What is "bastard operator from hell"

n. (context slang computing English) a rogue system administrator who abuses users on the system that he or she operates, when he or she thinks they are annoying (being lusers)

The Bastard Operator From Hell (BOFH) is a fictional rogue computer operator who takes out his anger on users and others who pester him with their computer problems, uses his expertise against his enemies and manipulates his employer.

Several other people have written stories about BOFHs, but one by Simon Travaglia is considered canonical. The BOFH stories were originally posted in 1992 to Usenet by Travaglia, with some being reprinted in Datamation. They were published weekly from 1995 to 1999 in Network Week. Since 2000 they have been published regularly in The Register (UK). Several collections of the stories have been published as books.

By extension, the term is also used to refer to any system administrator who displays the qualities of the original.

The early accounts of the BOFH took place in a university; later the scenes were set in an office workplace. In 2000 (BOFH 2k), the BOFH and his pimply-faced youth (PFY) assistant moved to a new company.