The Jargon File (version 4.4.7, 29 Dec 2003):
feeping creaturism
/fee'ping kree`ch@r?izm/, n.
A deliberate spoonerism for creeping featurism, meant to imply that the
system or program in question has become a misshapen creature of hacks.
This term isn't really well defined, but it sounds so neat that most
hackers have said or heard it. It is probably reinforced by an image of
terminals prowling about in the dark making their customary noises.
The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (30 December 2018):
feeping creaturism
/fee'ping kree"ch*r-izm/ A deliberate spoonerism for creeping
featurism, meant to imply that the system or program in
question has become a misshapen creature of hacks. This term
isn"t really well defined, but it sounds so neat that most
hackers have said or heard it. It is probably reinforced by
an image of terminals prowling about in the dark making their
customary noises.