MICROSOFT PRESS®
`
`COMPUTER
`DICTIONARY
`
`SECOND
`
`EDITION
`
`THE COMPREHENSIVE
`
`STANDARD FOR
`
`BUSINESS, SCHOOLifiAggfiIERED
`
`SSSS KS
`
`LIBRARY, AND HOME
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`
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`OLYMPUS EX. 1007 - 1I4
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`OLYMPUS EX. 1007 - 1/4
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`Copyright © 1994 by Microsoft Press
`
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`PUBLISHED BY
`Microsoft Press
`A Division of Microsoft Corporation
`One Microsoft Way
`Redmond, Washington 98052-6399
`
`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-ianublication 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.
`QA76.15.M54
`1993
`004'.05-—dc20
`
`93-29868
`CIP
`
`Printed and bound in the United States of America.
`
`23456789 MLML 987654
`
`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., Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England
`Penguin Books Australia Ltd., Ringwood, Victoria, Australia
`Penguin Books NZ. Ltd, 182-190 Wairau Road, Auckland 10, New Zealand
`
`British CatalOging~iniPublicati0n Data available,
`
`Project Editor: Casey D. Doyle
`Manuscript Editor: Alice Copp Smith
`Technical Editors: Mary DeJong, Jeff Carey, Dail Magee,jr.,Jim Fuchs, Seth McEvoy
`
`
`
`OLYMPUS EX. 1007 - 2/4
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`

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` AMPS
`
`analog display A video display capable of ren-
`dering a continuous range (an infinite number) of
`colors or gray shades, as opposed to a digital dis-
`play, Which is capable of rendering only a finite
`number of colors. Examples of analog displays
`include IBM’s MCGA and VGA displays. Compare
`digital display; see also analog.
`analog line A communications line, such as a
`telephone line, that carries information in analog
`(continuously variable) form. To minimize distor-
`tion and noise interference, an analog line uses
`amplifiers to strengthen the signal periodically
`during transmission. Compare digital line.
`analog signal generator A device that generates
`analog (continuously variable) signals, some-
`times used to activate a positioner, the portion of
`an eXtremely high-density disk drive that moves
`the read/write head to the appropriate location
`on a disk for a read or write operation.
`analog—to-dlgital converter Abbreviated A—D con-
`verter or ADC. A device that translates analog sig-
`nals to digital signals. An analog signal consists of
`a voltage or current that can vary continuously
`within a range of values, whereas a digital signal
`consists of discrete numeric values represented
`by binary patterns of 0’s and 1’s. An A—D convert-
`er periodically measures (samples) the analog
`signal and converts each measurement to the cor-
`responding digital value. See the illustration. A—D
`converters are typically used to permit comput-
`ers, which use digital signals, to “read” analog
`signals. An A-D converter, for example, can be
`used to convert sound represented as an analog
`electric signal to a series of digital samples that
`can be stored in memory, on hard disk, or on a
`compact disc
`(so-called digital or
`sampled
`sound). A digital—to—analog converter (DAC) can
`be used to transform this series of samples back
`
`
`
`Digital
`output
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`19
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`
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`analog-to-digital converter
`
`
`
`AMPS Acronym for Advanced Mobile Phone Ser—
`vice. An analog cellular communications technol-
`ogy developed by AT&T Bell Laboratories that
`relies on FDM (frequency-division multiplexing).
`AMPS is currently in use as the cellular telephone
`industry standard in the United States. See also
`FDM, NAMPS.
`AMPS/NAMPS See AMPS, NAMPS.
`analog A term applied to any device, usually elec-
`tronic, that represents values by a continuously
`variable physical property, such as voltage in an
`electronic circuit, Derived from the Greek word
`
`analogos, meaning proportion or ratio, analog
`means both variation and proportion. An analog
`device can represent an infinite number of values
`within the range the device can handle. In con-
`trast, digital representation maps values onto
`discrete numbers,
`limiting the possible range
`of values to the resolution of the digital de-
`vice. Compare digital; see also analog computer,
`analog—to—digital
`converter,
`digital-to-analog
`converter.
