Hobo

A hobo is a migratory worker or homeless vagabond—especially one who is impoverished. The term originated in the Western—probably Northwestern—United States around 1890. Unlike a "tramp", who works only when forced to, and a "bum," who does not work at all, a "hobo" is a traveling worker.

Etymology

The origin of the term is unknown. According to etymologist Anatoly Liberman, the only certain detail about its origin is the word was first noticed in American English circa 1890. Liberman points out that many folk etymologies fail to answer the question: "Why did the word become widely known in California (just there) by the early Nineties (just then)?" Author Todd DePastino has suggested it may be derived from the term hoe-boy meaning "farmhand", or a greeting such as Ho, boy!Bill Bryson suggests in Made in America (1998) that it could either come from the railroad greeting, "Ho, beau!" or a syllabic abbreviation of "homeward bound". It could also come from the words "homeless boy". H. L. Mencken, in his The American Language (4th ed., 1937), wrote:

Mr. Dibbs

Mr. Dibbs (born Brad Forste) is an American DJ and hip hop producer. He is the co-founder and co-owner of Self Core Records and the founder of the turntablist collective 1200 Hobos. He has also appeared on numerous underground hip hop records as DJ or producer, as well as releasing a number of solo records.

Early life

Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, Forste was introduced to DJing around 1985, when he saw Grandmaster Flash performing on the syndicated light news/entertainment show PM Magazine, but "didn't really understand what he did." After watching an MTV broadcast of Grand Mixer DXT performing with Herbie Hancock on the latter's 1983 single "Rockit," he learned the hand motions and began to learn scratching himself. He estimates that he spent six months "getting the hang of" scratching, subsequently spending two years "cutting and scratching to whatever was on TV" to practice.

Career

Mr. Dibbs formed his own turntablist crew 1200 Hobos in the early 1990s. The crew's rotating line-up has included Doseone, Jel, Buck 65, Sixtoo, Adverse, DJ Signify, DJ Mayonnaise, DJ Skip among others, and at its largest numbered 23 members. They have released two mixtapes.

The Areas of My Expertise

The Areas of My Expertise (ISBN 0-525-94908-9, first published in 2005) is a satirical almanac by John Hodgman. It is written in the form of absurd historical stories, complex charts and graphs, and fake newspaper columns. Among its sections are a list of 700 different hobo names and complete descriptions of "all 51" US states. The full title of the book is:

The book was later released in audiobook form, narrated by John Hodgman himself with some musical accompaniment by frequent collaborator Jonathan Coulton and a guest appearance by Paul Rudd.

The interior and exterior of the book are designed by graphic artist Sam Potts who is known for the interior and exterior design of the Brooklyn Superhero Supply Co. and The Writer's Block.

A sequel, More Information Than You Require, was released on October 21, 2008.

The 700 Hoboes Project and e-Hobo.com

The 700 Hoboes Project refers to an internet meme that originated with a recording of Hodgman's recitation of the 700 hobo names from The Areas of My Expertise. An audio file of the reading, accompanied by frequent collaborator Jonathan Coulton playing "Big Rock Candy Mountain" "live for an hour, one take", was posted to a page on the promotional website for the book.