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Computer Word Definitions
16
bit
Pertaining to hardware or software that handles data 16 bits at a time.
A 16-bit CPU has 16 bit internal registers, so it can manipulate data in groups of 16-bits. A 16-bit data bus allows data to travel between the different system components in groups of 16-bits. A 16 bit memory address bus allows a computer to directly access 64K of memory, because 64K is the maximum value representable by 16 bits. To access memory beyond 64K, the software must employ segmented memory addressing. Segment memory operations require additional system overhead, and slow down computer performance.
32
Bit
Pertaining to hardware or software that handles data 32 bits a time.
A 32 bit CPU has 32 bit internal registers, so it can manipulate data in groups of 32-bits. A 32 bit data bus allows data to travel between the different system components in groups of 32-bits. A 32-bit memory address bus allows a computer to directly access over four gigabytes ( 4 billion bytes) of memory since the maximum value representable by 32 bits is about 4.3 billion.
Address
A location of data, which is usually in main memory or on a disk. You can think of computer memory as an array of storage boxes, each of which is one byte in length. Each box has an address (a unique number) assigned to it. By specifying a memory address, programmers can access a particular byte of data. Disks are divided into tracks and sectors, each of which has a unique address. Usually, you do not need to worry about addresses unless you are a programmer.
Application
A computer program designed to do some specific type of work. Microsoft® Word, Adobe Acrobat, pcAnywhere, and QuickBooks Pro are examples of applications. An application is different from a utility, which performs some type of maintenance (such as formatting a disk or a disk defragmenter).
Association
The process of assigning a filename extension to a particular application. A file in Microsoft® Word named "my diary.doc" the ".doc" would be considered the filename extentsion. When an extension has been associated with an application, Windows Professional 2000 will start the application when you choose to open the file from the Windows Explorer. Associations are critical to the concept of document-centric computing.
Areal
Density
The amount of data packed onto a storage medium. Areal densities are generally measured in megabits per square inch. The term is useful for comparing different types of media, such as magnetic disks and optical disks. Current magnetic disks have an areal density of about 200 megabits per square inch. Optical disks, on the other hand, have areal densities of more than one gigabit per square inch
Short for binary digit, the smallest unit of data computer can store. Bits are expressed as 1 or 0.
Bitmap
The extension used for Windows bitmap files.
Bps
Abbreviation of bits per second, the standard measure of
data transmission speeds. Standard telephone lines are capable of transmitting
data at a maximum speed of about 33.6 Kbps (new technologies are pushing this
theoretical limit to 57 Kbps by taking advantage of the high-quality lines used
by Internet Service Providers). However, the old metal telephone wires are
steadily being replaced by fiber optic cables, which are capable of transmitting
data at much faster rates. Specialized cables for transmitting data between
devices support rates of over 500 Kbps. So far, the fiber optic cables are used
only in the telephone backbone, but it's only a matter of time before they reach
into people's homes and businesses.
To look through a list on a computer system. Lists includes directories, files, domains, or computers.
A temporary holding place reserved in memory, where data is held while in transit to or from a storage device or another location in memory.
A menu that is a sub menu of a menu item. Also know hierarchical menu. The menus accessed via the Windows 95/98 Start Button are cascading menus.
It is a letter, number, punctuation mark, or a control code.
A form of multitasking in which threads cooperate with each other by voluntarily giving up control of the processor
CPU
The portion of the computer that performs computations, executes instructions, and transfers information between all parts of the computer. Microcomputers such as PCs contain single chip CPUs called Microprocessors. The CPU is considered the brains of the computer.
It is a special memory subsystem within a computer that temporarily holds data or program instructions to improve overall computer performance. Most cashes copy data from a standard computer memory (RAM) to a type of memory that allows faster data access by the CPU. Some cashes hold data awaiting storage, freeing the CPU for other tasks, and writing that data only when the CPU is otherwise idle.
Disk Cashes are designed to compensate for the speed discrepancy between the very fast CPU and the much slower disk drives. Internal and external memory cashes are designed to compensate for the speed discrepancy between the CPU and the slower RAM chips. All Cashing systems (External Cashe, Disk Cashe, Internal cashe) are designed to prevent maim memory (RAM) from being an information bottleneck between the CPU, and the much slower hard disk drives.
