You are here: irt.org | FOLDOC | sanity check
<programming> 1. Checking code (or anything else, e.g. a Usenet posting) for completely stupid mistakes. Implies that the check is to make sure the author was sane when it was written; e.g. if a piece of scientific software relied on a particular formula and was giving unexpected results, one might first look at the nesting of parentheses or the coding of the formula, as a "sanity check", before looking at the more complex I/O or data structure manipulation routines, much less the algorithm itself.
Compare reality check.
2. A run-time test, either validating input or ensuring that the program hasn't screwed up internally (producing an inconsistent value or state).
(1998-08-29)
Nearby terms: sandbox « Sandman « San Francisco « sanity check » Santa Cruz Operation » SAP » SAP AG
FOLDOC, Topics, A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z, ?, ALL