The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (30 December 2018):
write-only memory
WOM
1. (WOM) The obvious antonym to "read-only
memory" (ROM).
Out of frustration with the long and seemingly useless chain
of approvals required of component specifications, during
which no actual checking seemed to occur, an engineer at
Signetics once created a specification for a write-only
memory and included it with a bunch of other specifications to
be approved. This inclusion came to the attention of
Signetics management only when regular customers started
calling and asking for pricing information. Signetics
published a corrected edition of the data book and requested
the return of the "erroneous" ones. Later, around 1974,
Signetics bought a double-page spread in "Electronics"
magazine's April issue and used the spec as an April Fools'
Day joke. Instead of the more conventional characteristic
curves, the 25120 "fully encoded, 9046 x N, Random Access,
write-only-memory" data sheet included diagrams of "bit
capacity vs. Temp.", "Iff vs. Vff", "Number of pins remaining
vs. number of socket insertions", and "AQL vs. selling price".
The 25120 required a 6.3 VAC VFF supply, a +10V VCC, and VDD
of 0V, +/- 2%.
2. bit bucket.
[Jargon File]
(2007-03-24)