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IDE / E-IDE:
Integrated Drive Electronics / Enhanced Integrated Drive Electronics; a common
type of PC hard drive containing the necessary controller electronics; the enhanced version is
a further development of the IDE standard.
INPUT/OUTPUT:
PC operations or a part of the system concerning the passage of data
between various I/O peripherals and the CPU* (e.g. data input from a CD-ROM and output via
the printer).
INTERFACE:
An element of a PC, software program or peripheral device that enables
communication with other system components; the term is also used to mean user interface,
most commonly denoting the graphical on-screen display.
IRQ:
Interrupt Request; a method by which the microprocessor can be requested to suspend
its current operation and pass control to the device driver issuing the interrupt request; as
peripherals are preset to a specific IRQ, knowing which is which can help to avoid conflicts with
other devices that use the same IRQ; check your hardware manuals for further details.
MAIN MEMORY:
the storage element of a PC that holds currently used programs and all
working data; insufficient main memory (e.g. less than 64 MB RAM* with regard to the TDK
DVD0-R/RW writer) precludes the use of many modern software programs.
MASTER:
denotes a principal, controlling computer or peripheral device.
MOTHERBOARD:
also called system board and planar; the PC’s main circuit board containing
vital system elements like the processor, CPU*, bus, etc.
MPC:
Multimedia Personal Computer; the minimum hardware specifications (set by Microsoft)
for running multimedia software; modern PCs now generally outperform all three MPC levels.
MPC-3:
third-level MPC (1996).
MTBF:
Abbreviation of “Mean Time Between Failures”.
NON-VOLATILE:
refers to data that remains permanently stored on a storage medium (like
a CD-ROM but also certain internal storage chips) irrespective of power supply.
