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Computer related glossary


ATA ATA (Advanced Technology Attachment) is the official name for what the computer industry calls computer industry calls Integrated Drive Electronics (IDE).

 

ATX ATX is a very popular specification for a desktop computer's motherboard. ATX improves the motherboard design by taking the small AT motherboard (sometimes known as the "Baby AT") that was an earlier industry standard and rotating by 90 degrees the layout of the microprocessor and expansion slots. This allows space for more full-length add-in cards. A double-height aperture is specified for the rear of the chassis, allowing more possible I/O arrangements for a variety of devices such as TV input and output, LAN connection, and so forth. The new layout is also intended to be less costly to manufacture. Fewer cables are needed. The power supply has a side-mounted fan, allowing direct cooling of the processor and cards, making a secondary fan unnecessary.

 

backside bus In a personal computer with an Intel processor chipset that includes a Dual Independent Bus (DIB), the frontside bus is the data path and physical interface between the processor and the main memory (RAM). The backside bus is the data path and physical interface between the processor and the L1 and L2 memory. Both the frontside bus and the backside bus can be in use at the same time, meaning that the processor gets more done in a given number of pulses per second (see clock speed).

 

bit A bit (short for binary digit) is the smallest unit of data in a computer. A bit has a single binary value, either 0 or 1. Although computers usually provide instructions that can test and manipulate bits, they generally are designed to store data and execute instructions in bit multiples called bytes. In most computer systems, there are eight bits in a byte. The value of a bit is usually stored as either above or below a designated level of electrical charge in a single capacitor within a memory device.

 

cache memory Cache memory is random access memory (RAM) that a computer microprocessor can access more quickly than it can access regular RAM. As the microprocessor processes data, it looks first in the cache memory and if it finds the data there (from a previous reading of data), it does not have to do the more time-consuming reading of data from larger memory.

 

chipset A chipset is a group of integrated circuits (microchips) that can be used together to serve a single function and are therefore manufactured and sold as a unit. The most common chipset reference is the input/output control chips of a motherboard.

 

Communication and Networking Riser Communication and Networking Riser (CNR), which was developed by Intel, is an open industry standard for a scalable riser card, which is a hardware device that plugs into a motherboard and holds chips for functions like modems and audio devices. The CNR architecture, and electrical, mechanical, and thermal requirements of the riser interface are defined in the specification.

 

conventional memory DOS memory, sometimes referred to as conventional memory, refers to the memory-addressing scheme used in the original IBM and compatible PCs. These came with only one operating system, Disk Operating System, and this operating system had to be designed to work with the PC's microprocessor, the Intel 8088. Because of 8088 engineering limitations, storage or memory addresses were limited to a maximum of one megabyte. (Later, of course, PC's came with 2, 4, 8, and today's common 256 and 512 megabytes of RAM.) At the time, however, one megabyte was considered a rather large amount of memory to be able to access.

 

CPU CPU (central processing unit) is an older term for processor and microprocessor, the central unit in a computer containing the logic circuitry that performs the instructions of a computer's programs.

 

disk cache A disk cache is a mechanism for improving the time it takes to read from or write to a hard disk. Today, the disk cache is usually included as part of the hard disk. A disk cache can also be a specified portion of random access memory (RAM). The disk cache holds data that has recently been read and, in some cases, adjacent data areas that are likely to be accessed next. Write caching is also provided with some disk caches.

 

disk duplexing Disk duplexing is a variation of disk mirroring in which each of multiple storage disks has its own SCSI controller. Disk mirroring (also known as RAID-1) is the practice of duplicating data in separate volumes on two hard disks to make storage more fault-tolerant. Mirroring provides data protection in the case of disk failure, because data is constantly updated to both disks. However, since the separate disks rely upon a common controller, access to both copies of data is threatened if the controller fails. Disk duplexing overcomes this problem; the use of redundant controllers enables continued data access as long as one of the controllers continues to function.

 

DRAM Dynamic random access memory (DRAM) is the most common kind of random access memory (RAM) for personal computers and workstations. memory is the network of electrically-charged points in which a computer stores quickly accessible data in the form of 0s and 1s. Random access means that the PC processor can access any part of the memory or data storage space directly rather than having to proceed sequentially from some starting place. DRAM is dynamic in that, unlike static RAM (SRAM), it needs to have its storage cells refreshed or given a new electronic charge every few milliseconds.

 

firmware Firmware is programming that is inserted into programmable read-only memory (programmable ROM), thus becoming a permanent part of a computing device. Firmware is created and tested like software (using microcode simulation). When ready, it can be distributed like other software and, using a special user interface, installed in the programmable read-only memory by the user. Firmware is sometimes distributed for printers, modems, and other computer devices.

 

gigabyte A gigabyte (pronounced GIG-a-bite with hard G's) is a measure of computer data storage capacity and is "roughly" a billion bytes. A gigabyte is two to the 30th power, or 1,073,741,824 in decimal notation.

 

graphics accelerator A graphics accelerator is a computer microelectronics component to which a computer program can offload the sending and refreshing of images to the display monitor and the computation of special effects common to 2-D and 3-D images. Graphics accelerators speed up the displaying of images on the monitor making it possible to achieve effects not otherwise possible - for example, the presentation of very large images or of interactive games in which images need to change quickly in response to user input. Many new personal computers are now sold with a graphics accelerator built in. The power of a graphics accelerator can be extended further if the personal computer is equipped with the Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP), a bus (data path) interface between the computer components involved in image display.