Crash
It is a serious failure of the software being used. Either the computer operating system or the software installed on the computer can cause a serious failure. A computer crash usually looks like a blue screen on your monitor. A message appears on the monitor screen notifying the user of a serious failure followed by instructions on how to escape from the crash. Most of the time unsaved work is lost permanently.
It is a bitmap whose location on the screen is controlled by a pointing device, such as a mouse, pen, or trackball.
Default
It is an operation or value that the computer system assumes, unless the user makes an explicit choice.
(n) A hardware configuration in which devices are connected one to another in a series. The SCSI interface , for example, supports a daisy chain of up to 7 devices.
(v) To connect devices in a daisy chain pattern.
How tightly information is packed together on a storage
medium (tape or disk). A higher density means that data are closer together, so
the medium can hold more information. Floppy disks can be single-density,
double-density, high-density, or extra-high-density. To use a double-density,
high-density, or extra-high-density disk, you must have a disk drive that
supports the density level. Density, therefore, can refer both to the media and
the device.
Device
It is a generic term for a computer component, such as a printer, serial port, video card, or disk drive. A Device frequently requires its own controlling software called a device driver.
Device
Driver, or Driver
It is a piece of software that translates requests from one form into another. Most commonly, drivers are used to provide a device-independent way to access hardware.
A driver is a piece of software that lets your PC talk to peripherals, components, and other hardware. It interprets standard operating system commands to the specific, quirky needs of the underlying hardware. We’ll assume that were talking about Windows 95 here, but the same principals apply th Windows 3.1, or any other operating system. There are also drivers built into the operating system to control memory, cashe, and other basics of your PC, and the system BIOS chip holds drivers for essential components like the keyboard and floppy drive.
Driver software is written specifically for each piece of hardware, knows the capabilities of the hardware, and lets Windows 95 know just what the brand new 3D VR graphics card can actually do. Windows 95 issues such high level instructions to the graphics card as, “Draw a pinkish-red rectangle 100 by 600 pixels starting 23 pixels from the top of the screen and 39 from the left.” Every graphics card has its own particular way of drawing this rectangle, and it is the software drivers job to translate Windows95’s instructions for its particular graphics card. The same principal holds true fro printers sound cards, and so on.
Dialog
Box
The type of window displayed by Windows 95/98 when user input is needed. Usually contains one or more buttons, edit controls, radio buttons, and drop down lists.
Disk
Drive
It is a machine that reads data from and writes data onto a disk. A disk drive resembles a stereo turntable in that it rotates the disk very fast. It has one or more heads that read and write data.
There are different types of disk drives for different types of disks. For example, a hard disk drive (HDD) reads and writes hard disks, and a floppy drive (FDD) reads and writes floppy disks. A magnetic disk drive reads magnetic disks, and an optical drive reads optical disks.
Disk drives can be either internal (housed within the computer) or external (housed in a separate box that connects to the computer).
Direct
Memory Access (DMA)
A technique used by hardware adapters to store and retrieve information from the computers RAM memory without involving the computers CPU.
Directory
It is part of a structure for organizing your files on a disk. A directory can contain files and other directories (called sub directories).
Disk,
Hard
It is a magnetic disk on which you can store computer data. The term hard is used to distinguish it from a soft, or floppy, disk. Hard disks hold more data and are faster than floppy disks. A hard disk, for example, can store anywhere from 10 megabytes to several gigabytes, whereas most floppies have a maximum storage capacity of 1.4 megabytes.
A single hard disk usually consists of several platters. Each platter requires two read/write heads, one for each side. All the read/write heads are attached to a single access arm so that they cannot move independently. Each platter has the same number of tracks, and a track location that cuts across all platters is called a cylinder. For example, a typical 84 megabyte hard disk for a PC might have two platters (four sides) and 1,053 cylinders.
