Kermit (original) (raw)

Kermit is a computer file transfer/management protocol and a set of communications software tools; it provides a consistent approach to file transfer, terminal emulation, script programming, and character set conversion across many different computer hardware and OS platforms.

Kermit was developed at Columbia University in 1981 to allow students to use removable media to hold mainframe files and use remote terminals with DEC PDP-20 machines. This emerged into having the same software package on every computer, all based on the PDP-20 Kermit. The MS-DOS version of Kermit was developed the same year. Over the more than 20 years since its inception, the Kermit protocol has evolved into a worldwide de facto data communications standard, and the software has been used for tasks ranging from simple student assignments to solving compatibility problems aboard the International Space Station.

Kermit was named for the muppet Kermit the Frog. The program's icon in the Apple Macintosh version was a depiction of Kermit the Frog.