| 2 |
286, 386, 486 (or 80286, 80386, 80486)
Three generations of PC processor, now pretty much obsolete, the ancestors of the Pentium. The 286 was the earliest processor able to run (just about) a version of Windows, although a 386 is really the minimum to run it properly. The 486 was the earliest processor able to run Windows 95. Slowly.
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| A |
Accessories
not available
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AGP
(Advanced Graphics Port) A special slot on the PC motherboard for the latest graphics cards, and the format of the cards themselves. Standard on new PCs from 1998.
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ASCII
(American Standard Code for Information Interchange) An early and very basic format for text files, standard across pretty much all computers and mail systems. It only includes upper and lower case letters, numbers, and standard punctuation marks, but more sophisticated text formats still tend to be based on it. An ASCII file is a basic text-only file generated by a program like Notepad.
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| B |
Backwards-compatible
A program (or system) designed to work with data generated by earlier versions of itself, even though the format may since have changed completely.
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BEDO Dram
Short for Burst EDO DRAM, BEDO is a new type of EDO DRAM that is capable of processing four memory addresses in one burst.
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BIOS
(Basic Input/Output System; pr. "by-oss") A program built into every PC for setting up very basic things, like how many hard and floppy disks you have and what type they are; the first thing that loads when you start your PC. You usually only need to access the BIOS if you are upgrading your hardware, eg adding more RAM or an extra disk drive, or setting a power-on password. BIOS settings are stored in a special type of memory called CMOS.
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Bitmap
See bmp
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Bluetooth
A high-speed wireless communication system for PCs and other computing devices. The industry is very excited about it, but the few Bluetooth devices that have made it to market so far won''t always communicate with each other reliably, so it has yet to really take off.
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bmp
(BitMaP) A standard type of graphics file. An uncompressed format, so the files tend to be fairly big.
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Board
boards
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| C |
CPU
Central Processing Unit. This is the part of the computer that is also referred to as the processor.
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CRT
(Cathode Ray Tube) The imaging technology used in most desktop monitors. Provides an excellent colour display, but is extremely bulky and is now being gradually supplanted by TFT.
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| D |
DDR
(Double Data Rate) A very fast type of RAM for a PC, originally only used on high performance graphics cards but now being used for general memory in most high-end PCs.
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Desktop
A computer designed to sit on a desk (as opposed to a laptop). In Windows, it also means the screen you see when you aren''t running any programs, with "My Computer", the Recycle Bin and so on
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DIMM
(Dual In-line Memory Module; pr. "dim") A module of RAM (memory) for a PC, replacing the older SIMM specification.
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Directory
An area on a disk for storing files, particularly in DOS. Usually called a folder in Windows
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DOS
(Disk Operating System; pr. "doss") DOS was the standard operating system for PCs until Windows 95 came out. Will run on any PC. Controlled by typing in text commands and has several serious limitations, but requires a much less powerful computer than Windows 95 and there is a huge library of software available for it.
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dpi
(Dots Per Inch) A measure of picture quality, often used to measure printer capabilities. The higher the number, the better the quality.
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Driver
A small program used by the operating system to control hardware such as a sound or video card. Often downloading the latest driver for a device from the manufacturer''s website will improve its functionality.
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Duron
A PC processor - AMD''s budget chip, cheaper than the Athlon but also less powerful.
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DVD
(Digital Versatile Disk) A more advanced version of the standard CD which can hold far more information, now standard on most new PCs. Widely used for high-quality digital movies. DVD drives can usually also read ordinary CDs.
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| E |
EIDE
(Extended Industry Standard Architecture; pr. "ee-icer") An upgraded version of ISA, now obsolete; usually used with reference to expansion cards.
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Ethernet
(Extended Industry Standard Architecture; pr. "ee-icer") An upgraded version of ISA, now obsolete; usually used with reference to expansion cards.