Disk,
Floppy
It is a soft magnetic disk. It is called floppy because it flops if you wave it (at least, the 5¼-inch variety does). Unlike most hard disks, floppy disks (often called floppies or diskettes) are portable, because you can remove them from a disk drive. Disk drives for floppy disks are called floppy drives. Floppy disks are slower to access than hard disks and have less storage capacity, but they are much less expensive. And most importantly, they are portable.
Floppies come in two basic sizes:
•5¼-inch: The common size for PCs made before 1987. This type of floppy is generally capable of storing between 100K and 1.2MB (megabytes) of data. The most common sizes are 360K and 1.2MB. •3½-inch: Floppy is something of a misnomer for these disks, as they are encased in a rigid envelope. Despite their small size, microfloppies have a larger storage capacity than their cousins -- from 400K to 1.4MB of data. The most common sizes for PCs are 720K (double-density) and 1.44MB (high-density). Macintoshes support disks of 400K, 800K, and 1.2MB.
Disk
Cashing
It is a method to improve the performance of the file system. A section of memory is used as a temporary holding place for frequently accessed file data. Windows 95/98 dynamically allocates its disk cashe.
Document
Whenever you work with in an application. A file is also a document. A file that you open in an application is normally called a document. A blank document ( new) may be named "Document 1" until you rename the document.
Dpi
Short for dots per inch. A measurement of the resolution of a monitor, printer or scanner.
Enumerator
A plug and play device driver that detects Ids, and reports to Configuration Manager during startup.
External Memory Cashe
It stores data the CPU is likely to use the most, and because it is external memory, the cashe is slower, but it does supply data to the CPU more quickly than RAM, thereby improving performance. It works as an intermediary between the RAM and the CPU.
File
Allocation Table (FAT)
A table or list maintained by some operating systems to keep track of the status of various segments of disk space used for file storage.
File
System
In an operating system, the overall structure in which files are named, stored, and organized.
File Server
A computer running on a network that stores files and provides access to them.
File Transfer Protocol (FTP)
The Internet service that transfers files from one computer to another over standard telephone lines.
Fdisk
It is to prepare a storage medium, usually a disk, for reading and writing. When you format a disk, the operating system erases all bookkeeping information on the disk, tests the disk to make sure all sectors are reliable, marks bad sectors (that is, those that are scratched), and creates internal address tables that it later uses to locate information. You must format a disk before you can use it.
Firewall
A method of protecting the files and programs on one network from users on another network. A firewall blocks unwanted access to a protected network, while giving protected network access to networks outside of the firewall. A company will typically install a firewall to give users access to the Internet while protecting their internal information
Floppy
Disk
It is a disk that can be inserted in and removed from a floppy disk drive.
In Windows Explorer, a container object, that is, an object that can contain other objects. Examples includes disk folders, the fonts folder, and the printer folder.
Folder
A named storage area on a computer containing files and other folders. It is a logical container for files and programs. Prior to Windows 95, folders were called “Directories” or “Sub directories.”
On the disk, a folder consists of a list of directory entries describing files or other folders. Because folders may contain other folders, they allow for a hierarchical organization of data. The master container of a disk is called the root directory and ultimately contains all the folders and files on the disk. Folders are represented in Windows 95 and other graphical interfaces as icons resembling file folders.
Font
A collection of characters, each of which has a similar appearance – for example, the Arial font.
Format
A Disk
To prepare a storage medium, usually a disk, for reading and writing. Usually referring to a hard disk or floppy disk. When you format a disk, the operating system erases all bookkeeping information on the disk, tests the disk to make sure all sectors are reliable, marks bad sectors (that is, those that are scratched), and creates internal address tables that it later uses to locate information. You must format a disk before you can use it.
Free
Space
It is the unused space on a hard disk.
Handle
An interface (usually a small black square) added to an object to enable the user to move, size, reshape, or otherwise modify the object.
Hot
Key
Keystrokes used in place of mouse clicks
HTTP
Short for HyperText Transfer Protocol, the underlying protocol used by the World Wide Web. HTTP defines how messages are formatted and transmitted, and what actions Web servers and browsers should take in response to various commands. For example, when you enter a URL in your browser, this actually sends an HTTP command to the Web server directing it to fetch and transmit the requested Web page.
