Glossary
177
extension
—See
file extension
.
external device
—See
device
.
F
file
—A collection of related information, saved on disk with a
unique name. A file may be a program, information used by a
program, or a document. See also
document
.
File Allocation Table (FAT)
—The section of a storage drive
that keeps track of the location of stored files.
file name
—A set of characters that uniquely identifies a file
within a particular folder. It consists of two parts: the actual
name and the file name extension. See also
file extension
.
file extension
—The three characters following the period
(pronounced “dot”) at the end of a file name. The extension
indicates the type of file. Examples are .exe for program files
and .hlp for help files. See also
file name
.
folder
—Also called directory. A container for organizing files
saved to a disk. A folder is symbolized on screen by a
graphical image (icon) of a file folder. A folder can contain
files and other folders.
format
—(verb) To prepare a blank disk for use with the
computer’s operating system. Formatting creates a structure
on the disk so the operating system can write information to
the disk or read information from it.
frontside bus
—The primary pathway (bus) between the CPU
and the computer’s main memory. Also called “system bus.”
See also
bus
.
G
ground
—A conductor to which all components of an electric
circuit are connected. It has a potential of zero (0) volts, is
connected to the earth, and is the point of reference for
voltages in the circuit.
H
hard disk
—A storage device composed of a rigid platter or
platters that can be magnetically coded with data. Hard
disks hold much more information than some external media
and are used for long-term storage of programs and data.
The primary (or only) hard disk in a computer is usually fixed,
but some computers have secondary hard disks that are
removable.