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Excel
The most popular spreadsheet program for PCs, part of the Microsoft Office suite
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exe (or .exe)
(EXEcutable; pr. "exie", "dot exie" ) A file which is usually the main part of a program. A program may consist of just an exe file and nothing else, or there may be dozens of files, including more exes.
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Expansion slot
A socket on a PC motherboard into which you can insert expansion cards to increase the PC''s capabilities. Most PCs have several PCI slots, plus an AGP slot for a graphics card.
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| G |
GHz
Gigahertz - billions of cycles per second. Often used as a measurement of a PC processor chip''s speed and power, with bigger numbers meaning a bit more speed, and a higher price. 1000 MHz = 1.0 GigaHertz. See also MHz.
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GIF
(Graphics Interchange Format) A popular type of compressed graphics (picture) file, widely used on the WWW. Best for pictures with 16 or fewer colours. See also jpg, compression.
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Gigabyte (or Gig)
(Graphics Interchange Format) A popular type of compressed graphics (picture) file, widely used on the WWW. Best for pictures with 16 or fewer colours. See also jpg, compression.
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| H |
Hard disk
A computer''s main (and fastest and most convenient) storage for programs and data. Originally named to distinguish it from floppy disks. All PCs are fitted with hard disks, sometimes more than one. The first (or only) hard disk is usually called C: by the computer. The most popular hard disk format is called EIDE.
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Hub
A basic device for connecting computers together to form a network
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| I |
ISA
(Industry Standard Architecture; pr."icer") A once-common type of PC expansion card, now obsolete; see also EISA, PCI.
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| K |
Kbps
(KiloBits Per Second) A measure of speed of information flow, usually over a modem. A Kilobit is a thousand bits. See also bps, Mbps.
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| L |
LAN
(Local Area Network; pr."lan") A network of computers connected together, usually in a single department or building. See also WAN.
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| M |
Mac address
The unique serial number of an Ethernet card, required for connecting a PC to a network. (Nothing to do with Apple Macs, despite the name).
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Mbps
(MegaBits Per Second) A measure of speed of information flow over a network (and if it''s measured in Mbps, it''s pretty quick.) A Megabit is one million bits. See also bps, Kbps.
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Megabyte
Unit of measurement for pieces of information : approximately 1 million bytes or a thousand kilobytes. Often shortened to Meg or just M. See also Gigabyte, Kilobyte, Byte.
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Megapixel
A million pixels. Often used to measure the quality of digital cameras : the higher the number the better the camera.
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Memory
Also known as RAM. Where the computer holds whatever you are currently working on. The contents of memory are lost when the computer is switched off.
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| S |
SCSI
(Small Computer Systems Interface; pr. "scuzzy") A fast system for controlling hard disks, tape drives, and various other add-ons. Sometimes used for a PC''s main hard disk, but more often the main hard disk is controlled by an IDE or EIDE controller built into the motherboard. A SCSI controller would usually be installed as an expansion board. SCSI is a bit faster than EIDE, but more expensive
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SIMM
(Single In-line Memory Module; pr."sim") A module of RAM for a 486 or Pentium I PC. Replaced by DIMMs on newer computers.
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SMTP
(Simple Mail Transfer Protocol). The original method of transmitting and receiving email on the internet. Still often used for transmitting, but has been widely replaced by POP3 for receiving.
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| T |
TCP/IP
(Transfer Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) A common protocol (language) which a computer can use to communicate with other computers, particularly on the internet.
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Terabyte
Unit of measurement for pieces of information : approximately 1 trillion bytes, 1 billion kilobytes, 1 million megabytes or 1000 gigabytes. That''s a lot of data.
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| W |
WAN
(Wide Area Network) A sort of group of networks, or more properly LANs, connected together.
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Wizard
A Windows feature which presents a user with simple menus or options for what would otherwise be a complex task, and carries them out automatically. Almost all Windows programs are installed via Wizards, but they are also widely used inside Windows programs.
Word Processor
A program used for creating documents, letters etc. By far the best.
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