elder days n. The heroic age of hackerdom (roughly, pre-1980); the era
   of the {PDP-10}, {TECO}, {{ITS}}, and the ARPANET. This term has been
   rather consciously adopted from J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy epic "The
   Lord of the Rings". Compare {Iron Age}; see also {elvish} and {Great
   Worm}.


Source: The Jargon File