`
`COMPUTER
`DICTIONARY
`
`
`SECOND EDITION
`
`THE COMPREHENSIVE
`
`STANDARD FOR
`
`BUSINESS, SCHOOL,
`
`LIBRARY, AND HOME
`
`PR!-LS8
`
`
`
`MICROSOFT PRESS®
`
`COMPUTER
`DICTIONARY
`
`SECOND
`
`EDITION
`
`
`
`THE COMPREHENSIVE
`
`STANDARD FOR
`
` BUSINESS, SCHOOL,
`LIBRARY, AND HOME
`
`
`
`2
`
`Canon Exhibit 1115
`
`
`
`PUBLISHED BY
`Microsoft Press
`A Division of Microsoft Corporation
`One Microsoft Way
`Redmond, Washington 98052-6399
`
`Copyright © 1994 by Microsoft Press
`
`All rights reserved. No part of the contents of this book may be reproduced or
`transmitted in any form or by any means without the written permission of the publisher.
`
`Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
`
`Microsoft Press computer dictionary : the comprehensive standard for
`business, school, library, and home / Microsoft Press. -- 2nd ed.
`p.
`cm.
`ISBN 1-55615-597-2
`2. Microcomputers--Dictionaries.
`1. Computers--Dictionaries.
`1. Microsoft Press.
`11.. Title: Computer dictionary.
`QA76.1S.M54
`1993
`004'. 03- -dc20
`
`93-29868
`CIP
`
`Printed and bound in the United States of America.
`
`56789 MLML 98765
`
`Distributed to the book trade in Canada by Macmillan of Canada, a division of Canada
`Publishing Corporation.
`
`Distributed to the book trade outside the United States and Canada by
`Penguin Books Ltd.
`
`Penguin Books Ltd., Harrnondsworth, Middlesex, England
`Penguin Books Australia Ltd., Ringwood, Victoria, Australia
`Penguin Books N.Z. Ltd., 182-190 Wairau Road, Auckland 10, New Zealand
`
`British Cataloging-in-Publication Data available.
`
`Project Editor: Casey D. Doyle
`Manuscript Editor: Alice Copp Smith
`Technical Editors: Mary Dejong, Jeff Carey, Dail Magee,}r.,_Iim Fuchs, Seth McEvoy
`
`Canon Exhibit 1115
`
`3
`
`Canon Exhibit 1115
`
`
`
`characters per second
`
` checkpoint
`
`chart A graphic or diagram that displays data or
`the relationships between sets of data in pictorial
`rather than numeric form.
`chassis A metal frame on which electronic com-
`
`ponents such as printed circuit boards, fans, and
`power supplies are mounted.
`check bit One or more bits that are added to a
`
`data message at its origin and scrutinized by the
`receiving process to determine whether an error
`has occurred during transmission; in the simplest
`case, a parity bit. See also data integrity, parity bit.
`check box A type of interactive control often
`found in graphical user interfaces. Check boxes
`are used to enable or disable one or more fea-
`
`tures or options from a set. When an option is se-
`lected, an X or a check mark appears in the box.
`See the illustration. Compare radio button; see
`also control.
`
`Check
`box
`
`long. This number is affected by two attributes of
`the type: its point size and the width of the letters
`in the particular
`font . being measured.
`In
`monospace fonts, characters have a constant
`width;
`in proportional
`fonts, characters have
`varying widths, and so measurements of the
`number of characters per inch must be averaged.
`See also monospace font, pitch, proportional
`font.
`
`characters per second Abbreviated cps. A mea-
`sure of the speed of a nonlaser printer, such as a
`dot-matrix or an ink-jet printer, or a measure of
`the rate at which a device, such as a disk drive,
`can transfer data. In serial communications, the
`speed of a modem in bits per second can gener-
`ally be divided by 10 for a rough determination of
`the number of characters per second transmitted.
`character string Often simply called a string. A
`set of characters treated as a unit and interpreted
`by a computer as text rather than numbers. A
`character string can contain any sequence of ele-
`ments from a given character set, such as letters,
`numbers, control characters, and extended ASCII
`characters. See also ASCII, control character, ex-
`tended ASCII.
