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Glossary
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parallel
— Processes that occur simultaneously. In
communications, it means the transmission of more than one bit
of information at a time. On your computer, the parallel port
provides a parallel communications interface between the
computer and an appropriate device. Most modern printers are
parallel. Compare
serial.
password
— A unique string of characters entered by a user to
verify his or her identity to the computer or the network.
PC Card
— A credit-card-sized expansion card designed to
increase the capabilities of notebook computers. PC Cards
provide functions such as modem, fax/modem, hard disk drive,
network adapter, sound card, or SCSI adapter.
peripheral
— Any device, such as a printer or joystick, that is
attached to the computer and controlled by the computer’s CPU.
pixel
— Short for “picture element.” The smallest dot that can be
produced on a screen or printer.
Plug and Play
— Generally, refers to the computer’s ability to
automatically configure itself to work with peripheral devices.
When capitalized, refers to a standard that, when followed by a
device manufacturer, allows a PC to configure itself
automatically to work with the device.
pointing device
— Any device, such as a mouse, that enables you
to move the cursor on the screen.
port
— A socket on the computer where you plug in a cable for
connection to a network or a peripheral device.
processor
— See
central processing unit (CPU)
.
program
— A set of instructions that can be executed by a
computer. The general classes of programs (also called software)
are operating system, application, and utility. See also
operating
system, application, utility
.
properties
— The attributes of an object or device. For example,
the properties of a file include the file’s type, size, and creation
date.
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