TYAN S1867 THUNDER 2500, Manual

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Appendix 2
Glossary
PnP is an acronym for Plug and Play, a design standard that has become ascendant in the
industry. Plug and Play devices require little set-up to use. Novice end users can simply plug
them into a computer that is running on a Plug and Play-aware operating system (such as
Windows 95), and go to work. Devices and operating systems that are not Plug and Play
require you to reconfigure your system each time you add or change any part of your
hardware.
The term RAM ( R andom A ccess M emory), while technically referring to a type of
memory where any byte can be accessed without touching the adjacent data, is often used
to refer to the system’s main memory. This memory is available to any program running
on the computer.
ROM ( R ead- O nly M emory) is a storage chip which contains the BIOS (Basic Input/
Output System), the basic instructions required to boot the computer and start up the
operating system.
SDRAM ( S ynchronous D ynamic RAM ) is so-called because it can keep two sets of
memory addresses open simultaneously. By transferring data alternately from one set of
addresses, and then the other, SDRAM cuts down on the delays associated with non-
synchronous RAM, which must close one address bank before opening the next.
The serial port is so called because it transmits the eight bits of a byte of data along one
wire, and receives data on another single wire (that is, the data is transmitted in serial
form, one bit after another).
SIMM S ingle I n-line M emory M odules are the most common form of RAM. They must
be installed in pairs, and do not have the carrying capacity or the speed of DIMMs.
SIMM bank/socket SIMM sockets are the physical slots into which you stick SIMM
modules. A pair of SIMM sockets form a SIMM bank, and act as a unit. If only one socket
is filled, the bank will not operate.
In Sleep/Suspend mode , all devices except the CPU shut down.
SRAM S tatic RAM , unlike DRAM, does not need to be refreshed in order to prevent data
loss. Thus, it is faster, and more expensive.
In Standby mode , the video and fixed disk drive shut down; all other devices operate
normally.
UltraDMA 33/66 is a fast version of the old DMA channel. UltraDMA is also called
UltraATA. Without UltraDMA your system cannot take advantage of the higher data
transmission rates of the new UltraATA hard drives.
Universal Serial Bus or USB, is a versatile port. This one port type can function as a
serial, parallel, mouse, keyboard, or joystick port. It is fast enough to support video
transfer, and is capable of supporting up to 127 daisy-chained peripheral devices.
VGA ( V ideo G raphics A rray) is the PC video display standard.