chad box

hardware (IBM called this a "chip box") A metal box about

the size of a lunchbox (or in some models a large

wastebasket), for collecting the chad that accumulated in

Iron Age card punches. You had to open the covers of the

card punch periodically and empty the chad box.

The bit bucket was notionally the equivalent device in the

CPU enclosure, which was typically across the room in

another great grey-and-blue box.

[Jargon File]

(1996-11-20)