The other main standard that controls how the World Wide Web works is HTML, which covers how Web pages are formatted and displayed.
HTTP is called a stateless protocol because each command is
executed independently, without any knowledge of the commands that came before
it. This is the main reason that it is difficult to implement Web sites that
react intelligently to user input. This shortcoming of HTTP is being addressed
in a number of new technologies, including ActiveX, Java, JavaScript and cookies
INI
File
A file, usually provided by the manufacturers of a device, that provides the information that Windows 95 Setup needs in order to set up a device. INI files usually include a list of valid logical configurations for the device, the names of driver files associated with the device, and other information.
INI
Files
Initialization files used by Windows - based applications to store configuration information. Windows 95 supports INI files for backward compatibility.
ISDN
Abbreviation of integrated services digital network, an international communications standard for sending voice, video, and data over digital telephone lines. ISDN requires special metal wires and supports data transfer rates of 64 Kbps (64,000 bits per second). Most ISDN lines offered by telephone companies give you two lines at once, called B channels. You can use one line for voice and the other for data, or you can use both lines for data to give you data rates of 128 Kbps, four or five times the data rate provided by today's fastest modems.
The original version of ISDN employs baseband transmission. Another version, called B-ISDN, uses broadband transmission and is able to support transmission rates of 1.5 million bits per second. B-ISDN requires fiber optic cables and is not widely available.
JAVA
A high-level programming language developed by Sun Microsystems. Java was originally called OAK, and was designed for hand held devices and set-top boxes. Oak was unsuccessful so in 1995 Sun changed the name to Java and modified the language to take advantage of the burgeoning World Wide Web.
Java is an object-oriented language similar to C++, but simplified to eliminate language features that cause common programming errors. Java source code files (files with a .java extension) are compiled into a format called bytecode (files with a .class extension), which can then be executed by a Java interpreter. Compiled Java code can run on most computers because Java interpreters and runtime environments, known as Java Virtual Machines (VMs), exist for most operating systems, including UNIX, the Macintosh OS, and Windows. Bytecode can also be converted directly into machine language instructions by a just-in-time compiler (JIT).
Java is a general purpose programming language with a number of features that make the language well suited for use on the World Wide Web. Small Java applications are called Java applets and can be downloaded from a Web server and run on your computer by a Java-compatible Web browser, such as Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet Explorer. Microsoft has stated that it intends to include a Java interpreter in future versions of Windows, which will enable users to execute Java applets directly from the operating system.
Legacy
It is hardware and device cards that don’t conform to the Plug and Play standard.
Local
Area Network (LAN)
A computer network confined to a single building or campus.
Internal
Memory Cashe
It is memory that
is built in to the CPU. It stores data that the CPU is most likely to need the
most.
L2 Cashe
An external memory cashe - A cashe that serves as an intermediary between the very fast CPU and the slower DRAM chips of the computers main RAM. External memory cashes include fast SRAM chips, hardware circuitry, and controlling software. Because these cashes are external to the CPU, they are slower than the internal memory cashes. Both internal and external memory cashes store data that the CPU is most likely to request from RAM. These cashes can supply data to the CPU more quickly than RAM can, thereby improving computer performance. An external memory cashe is also called a “secondary,” “level-two,” or “L2” cashe.
Partition
To divide memory or mass storage into isolated sections. In
DOS systems, you can partition a disk, and each partition will behave like a
separate disk drive.
Pipeline
A synchronous or asynchronous sequence of stages that
performs a processing task in an assembly line fashion.
Protocol
A method of accessing a document or service over the Internet, such as File Transfer Protocol (FTP) or Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP).
Proxy Server
An Internet server that acts as a firewall, mediating traffic between a protected network and the Internet.
Root Directory
The root directory is the foundation of a logical disk’s file storage structure. The root directory contains directory entries for the top-level files and folders stored on the disk.
Random access memory (RAM)
It is the main memory of a computer. The memory is considered “random access” because the memory locations can be accessed directly rather than requiring sequential access. The CPU must load application programs and the data they need into RAM before they can perform any processing. RAM is often supplemented by virtual memory, which increases the number of applications that can be run simultaneously. Ram memory is volatile.