`
`character style Any attribute, such as boldface,
`italic, underline, or small caps, applied to a char-
`acter. Depending on the operating system or pro-
`gram considered, the range of character styles of
`text might or might not include the font, which
`refers to the design of a group of characters in a
`given size. See also font family.
`charge A property of subatomic particles, which
`can have either a negative charge or a positive
`charge. In electronics, a charge consists of either
`an excess of electrons (a negative charge) or a
`deficiency of electrons (a positive charge). The
`unit of charge is the coulomb, which corresponds
`to 6.28 X 10”’ electrons.
`
`charge-coupled device Abbreviated CCD. A de-
`vice in which individual semiconductor compo-
`nents are connected so that the electrical charge
`at the output of one device provides the input to
`the next. The light-detecting component of digi-
`tal cameras and many video cameras is a CCD.
`
`Earn:
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`
`Supavlsuhscvin
`
`£13-.21
`
`Check box.
`
`check digit A digit added to an account number
`or other identifying key value and then recom-
`puted when the number is used. This process de-
`termines whether an error occurred when the
`number was entered. See also checksum.
`
`checkpoint A processing juncture at which the
`normal operation of a program or system is mo-
`mentarily suspended in order to determine its en-
`vironmental status. The term checkpoint is also
`used to describe a file containing information
`that describes the state of the system (the envi-
`ronment) at a particular time.
`'
`Canon Exhibit 1115
`
`72
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`4
`
`4
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`Canon Exhibit 1115
`
`
`
`end-around carry
`
`enhanced keyboard
`
`
`
`to secure a document. See also Data Encryption
`Standard.
`
`end-of-text Abbreviated ETX. A character used in
`data transmission to denote the end of a text file.
`
`End-of-text does not necessarily mean end-of-
`transmission (EOT) because a transmission can
`include a substantial number of error-checking
`and .transmission-control characters that precede
`and follow the text portion of the message. In the
`ASCII coding scheme, ETX is representedby the
`decimal value 3 (hexadecimal 03).
`end-of-transmission Abbreviated EOT. A sym-
`bol designating the end of a transmission. In the
`ASCII coding scheme, end-of-transmission is a
`transmission-control character with the decimal
`value 4 (hexadecimal 04).
`
`end-around carry An end-around shift operation
`on a binary value that usesthe carry bit as an ex-
`tra bit—that is, moves the carry bit from one end of
`the value to the other. See also carry, end-around
`shift, shift.
`end-around shift The act of shifting a binary
`value in such a _way that the bit being shifted out
`of one end gets shifted into the other end. For
`example, a right end-around shift on the binary
`value 00101001 results in the value 10010100. See
`also shift.
`‘
`en dash A punctuation mark (—) used to indicate
`a range of dates or numbers (for example, 1980-
`90) or to separate the elements of a compound
`adjective, one part of which is hyphenated or
`consists of two words (for example, pre—Ciw’l
`War). An en dash is named for a typographical
`unit of measure called the en (half the width of an
`
`em). Compare em dash, hyphen.
`End key A cursor-control key that moves the cur-
`sor directly to a defined position. The “end” to
`which the cursor moves varies with the program
`that is running; it might, for example, be the end
`of a line of text, the end of a screen, or the end of
`a file.
`
`endpoint The beginning or end of a line segment.
`end user Traditionally, the recipient of computer
`output; with microcomputers, a term used in ref-
`erence to the people who use (as opposed to
`design or program) computers and computer
`applications.
`engine The portion of a program that determines
`how the program manages and manipulates data.
`An engine thus differs from a user interface, with
`which the user communicates with the program,
`and it differs from other parts of a program, such
`as installation routines and device drivers, which
`enable the program to use a computer system
`and its components. The term engine is seldom
`used on its own; it is more often mentioned in
`relation to a particular program. For example, a
`database engine is the portion of a database-
`management program that contains the tools for
`manipulating a database. Rarely, engine is also
`used to refer to a microprocessor. Compare back-
`end processor, front-end processor.
`Enhanced Expanded Memory Specification
`See EEMS.
`Enhanced Graphics Adapter See EGA.
`enhanced keyboard The 101/ 102-key keyboard
`introduced by IBM partway through the life of
`the IBM PC/AT. This layout remains the standard
`keyboard for the PS/2 line and has become the
`de facto standard for most IBM-compatible key-
`boards. See the illustration on the next page. The
`enhanced keyboard (originally called the Ad-
`vanced Keyboard by IBM) differs most signifi-
`Canon Exhibit 1115
`
`
`endless loop See infinite loop.
