Software rot

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Software rot (bit rot, code rot, software erosion, software decay, or software entropy) is the degradation, deterioration, or loss of the use or performance of software over time.

The Jargon File, a compendium of hacker lore, defines "bit rot" as a jocular explanation for the degradation of a software program over time even if "nothing has changed"; the idea behind this is almost as if the bits that make up the program were subject to radioactive decay.^[1]