Virtual Memory
It is a technique for increasing the amount of memory available to programs by using space on the hard disk to simulate RAM.
Volatile memory
It is a type of computer memory that loses its data when it loses power. DRAM chips (the maim RAM of PCs) and SRAM chips provide volatile memory.
Mass
Storage
Refers to various techniques and devices for storing large amounts of data.
Mass storage devices retain data even when the computer is turned off. Usually refers to a hard disk, although it could refer to a floppy disk, CD-ROM disk, DVD disk, or Zip Drive disk.
Mass
storage is measured in kilobytes (1,024 bytes), megabytes (1,024 kilobytes),
gigabytes (1,024 megabytes) and terabytes (1,024 gigabytes).
Mass storage is sometimes called auxiliary storage.
Math coprocessor
A processor (distinct from the main CPU) that performs mathematical calculations. The i486DX, and subsequent CPU models incorporate the math coprocessor in the main CPU. It dramatically increases the speeds of math and graphics functions.
Memory
Computer hardware that stores data and provides for the retrieval of that stored data. Generally, the term memory refers to RAM which is used to run applications, and temporarily store data during program execution.
Motherboard
The large, main circuit board inside a computer that attaches to all the other computer components (the CPU, memory chips, expansion boards, and so forth)
Expansion board or Adapter card - A circuit board that plugs into a slot inside a computer to expand the computers capabilities, for example to support a joystick, sound, multimedia devices, or network connections.
The main circuit board of a microcomputer. The motherboard contains the connectors for attaching additional boards. Typically, the motherboard contains the CPU, BIOS, memory, mass storage interfaces, serial and parallel ports, expansion slots, and all the controllers required to control standard peripheral devices, such as the display screen, keyboard, and disk drive. Other circuit boards are called add-ons or expansion boards.
Because the motherboard contains the CPU, all other chips attached to the motherboard can access the CPU directly without going through the bus. For this reason, it is a good idea to fill up the motherboard completely before adding expansion boards. For example, to add memory to your system, you may be able to insert chips directly onto the motherboard instead of purchasing a separate memory board.
On most PCs, it is possible to replace the motherboard to upgrade to a faster microprocessor. Replacing the motherboard is somewhat more difficult and more expensive than adding an accelerator board, but it has two advantages:
•The motherboard contains the bus, ROM, and main memory. Replacing it, therefore, improves performance of all of these components in addition to adding a faster CPU. Also, by replacing everything at once, you can avoid potential compatibility problems.
•Replacing the motherboard avoids using up one of the expansion slots.
Modem
Acronym for modulator-demodulator. A modem is a device or
program that enables a computer to transmit data over telephone lines. Computer
information is stored digitally, whereas information transmitted over telephone
lines is transmitted in the form of analog waves. A modem converts between these
two forms.
Multitasking
The process by which an operating system creates the
illusion that many tasks are executing simultaneously on a single processor.
Network
A group of computers and other devices that can interact by means of a shared communication link.
Optical Character Recognition (OCR)
A technology that is used to generate editable text from a graphic image.
Optical Disk
A storage medium from which data is read and to which it is written by lasers. Optical disks can store much more data -- up to 6 gigabytes (6 billion bytes) -- than magnetic media, such as floppies and hard disks. There are three basic types of optical disks:
•CD-ROM : Like audio CDs, CD-ROMs come with data already encoded onto them. The data is permanent and can be read any number of times, but CD-ROMs cannot be modified. •WORM : Stands for write-once, read -many. With a WORM disk drive, you can write data onto a WORM disk, but only once. After that, the WORM disk behaves just like a CD-ROM. •erasable: Optical disks that can be erased and loaded with new data, just like magnetic disks. These are often referred to as EO (erasable optical) disks.
These three technologies are not compatible with one
another; each requires a different type of disk drive and disk. Even within one
category, there are many competing formats, although CD-ROMs are relatively
standardized.
The “master control software” of a computer that allows the computer itself to operate. It is the first program to load into memory when the computer is started, and remains in memory as long as the computer is running. The operating system controls the computers use and allocation of system resources, such as processing time, memory, disk space and so forth. All applications must interact with the operating system to gain access to system resources, and all applications are limited by the operating system for which they are designed.