 

hard disk A hard disk is part of a unit, often called a "disk drive," "hard drive," or "hard disk drive," that stores and provides relatively quick access to large amounts of data on an electromagnetically charged surface or set of surfaces. Today's computers typically come with a hard disk that contains 100's of billion's of bytes (gigabytes) of storage.

 

kilobyte As a measure of computer memory or storage, a kilobyte (KB or Kbyte*) is approximately a thousand bytes (actually, 2 to the 10th power, or decimal 1,024 bytes).

 

megabyte As a measure of computer processor storage and real and virtual memory, a megabyte (abbreviated MB) is 2 to the 20th power bytes, or 1,048,576 bytes in decimal notation.

 

megahertz The megahertz, abbreviated MHz, is a unit of alternating current (AC) or electromagnetic (EM) wave frequency equal to one million hertz (1,000,000 Hz). The megahertz is commonly used to express microprocessor clock speed. The unit is occasionally used in measurements or statements of bandwidth for high-speed digital data, analog and digital video signals, and spread spectrum signals. Other units of frequency are the kilohertz (kHz), equal to 1,000 Hz or 0.001 MHz, and the gigahertz (GHz), equal to 1,000,000,000 Hz or 1,000 MHz.

 

Mini-ITX Mini-ITX is a compact motherboard configuration designed to support relatively low-cost computers in small spaces such as in automobiles, set-top boxes, and network devices. The Mini-ITX can also be used in making thin client computers.

 

MOSFET MOSFET (metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistor, pronounced MAWS-feht) is a special type of field-effect transistor (FET) that works by electronically varying the width of a channel along which charge carriers (electrons or holes) flow. The wider the channel, the better the device conducts. The charge carriers enter the channel at the source, and exit via the drain. The width of the channel is controlled by the voltage on an electrode called the gate, which is located physically between the source and the drain and is insulated from the channel by an extremely thin layer of metal oxide.

The MOSFET has certain advantages over the conventional junction FET, or JFET. Because the gate is insulated electrically from the channel, no current flows between the gate and the channel, no matter what the gate voltage (as long as it does not become so great that it causes physical breakdown of the metallic oxide layer). Thus, the MOSFET has practically infinite impedance. This makes MOSFETs useful for power amplifiers. The devices are also well suited to high-speed switching applications. Some integrated circuits (ICs) contain tiny MOSFETs and are used in computers.

 

NUMA NUMA (non-uniform memory access) is a method of configuring a cluster of microprocessor in a multiprocessing system so that they can share memory locally, improving performance and the ability of the system to be expanded. NUMA is used in a symmetric multiprocessing (SMP) system. An SMP system is a "tightly-coupled," "share everything" system in which multiple processors working under a single operating system access each other's memory over a common bus or "interconnect" path. Ordinarily, a limitation of SMP is that as microprocessors are added, the shared bus or data path get overloaded and becomes a performance bottleneck. NUMA adds an intermediate level of memory shared among a few microprocessors so that all data accesses don't have to travel on the main bus.

 

pipelining In computers, a pipeline is the continuous and somewhat overlapped movement of instruction to the processor or in the arithmetic steps taken by the processor to perform an instruction. Pipelining is the use of a pipeline. Without a pipeline, a computer processor gets the first instruction from memory, performs the operation it calls for, and then goes to get the next instruction from memory, and so forth. While fetching (getting) the instruction, the arithmetic part of the processor is idle. It must wait until it gets the next instruction. With pipelining, the computer architecture allows the next instructions to be fetched while the processor is performing arithmetic operations, holding them in a buffer close to the processor until each instruction operation can be performed. The staging of instruction fetching is continuous. The result is an increase in the number of instructions that can be performed during a given time period.

 

PPGA PPGA (plastic pin grid array) is a microchip design from Intel that has the silicon core of the microchip facing down toward the computer motherboard. The core is covered by a heat slug, which helps to dissipate the heat to the heatsink. The chip includes 370 pins that plug into a Socket 370 connector on the motherboard. The PPGA chip is less expensive to manufacture that the slot-based chip, which is why PPGA chips are used in sub-$1000 desktop computers.

 

Serial ATA Serial ATA (Serial Advanced Technology Attachment or SATA) is a new standard for connecting hard drives into computer systems. As its name implies, SATA is based on serial signaling technology, unlike current IDE (Integrated Drive Electronics) hard drives that use parallel signaling.

 

 

stepping Stepping is a number used by Intel to identify what level of design change a microprocessor was built to. Typically, the first version of a microprocessor comes out with a stepping of A0. As design improvements occur, later versions are identified by a change in the number (for example, A3) for minor design changes and by a change to the letter and number for more extensive design changes (for example, B2). Stepping allows the consumer and servicers to identify a microprocessor's version.

 

virtual memory Virtual (or logical) memory is a concept that, when implemented by a computer and its operating system, allows programmers to use a very large range of memory or storage addresses for stored data. The computing system maps the programmer's virtual addresses to real hardware storage addresses. Usually, the programmer is freed from having to be concerned about the availability of data storage.

 

Zip drive A Zip drive is a small, portable disk drive used primarily for backing up and archiving personal computer files. The trademarked Zip drive was developed and is sold by Iomega Corporation. Zip drives and disks come in two sizes. The 100 megabyte size actually holds 100,431,872 bytes of data or the equivalent of 70 floppy diskettes. There is also a 250 megabyte drive and disk. The Iomega Zip drive comes with a software utility that lets you copy the entire contents of your hard drive to one or more Zip disks.

 

 

 

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