doing USER-SERVER and FTP and RJE, and uses technical vocabulary in rhyming stanzas.
This RFC is a poem, not a technical manual. Its verse uses terms from network work.
§2Network Terms in the Poem
The poem mentions FTP, RJE, NCP, HOST-to-IMP, IMP-to-IMP, packets, ACK, NACK, and RFNM. These terms appear as part of the poem's imagery and rhyme rather than as formal definitions.
The verse includes names of protocols, computers, messages, and acknowledgements. It does not explain how those things work.
§3A Non-Technical RFC
The document is a literary piece, not a specification. Its content consists of the poem and its signature, with no protocol requirements or implementation instructions.
There are no technical instructions in this RFC. It uses network vocabulary for humor and rhyme.