Password
A security measure used to restrict access to computer systems.. A password is a unique string of characters that must be provided before a logon or an access is authorized.
Path
The location of a file or directory. The path describes the
location in relation to either the root directory, or the current directory, for
example, C:\Windows\System. Also, a graphic object that represents one or more
shapes.
Pentium
The
first 32-bit Intel CPU. It allows for multitasking and the use of memory beyond
1 MB. It runs in protected mode therefore multiple programs can run
simultaneously and are protected from interfering with or being affected by each
other. Under Windows 95, 32-bit applications each run in their own, private
address spaces, whereas 16-bit applications share a single address space, as
they do in Windows 3.1.
PC
card
A computer peripheral device, such as a modem, hard disk or data storage device that is designed to fit a PC card slot, usually employed in a portable computer. PC card devices are about the size of a credit card.
Pentium - The first 32-bit Intel CPU.
Platter
A rigid disk that serves as an individual component of a hard disk. Hard disks usually consist of several stacked platters. The platters are coated with magnetic media, allowing them to store data as localized changes in magnetic polarity.
Pixel
Short for the picture element, a dot that represents the
smallest graphic unit of measurement on a screen. The actual size of a pixel is
screen dependent, and varies according to the size of the screen and the
resolution being used.
Plug and Play
An industry standard that allows computer peripherals to be automatically configured by the operating system. Plug and play eliminates the need to manually change jumpers and other hardware settings when installing hardware.
Pointer
The Arrow Shaped cursor on the screen that follows the movement (or other pointer device) and indicates which area of the screen will be affected when you press the mouse button. The pointer may change shape during certain tasks.
Port
The Socket that you connect the cable for a peripheral device to.
Preemtive
Multitasking
A multitasking technique that breaks time up into
timeslices, during which the operating system allows a particular program thread
to run. The operating system can interrupt any running program thread to run.
The operating system can interrupt any running thread at any time. Preemtive
multitasking usually results in the best use of CPU time, and overall better
perceived throughput.
The portion of a computer or a hardware device through which data passes to get in to or out of the computer device. Computers connect to devices such as printers, monitors, and modems through ports.
Random Access
Refers to the ability to access data at random. The opposite of random access is sequential access. To go from point A to point Z in a sequential-access system, you must pass through all intervening points. In a random-access system, you can jump directly to point Z. Disks are random access media, whereas tapes are sequential access media.
The terms random access and sequential access are often used to describe data files. A random-access data file enables you to read or write information anywhere in the file. In a sequential-access file, you can only read and write information sequentially, starting from the beginning of the file.
Both types of files have advantages and disadvantages. If you are always accessing information in the same order, a sequential-access file is faster. If you tend to access information randomly, random access is better.
Read only
A device, document or file is read-only if you are not permitted to make changes to it.
Read-write
A device, document or file is read-write if you can make changes to it.
Reboot
To restart a computer. To reboot a Windows 95 computer, click the start button, choose shutdown, and then choose Restart Your computer.
Registry
A windows 95/98/2000 database that provides centralized storage of startup, configuration, and other information. The registry stores information about all installed hardware and any software that has been designed expressly for the Windows 95/98/2000 operating system. The registry is one of the components that enables Windows 95/98/2000 to support plug and Play.
The Registry replaces many of the functions previously provided by the AUTOEXEC.BAT, CONFIG.SYS, WINI.INI, and SYSTEM.INI files, and by individual applications’ INI files. These files may still exist, however, to provide backward compatibility for any hardware or software needing them. The registry stores its information in two binary files: SYSTEM.DAT, which maintains up-to-date computer-related data, and USER.DAT, which can maintain multiple system configurations for different users purposes.
Resource
Windows resources include icons, cursors, menus, dialog
boxes, bitmaps, fonts, keyboard-accelerator tables, message table entries,
string table entries, version data, and user-defined data. The resources used by
an application are either part of the system, or private resources stored in the
applications program file. Also, a part of a computer system that can be
assigned to a running process, such as a disk drive, or memory segment.
