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`Webster’s NeWWorldD1ct1onary of ComputerTerms
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`8th Edition
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`Copyright © 2000 by
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`Library of Congress CatalogNumber-98‘68‘I‘89‘
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`biological feedback device A device that translates eye
`movements, body movements, and even brain waves into com— ,
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`biometric authentication A method of authentication that
`requires a biological scan of some sort, such as a retinal scan or .,
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`voice recognition."
`BIOS Acronym for Basic Input—Output SystemALset of
`programs encodedin read-only memory (ROM)in IBM
`PC~compatible computers These programs handle startup oper—;
`ations such as the Power-On SelfTest (POST) and low—level
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`control for hardware, such as disk drives, keyboard, and monitor .
`Popular brands of BIOS chips on motherboards sold today
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`Some system components have their own BIOS chip, whose ‘
`instructions are also read into the PC5 memory at startup.The
`BIOS on a hard disk controller, for example,stores a table of
`tracks and sectors on the drive
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`B—ISDN7 See Broadband ISDN' ,_ ,
`L bit The basic unit Lof information1n a binary numbering
`system (BInLary digiT). The electronic circuitry in computers
`detects the difference between two states (high current and low‘
`current) and represent these states as one of the two numbers111
`L a binary system: 1 or 0. These basic high/low, either/or yes/no i'L
`units of information are called bits. Becausebuilding a reliable
`_ circuit that tells the difference between a 1 and a Ois easy and
`inexpensive, computers are accurate 1n thClLI' internal processmg
`' capabilities, typically makingfewer than one internal error in
`' every 100 billion processing operatlons Eightbits comprise ‘
`1 byte, or octet.
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`’ bit depth In a scanner, the length (expressedin bits) of the
`Lstorage unit used to store information about the scannedimage
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`A common bitdepthfora home—quality scanner is 30 bit
`bit length In encryption, the length (expressed1n bits) ofthe
`key used to encode and decode the text data. The greaterthe bit _.
`length, the stronger (less breakable) the encryption g,
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`_ bitmap The representation of a videoimage stored1n a com— _ ,
`puter’s memory as a set of bits. Eachpicture element (pixel)
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