`end mark A symbol that designates theend of
`some entity, such as a file or a word-processing
`document.
`
`end-of-file Abbreviated EOF. A code placed by a
`program after the last byte in a file. An EOF char-
`acter is a marker that tells the computer’s operat-
`ing system that no additional data follows.
`Although it seems redundant, an EOF character is
`usually needed to mark the actual point at which
`a file ends because file space is allocated in
`blocks of bytes. Thus, the true end of a file, if it
`appears in the middle of the last allocated group
`of bytes, is not the same as the so-called physical
`end-of-file (the last byte of storage space set
`aside for the data contained in the file). In the
`
`ASCII coding scheme, EOF is represented by
`the decimal value 26 (hexadecimal 1A) or the
`Control-Z control character.
`
`147
`
`5
`
`5
`
`Canon Exhibit 1115
`
`
`
`sync signal
`
`
`
`
`system administrator
`
`formance of a single musician or an entire or-
`chestra. See also MIDI.
`'
`
`sysgen See system generation.
`sysop Pronounced “siss—op.” Abbreviation for sys-
`tem operator, generally the overseer or operator
`of a bulletin board system or a small multiuser
`computer system.
`
`sync signal Short for synchronization signal. The
`part of a raster-display video signal that denotes
`the end of each scan line (the horizontal sync sig-
`nal) and the end of the last scan line (the vertical
`sync signal).
`synonym A fully equivalent substitute. In hash-
`ing, one of two distinct keys that produce the
`same hash address. See also hashing.
`syntax The grammar of a particular language; the
`rules governing the structure and content of the
`statements. Compare semantics; see also logic,
`programming language, syntax error.
`syntax error An error in the use of language syn-
`tax; a statement that violates one or more of the
`grammatical rules of a language and is thus not
`“legal.” For example, the statement a = b; yields a
`syntax error in the Pascal programming language
`because the symbol = in Pascal denotes equality
`testing, not assignment, and equality tests may
`occur only in conditional expressions. Because
`the = symbol is used for assignment in the C lan-
`guage, the same statement is legal in C. See also
`logic, semantics, syntax.
`synthesis The combining of separate elements to
`form a coherent.whole, or the result thereof. In
`digital processing of audio signals, synthesis is
`used to reproduce an analog signal, such as mu-
`sic, by combining digital pulses representing
`samples of the sound taken at intervals frequent
`enough to produce a faithful copy of the original.
`In computer technology, synthesis is used by
`a computer’s sound generator to reproduce hu-
`man speech—either by combining digitized
`words or, on a much higher level, by combining
`speech sounds (phonemes) to create words. See
`also speech synthesis.
`synthesizer A computer peripheral, chip, or stand-
`alone system that generates sound from digital in-
`structions rather than through manipulation of
`physical equipment or recorded sound. Most syn-
`thesizers can be attached to computers and se-
`quencers using MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital
`Interface). Through MIDI, a computer can con-
`system administrator The person responsible for
`trol multiple synthesizers, using ‘the digital
`administering use of a multiuser computer sys-
`equivalent of sheet music and simulating the per-
`tem, communications system, or both. A system
`~
`Canon Exhibit 1115
`
`
`Sys Req key Short for System Request key. A key
`on some IBM and compatible keyboards that is
`intended to provide the same function as the Sys
`Req key on an IBM" mainframe computer termi-
`nal. On the terminal, the Sys Req key enables a
`user to reset the keyboard or to change from one
`session to another. When a microcomputer is
`used as a terminal connected to a mainframe, the
`microcomputer’s Sys Req key can provide the
`same functions if the terminal emulation program
`supports the key for the purpose.
`system Any collection of component elements
`that work together to perform a task. In comput-
`ing, system is used in a variety of contexts. A
`computer is a hardware system consisting of a
`microprocessor and allied chips and circuitry,
`plus an input device (keyboard, mouse, disk
`drive), an output device (monitor, disk drive),
`and any peripheral devices (printer, modem).
