support (redirected from bread and butter)

(1) See tech support.

(2) A widely used term in the industry to mean "to provide the capabilities for" or "to interface to" or "to include some function."

Hardware Supports...
The phrase "device X supports Y" means that X contains built-in circuitry to perform Y or it can interface to a module that does. For example, "the CPU supports multiprocessing" means it has multiprocessing capabilities built in. "The computer supports Ethernet" means the computer includes Ethernet capability and can plug into an Ethernet network.

Software Supports...
The phrase "program X supports Y" means that X includes routines to perform the Y operation or to interface to another program that does. For example, if a development system "supports Windows," the system is used to create Windows applications. "Application X supports database Y" means that X can connect to Y and has built-in routines to interact with it.

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support - After-sale handholding; something many software vendors promise but few deliver. To hackers, most support people are useless - because by the time a hacker calls support he or she will usually know the software and the relevant manuals better than the support people (sadly, this is *not* a joke or exaggeration). A hacker's idea of "support" is a tête-à-tête or exchange of electronic mail with the software's designer.