[Usenet]
1. A Frequently Asked Question.
2. A compendium of accumulated lore, posted periodically to high-volume newsgroups in an attempt to forestall such questions. Some people prefer the term ‘FAQ list’ or ‘FAQL’ /faŽkl/, reserving ‘FAQ’ for sense 1.
This lexicon itself serves as a good example of a collection of one kind of lore, although it is far too big for a regular FAQ posting. Examples: “What is the proper type of NULL?” and “What's that funny name for the # character?” are both Frequently Asked Questions. Several FAQs refer readers to the Jargon File.