| A | B |
|---|
| IDE | A method of disk drive manufacturing that allocates all the required controller circuitry in the drive |
| Enhanced IDE | Allows for 2 IDE channels that can each support 2 devices |
| AT Attachment | Known as IDE, the "AT" refers to the IBM-AT where this was frist used. Also known as ISA bus |
| ATA-33 | An ATA extension to the interface that doubles speed to 33 MBps |
| SCSI | Small Computer Standar Interface. A pathway for hard drives and CD-ROM's, but also for scanners and printers |
| Millisecond | 1000th of a second. Used to measure access speed of hard drives |
| System Hang | When a program fails, it has an opportunity to display an error message. If the system fails, input is blocked and a message won't be displayed. |
| POST | Power On Self Test. A group of ROM BIOS diagnostic tests that are performed at each power up. |
| Cold Boot | To turn on or off a computer, waiting a few seconds and then turning it on again. |
| Warm Boot | To restart via Ctrl-Alt-Delete |
| Boot Disk | A write-protected floppy disk that contains the computer's system and start-up files |
| Boot Sector | A portion of a disk that has instructions for the OS to start the computer |
| Safe Mode | This is a Windows 95 mode that is automatically loaded if Windows 95 crashes during boot up or by pressing F8. |
| Scanner | A device used to copy an image from a physical source into a computer |
| LPT1 | The label used in MS-DOS assigned to parallel port 1 |
| COM1 | The label used in MS-DOS assigned to serial port 1 |
| MTBF | Mean Time Between Failure. This is a time, given in hours usually, that predicts the failure of a device |
| Drive Interface | A collection of electrical and logical connections between the hard drive and the PC |
| LUN | Logical Unit Number. A unique identifier for sub-devices assigned to a single SCSI-ID |
| Display Adapter | A PC expansion board that converts images created in the computer to the electronic signals required by the monitor |
| VGA | Video Graphics Array. The minimum standard for PC video display which originated from the PS/2 models in 1987 |
| AT commands | The modern command set developed by Hayes company for use on its own modems and now used on most modems |
| Asynchronous | A bit synchronization transmission technique that uses start and stop bits |
