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Frame from "Turbo Encabulator" the Original Plays via YouTube's privacy-enhanced embed

"Turbo Encabulator" the Original

Dave Rondot
Comedy
YouTube
4 HN users recommended this comedy video4 months2016–2026 score 4
Years with an HN recommendation, 2007–2026

Used as the canonical reference for the jargon-parody trope, and as a joke whenever technobabble appears.

The earliest filmed version of the Turbo Encabulator technical-jargon parody, shot in the late 1970s with narrator Bud Haggert. It deadpans a stream of meaningless engineering language.

“Doug Zongker's presentation similarly instructs people how to make better presentations to peers by demonstrating what not to do” (HN, 2025)

4 recommendations · 3 citations · 11 jokes · Comedy

18 Hacker News comments

From the HN archive; up to 20 kept per video, favoring different commenters. Recommendations first.

@Anarch157a May 2019 Recommends
on HN thread Five Hundred and Seven Mechanical Movements (1908)
I think you're gonna like this one [1]. The B-25 Mitchell instructional that was linked here some few weeks ago is also amazing [2]. [1]: [this video] [2]: [link]
Classic parody video the commenter thinks the reader will like
@causality0 Nov 2023 Recommends
on HN thread Rockwell Retro Encabulator [video]
I don't know why people are always posting the Rockwell version when the older Turbo Emcabulator video is far superior. [this video]
Argues the original is better than the Rockwell version
@Joel_Mckay Nov 2025 Recommends
on HN thread Learning to read Arthur Whitney's C to become smart (2024)
"Still it's amusing how Whitney's style seems to personally offend people" So it was for the lols after all... Notably, a Lisp interpreter written in Lisp is a common assignment for second year CS students. In a production setting, there is little reason to misappropriate resources for such toys. Bud Haggert still teaches smart people something very important about communication with interdisciplinary crowds: [this video] Doug Zongker's presentation similarly instructs people how to make better presentations to peers by demonstrating what not to do: [link] Best of luck =3
Teaches communicating with interdisciplinary audiences

Citations, criticism and jokes

@myrandomcomment Jan 2022 Cites it
on HN thread Turboencabulator
Here is the fun take - [link] And the original - [this video] Also curious as this was on Twitter the other day...how social mixed if this is the OPs reason for sharing.
The original turboencabulator video
@meatsock Feb 2016 Makes a joke
on HN thread The Turbo-Encabulator in Industry (1944)
encabulation is a great topic of study with many interesting video demos turbo encabulator v1 [this video] rockwell turbo encabulator [link] rockwell retro encabulator [link] chrysler turbo encabulator [link] chrysler turbo encabulator diagnosis and service [link] fort worth vintage flying museum specific service notes [link]
@pg_bot Apr 2018 Makes a joke
on HN thread Dapps
Fred may as well be describing the turboencabulator[0]. I get that VCs should swing for the fences, but this seems like they are totally ignoring first principles when it comes to cryptocurrency/blockchain apps. [0] [this video]
@Sohcahtoa82 Apr 2019 Makes a joke
on HN thread Changes to Models S and X allow them to travel longer without larger batteries
I've been having issues with my transmission's cardinal grammeters going out of sync. I've heard if I get a turbo encabulator [0], it would supply an inverse reactive current into the unilateral phase destractors, which would fix the sync issue, but the price tag is more than I can swallow. I might just have to deal with the side fumbling of the ambifacient lunar waneshaft, even if it means having to regularly replace the spurving bearings. [0] [this video]
@lucidguppy Aug 2023 Makes a joke
on HN thread ‘How Do I Do That?’ The New Hires of 2023 Are Unprepared for Work
I agree - college is a filter - not a tech tree. In engineering school you solve problems similar to industry - but its more the difficulty than the similarity. New grads can handle the difficulty your job provides. If you train them - they should get the hang of it. Industry leads academia in undergrad - not the other way around. Industry knew that new grads needed 6-12 months of niche education (this is the general operation of Turbo Encabulators [this video] ). It was in their budget. Now.... not so much.
@Joel_Mckay Jun 2024 Makes a joke
on HN thread Experts vs. Imitators
The article is conflating buzzword laden hype-cycles with qualitative artifacts. It takes experience to recognize most software is still garbage, but more importantly determine which parts of the garbage heap is useful. The primary problem is the very definition of any unique terminology or product is distorted by the industry itself to fit a marketing niche. After a few years people sound like they had a stroke, and bought a Turbo Encabulator: [this video]
@contingencies Jul 2024 Makes a joke
on HN thread Detect Migrating Birds with a Plastic Dish and a Cheap Microphone
PoE works better (cheaper, higher bandwidth, differential signalling for higher EMI resistance, readily shared, etc.). Plastic covers are ~free (splash out and deploy duct tape if necessary). MEMS mic -> I2C -> cheap MCU -> ethernet. Theory: Capture digitally, and send the data - forget XLR and other expensive analog 'professional' fancabulation[0]. [0] [this video]
@bizzletk Jun 2026 Makes a joke
on HN thread Leaked financial docs show OpenAI is losing billions of dollars a year
Wouldn't the real story be to get government contracts? Those are more immune to public fickleness and market competition and usually have truly ludicrous margins. If they're the only ones who ̶a̶r̶e̶ ̶w̶i̶l̶l̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶b̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶e̶n̶g̶i̶n̶e̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶ ̶a̶u̶t̶o̶n̶o̶m̶o̶u̶s̶ ̶k̶i̶l̶l̶b̶o̶t̶s̶ can draw a reciprocation dingle-arm to reduce soinosoidal repleneration, then "I'm sure the government will buy it" [0] [0] [this video]

Video list and Hacker News comment labels from HackerTube (prompted by @karpathy), released under ODC-By 1.0, built on the open-index/hacker-news archive. Hacker News data is provided by Y Combinator; comments remain the work of their authors. Video titles, channel names and thumbnails belong to their creators and are shown via YouTube. HackerTube Watch is an unofficial edition. Data export of 2026-10-31.

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