Root directory
The root directory is the foundation of a logical disk’s file storage structure. The root directory contains directory entries for the top-level files and folders stored on disk.
SCSI
Acronym for small computer system interface. One type of standard interface used to connect computers to devices such as hard disks, printers, scanners, and CD-ROM drives.
Abbreviation of small computer system interface. Pronounced scuzzy, SCSI is a parallel interface standard used by Apple Macintosh computers, PCs, and many UNIX systems for attaching peripheral devices to computers. All Apple Macintosh computers starting with the Macintosh Plus come with a SCSI port for attaching devices such as disk drives and printers.
SCSI interfaces provide for faster data transmission rates (up to 40 megabytes per second) than standard serial and parallel ports. In addition, you can attach many devices to a single SCSI port, so that SCSI is really an I/O bus rather than simply an interface.
Storage
The capacity of a device to hold and retain data.
Lost cluster
An entry in the FAT indicating a cluster is in use when, in fact, that cluster is not being used by a file or folder.
Cluster
The basic allocation unit of magnetic disks storage. Clusters (also known as “allocation units” consists of one or more disk sectors. Since storage space is allocated based on clusters, even if files (or part of a file) physically occupies only a portion of a cluster, that entire cluster will be allocated to the file, and will be considered used disk space. Since file sizes are only rarely exact multiples of the cluster size, the last cluster storing the file’s data usually includes some empty space called “slack space” at the end. Clusters make it possible for the operating system to manage the files on a disk more effectively than it could if it had to work at the sector level.
Thumbnail
A small representation of a picture on a Web page, usually containing a hyperlink to a full-sized version of a graphic. Thumbnails are used pages rich in graphics or pictures more quickly in a Web browser.
TIFF (Tagged Image File Format)
A high resolution, tag-based graphics format. TIFF is used
for the universal interchange of digital graphics.
True Type Fonts
Fonts That are scaleable and sometimes generated as bitmaps or soft fonts, depending on the capabilities of your printer. True Type fonts can be sized to any height, and they print exactly as they appear on the screen. They are stored as a collection of line and curve commands, together with a collection of hints that are used to adjust the shapes when the font is scaled.
Abbreviation of Uniform Resource Locator, the global address of documents and other resources on the World Wide Web.
The first part of the address indicates what protocol to use, and the second part specifies the IP address or the domain name where the resource is located.
For example, the two URLs below point to two different files at the domain sandybay.com. The first specifies an executable file that should be fetched using the FTP protocol; the second specifies a Web page that should be fetched using the HTTP protocol:
•htttp://www.sandybay.com/stuff.exe
•http://www.sandybay.com/index.html
User Name
A unique name identifying a user account in Windows 95.
User names must be unique, and can not be the same as another user name,
workgroup or domain name.
Web
A home page and its associated pages, graphics, documents, multimedia, and other files created in Web site creation software program or application, and stores on a Web server or on a computer's hard drive.
Wizard
A Windows 95/98/2000 tool that asks you questions and performs a system action according to your answers. For example, you can use the New Hardware Wizard to detect and install drivers for new hardware you just installed.
Zip
Drive
A high-capacity floppy disk drive developed by Iomega
Corporation. Zip disks are slightly larger than conventional floppy disks, and
about twice as thick. They can hold 100MB of data. Because they're relatively
inexpensive and durable, they have become a popular media for backing up hard
disks and for transporting large files.
A
Computer Word Dictionary
Presented
By:
Jim
Faltisco
Copyright 1998, Horizon Computer Seminars
Horizon
Computer Seminars
3136
Bird Dr.
Ravenna,
Ohio 44266
1-330-296-3439
Toll
free: 1-877-297-9875
FAX
1-330-297-9532
e-mail-
faltiscoj@aol.com
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site: http://www.Horizon-Computer.Org
No part of this manual may be copied, photocopied or reproduced in any form or by any means without permission in writing from Horizon Computer Seminars. This course and all materials supplied to the seminar attendee are designed to familiarize the attendee with the operation of the computer, and software programs. We urge each attendee to review the manual provided by the publisher regarding specific questions as to the operation of a computer, software, and programs.
