The Jargon File (version 4.4.7, 29 Dec 2003):
three-finger salute
n.
Syn. Vulcan nerve pinch.
The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (30 December 2018):
Vulcan nerve pinch
three-finger salute
(Or "three-finger salute", Vulcan death grip; from
the old "Star Trek" TV series via Commodore Amiga
hackers) The keyboard combination that forces a soft boot
or jump to ROM monitor (on machines that support such a
feature).
On an Amiga this is done with Ctrl/Right Amiga/Left Amiga; on
IBM PCs and many microcomputers it is Ctrl/Alt/Del; on
Suns, L1-A; on some Macintoshes, it is -! Silicon Graphics users are obviously the most
dextrous however, as these machines use the five-finger
combination: Left Shift/Left Ctrl/Left Alt/Keypad Divide/F12.
Compare quadruple bucky.
[Jargon File]
(2000-04-04)