| A | B |
|---|
| Architecture | The design of a computer system which sets the standard for all devices that can connect to it and all its software that can run on it |
| Bandwith | The tranmission capacity of a computer channel, communication lines, or bus. |
| Boot | A program routine that causes a computer to start executing instructions which include a search for the operating system, load it, and pass control to it. |
| Bootable Disk | A disk that contains the operating system in a form ready to load into a computer |
| Cache | A dedicated bank of high-speed memory or a reserved section of regular memory used to improve performance, by providing a temporary storage area for instructions |
| COM port | A serial communications port on a PC |
| CPU | The computing part of the computer, called the processor, it is made up of the control unit and ALU |
| Digit | A single character in a numbering system |
| Disk | A direct-access storage device |
| EMM | Software that manages expanded memory (EMS) |
| Flash memory | A memory chip that holds its content without power, but must be erased in fixed blocks rather than single bytes. |
| Gateway | A computer that performs protocol conversion between different types of networks or applications |
| IP | The protocol used in gateways to connect netowrks at the OSI Network level (layer 3) and above. |
| Kernel | Part of a program that resides in a computer's memory at all times and provides basic services. |
| Magnetic Disk | The primary computer storage device using disks as rotating platters with a mechanical arm that moves a read/write head between the outer and inner edges of the disk's surface. |
| Operating System | The software of a computer that controls the execution of programs, input/output, resource scheduling, and data management. |
| Partition | To divide a disk or tape into independant volumes |
| Program | A set of instructions to tell the computer what to do |
| RAM | The computer's primary workspace where the contents of each byte can be accessed directly without regard to the bytes before or after it |
| SCSI | A hardware interface that enables a single expansion board in a computer to be connected to up to 7 or 15 peripheral devices. |
