Glossary
135
Internet
—The decentralized, world-wide network of
computers that provides electronic mail, the World Wide
Web, and other services. See also
World Wide Web
.
K
keyboard shortcut
—A key or combination of keys that you
use to perform a task instead of using a pointing device
such as a mouse.
L
L1 (level one) cache
—Memory cache built into the
processor to help improve processing speed. See also
cache, CPU cache, L2 cache
.
L2 (level two) cache
—Memory cache installed on the
motherboard to help improve processing speed. It is
slower than L1 cache and faster than main memory. See
also
cache, CPU cache, L1 cache
.
LAN (Local Area Network)
—A group of computers or
other devices dispersed over a relatively limited area and
connected by a communications link that enables any
device to interact with any other on the network.
LED (Light Emitting Diode)
—A solid state lamp (SSL) that
uses light-emitting diodes (LEDs) as the source of light,
which offers long life and high efficiency output. Multiple
diodes are used together, since the light created by
individual light-emitting diodes is small compared to
incandescent and compact fluorescent lamps.
LCD (Liquid Crystal Display)
—A type of display that uses
a liquid substance between two transparent electrode
panels. When an electric current passes through the
electrodes, the molecules in the liquid form a crystalline
pattern that polarizes the light passing through it. A filter
over the electrodes permits only non-polarized light to
pass to the surface of the display, creating light and dark
pixels.
load
—To move information from a storage device (such as a
hard disk) into memory for processing.
local area network
—See
LAN
.