`
`analog channel A communications channel, as
`on a voice-grade telephone line, on which a
`transmitted signal can vary continuously and to
`any degree within defined upper and lower lim-
`its. A signal on an analog channel thus can have
`any of a multitude of values, as opposed to a digi
`tal signal, which has either of two values, repre-
`sented by 1 or 0,
`analog computer A computer that processes
`continuously variable data, such as voltage fluc-
`tuations, rather than digitally encoded informa-
`tion, such as binary numbers. Analog computers
`are typically used for scientific and industrial
`applications. A microcomputer is digital, but it
`can make use of analog information through an
`analog-to-digital converter and can convert digi—
`tal information to analog form through a digital—
`to-analog converter, See also analog, analog data,
`analog-to—digital
`converter, digital-to-analog
`converter.
`
`repre-
`is
`that
`analog data Data (information)
`sented by continuously variable changes in a
`physical property such as voltage, fluid pressure,
`Analog—to-digital converter.
`or rotation. See also analog.
`
`
`Analog
`input
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`OLYMPUS EX. 1007 - 3/4
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` analysis
`
`AND gate A type of digital circuit that outputs a 1,
`or true, only when all inputs are 1. The truth table
`shows the results of all possible combinations of
`two input signals (1 = true, 0 = false) for such :1
`
`into an analog signal, which can then be fed into
`an amplifier/speaker system. The primary charac—
`teristics of an ADC are the number of samples per
`second it can convert and the precision of each
`sample in bits. For example, high-quality sound
`stored on compact disc is often digitized at 48,000
`samples per second and 16 bits per sample, render
`ing up to 65,536 voltage levels in each sample.
`Compare digital-to-analog converter.
`analysis The evaluation of a situation or a prob—
`lem, including review from different aspects or
`points of view. In computing, analysis commonly
`involves such features as flow control, error con—
`trol, and studies of efficiency. Often the larger
`problem is divided into smaller components that
`can be more easily examined and dealt with.
`Compare synthesis; see also flow analysis, nu?
`merical analysis, systems analysis.
`analysis graphics See presentation graphics.
`Analytical Engine A mechanical calculating ma-
`chine that was conceived by British mathemati-
`cian and scientist Charles Babbage in 1853 but
`only a part of which was ever constructed. The
`first general-purpose digital computer, the Ana-
`lytical Engine, although conceived long before
`electronics technology appeared, was to have
`been capable of storing instructions, performing
`mathematical operations, and using punched
`cards as a form of permanent memory. See also
`Difference Engine.
`ancillary equipment See peripheral.
`AND A logical operation for combining two bits
`(0, 1) or two Boolean values (false, true).
`It
`re—
`turns the value 1 (true) if, and only if, both values
`are 1 (true). The possible combinations are shown
`in the following table.
`a
`b
`0
`0
`0
`1
`1
`0
`1
`1
`
`aAND b
`0
`0
`0
`1
`
`animation
`
`gate. Note that AND gates can have more than
`two inputs. See also truth table.
`
`Input 1
`0
`O
`1
`1
`
`Input 2
`0
`1
`0
`1
`
`Output
`0
`O
`0
`1
`
`The illustration shows the symbol for an AND
`gate as used in electronic schematics.
`
`Input 1
`
`Input 2
`
`AND gate.
`
`Output
`
`angstrom Abbreviated it; also called angstrom
`unit. A unit of distance equal to one ten-billionth
`00"”) of a meter. One inch contains approxi-
`mately 250,000,000 angstrom units. Wavelengths
`of light are often expressed in angstroms.
`pro—
`animation The simulation of movement
`duced by displaying a series of successive images
`on the screen. In computer graphics, animation
`can be accomplished in several ways, depending
`on the tools provided by the programmers
`choice of programming language and on the
`working environment. One approach to anima»
`tion involves drawing an image and then erasing
`it and redrawing it in a slightly different place on
`the screen. Another approach makes use of the
`creation of entire screen frames (pages), which
`are drawn in memory and displayed in sequence
`on the screen. Yet another uses built-in screen-
`
`management tools that enable the programmer to
`specify an object, a starting point, and a destinar
`tion, leaving the process of movement to the un—
`derlying software. Animation can be generated
`either in real time, in which each frame is created
`as the viewer watches, or in simulated time. In
`the latter, the computer generates still frames,
`which are then printed and photographed or are
`sent to a film or video animation camera. In this
`way, a computer can spend seconds, minutes, or
`hours generating each frame, but on replay the
`tape or film displays each frame in a fraction of a
`
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`OLYMPUS EX. 1007 - 4/4
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