I have to work with a guy from the US who is known for his extremely laconic way of expressing himself in writing (it is curious there are no problems like the one described below when communicating with him verbally).
Recently I wrote him message asking if he managed to find some old (and quite possibly gone forever) data we had talked about before and received a one-word answer «Zippo.». No more words, nothing attached. What does it even mean? Is it some slang word for naught (from the context of our previous conversation it is clear that it can't be about a zip-archive or zipped files)?
Does any one know the origin of this intriguing word? Is this word in use throughout the US or some local slang (the guy resides in Newark, NJ)?
P. S. Maybe I am wrong and it is not an American slang, but the guy is an American for sure.