`Within this hardware system is an operating sys-
`tem, often called system software, which is an es-
`sential set of programs that manage hardware
`and data files andwork with application pro-
`grams. External to the computer, system also re-
`fers
`to any collection or
`combination of
`programs, procedures, data, and equipment uti-
`lized in processing information: an accounting
`system, a billing system, a database management
`system.
`System V The version of the UNIX system pro-
`vided by AT&T and others. It is both a standard,
`which is principally controlled by AT&T, and a
`set of commercial products supplied by many
`vendors. Individual releases are ‘numbered——for
`example, System V.4 indicates release 4. See also
`UNIX.
`
`380
`
`l
`
`6
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`6
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`Canon Exhibit 1115
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`
`
`system board
`
`
`
`systems analysis
`
`System folder The Macintosh file folder (direc-
`administrator performs such duties as assigning
`tory) that contains the System file, as well as
`user accounts and passwords, establishing secu-
`other system files such as the Finder, device driv-
`rity access levels, and allocating storage space, as
`ers, INIT files, and Control Panel files. See also
`well as being responsible for other tasks such as
`watching for unauthorized access and preventing
`Control Panel, Finder, System file.
`system font On the Macintosh and in some PC
`virus or Trojan horse programs from entering the
`applications, the font (type size and design) used
`system. A related term, sysop (system operator),
`by the computer for on-screen text such as menu
`generally applies to a person in charge of a bulle-
`titles and items. English-language Macintoshes
`tin board system, although the distinction is only
`use the 12-point Chicago font.
`that a system administrator is associated with
`system generation Abbreviated sysgen. The pro-
`large systems owned by businesses and corpora-
`cess of configuring and installing system software
`tions, whereas a sysop usually administers a
`for a particular set of hardware components.
`smaller, often home-based,
`system. See also
`Complex operating systems such as UNIX are
`hacker, Trojan horse, virus.
`shipped with device drivers and utilities that are
`system board See motherboard.
`often not relevant to a particular hardware con-
`system clock See clock.
`figuration. Puttingtogether only the necessary
`system console The master control center for a
`components, as well as specifying important sys-
`computer system. This term is used primarily in
`tem characteristics, is part of the sysgen process.
`reference to mainframe and minicomputer envi-
`system prompt See prompt.
`ronments. For networked or distributed process-
`System Request key See Sys Req key.
`ing systems, one workstation is designated as
`system resource On the Macintosh, any of nu-
`belonging to the system administrator; this work-
`merous routines, definitions, and data fragments
`station becomes analogous to the LAN system
`that are stored in the Macintosh System file. Sys-
`console. See also console, LAN.
`tem resources include floating-point arithmetic
`system development The process of defining,
`routines,
`font definitions, peripheral drivers,
`designing, developing, testing, and implement-
`standard desk accessory programs, and initializa-
`ing a new system, whether hardware, software,
`tion routines, among others. See also resource.
`or a set of methods and procedures.
`systems analysis The examination of a system or
`system disk A disk that contains an operating
`problem, with the goal of either improving an
`system and is capable of being used to boot
`existing system or designing and implementing a
`(start) a computer. In contrast, a data disk con-
`new one. Systems analysis, although usually as-
`tains only data.
`sociated with computer hardware and software,
`system error A software condition that renders
`is essentially an electronic-age form of problem
`the operating system incapable of continuing to
`solving. The main activities in systems analysis
`function normally. Overcoming a system error
`include defining the problem, examining and
`usually requires rebooting the machine to make
`analyzing related systems, designing a system to
`the operating system work again.
`solve the problem, and implementing the new
`system failure Inability of a computer to con-
`design. The essential tasks are broad in scope,
`tinue functioning. System failure can be caused
`but they can involve considerable detail, just as
`by problems with either hardware or software,
`but it is more often associated with software, in-
`. designing and building a bridge require exten-
`sive planning, accurate measurements, and the
`cluding the operating system, than with hardware.
`ability to plan for unexpected situations. As a sci-
`System file A resource file on the Apple Macin-
`ence, systems analysis is related to Cybernetics, a
`tosh that contains the resources needed by the
`branch of engineering that studies the behavior
`operating system, such as fonts, icons, and de-
`of systems, often as abstract entities. In systems
`fault dialog boxes.
`-
`Canon Exhibit 1115
`
`
`7
`
`Canon Exhibit 1115