The programmer then looked at the console lights and fiddled with the console switches. And if he hadn't fiddled, he'd a travelled all night. The emperor allegedly fiddled while the city of Rome burned. However, Atwater touched her on different parts of her body and fiddled with her clothing. Frustrated, he fiddled with the hand crank, fixed the problem, and started shooting again. Oh, they fiddlingly fiddled, they did! We fiddled about with it for a few months before everything fell into place. Adeline fiddled with the safety hatch when he was on the ladder. Gilligan had "fiddled" with the story of a "memory vampire" for months, before writing it. The film was called While Nero Fiddled on its USA release. It has the advantage of being readily operationalized, fiddled with, and understandable.