GLOSSARY

Terms in this Glossary are provided for informational purposes only

and may or may not describe features included with your particular computer.
A byte — The basic data unit used by your computer. A byte is usually equal to 8 bits.

AC — alternating current — The form of electricity that powers your computer when
C
you plug the AC adapter power cable in to an electrical outlet.
C — Celsius — A temperature measurement scale where 0° is the freezing point and
ACPI — advanced configuration and power interface — A power management 100° is the boiling point of water.
specification that enables Microsoft® Windows® operating systems to put a computer
in standby or hibernate mode to conserve the amount of electrical power allocated to cache — A special high-speed storage mechanism which can be either a reserved
each device attached to the computer. section of main memory or an independent high-speed storage device. The cache
enhances the efficiency of many processor operations.
AGP — accelerated graphics port — A dedicated graphics port that allows system
memory to be used for video-related tasks. AGP delivers a smooth, true-color video L1 cache — Primary cache stored inside the processor.
image because of the faster interface between the video circuitry and the computer
memory. L2 cache — Secondary cache which can either be external to the processor or
incorporated into the processor architecture.
AHCI — Advanced Host Controller Interface — An interface for a SATA hard drive
Host Controller which allows the storage driver to enable technologies such as Native carnet — An international customs document that facilitates temporary imports into
Command Queuing (NCQ) and hot plug. foreign countries. Also known as a merchandise passport.

ALS — ambient light sensor — A feature that helps to control display brightness. CD-R — CD recordable — A recordable version of a CD. Data can be recorded only
once onto a CD-R. Once recorded, the data cannot be erased or written over.
antivirus software — A program designed to identify, quarantine, and/or delete viruses
from your computer. CD-RW — CD rewritable — A rewritable version of a CD. Data can be written to a
CD-RW disc, and then erased and written over (rewritten).
ASF — alert standards format — A standard to define a mechanism for reporting
hardware and software alerts to a management console. ASF is designed to be CD-RW drive — A drive that can read CDs and write to CD-RW (rewritable CDs)
platform- and operating system-independent. 341
and CD-R (recordable CDs) discs. You can write to CD-RW discs multiple times, but
B you can write to CD-R discs only once.

CD-RW/DVD drive — A drive, sometimes referred to as a combo drive, that can read
battery life span — The length of time (years) during which a laptop computer CDs and DVDs and write to CD-RW (rewritable CDs) and CD-R (recordable CDs)
battery is able to be depleted and recharged. discs. You can write to CD-RW discs multiple times, but you can write to CD-R discs
only once.
battery operating time — The length of time (minutes or hours) that a laptop
computer battery powers the computer. clock speed — The speed, given in MHz, that indicates how fast computer
components that are connected to the system bus operate.
BIOS — basic input/output system — A program (or utility) that serves as an
interface between the computer hardware and the operating system. Unless you COA — Certificate of Authenticity — The Windows alpha-numeric code located on a
understand what effect these settings have on the computer, do not change them. Also sticker on your computer. Also referred to as the Product Key or
referred to as system setup. Product ID.
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Control Panel — A Windows utility that allows you to modify operating system and
bit — The smallest unit of data interpreted by your computer. hardware settings, such as display settings.

Bluetooth® wireless technology — A wireless technology standard for short-range controller — A chip that controls the transfer of data between the processor and
(9 m [29 feet]) networking devices that allows for enabled devices to automatically memory or between the processor and devices.
recognize each other.
CRIMM — continuity rambus in-line memory module — A special module that has
boot sequence — Specifies the order of the devices from which the computer no memory chips and is used to fill unused RIMM slots.
attempts to boot.
cursor — The marker on a display or screen that shows where the next keyboard, touch
bootable CD — A CD that you can use to start your computer. In case your hard drive pad, or mouse action will occur. It often is a blinking solid line, an underline character,
is damaged or your computer has a virus, ensure that you always have a bootable CD or a small arrow.
available. Your Drivers and Utilities (or ResourceCD) is a bootable CD.

bootable disk — A disk that you can use to start your computer. In case your hard D
drive is damaged or your computer has a virus, ensure that you always have a bootable
CD available. DDR SDRAM — double-data-rate SDRAM — A type of SDRAM that doubles the
data burst cycle, improving system performance.
bps — bits per second — The standard unit for measuring data transmission speed.
DDR2 SDRAM — double-data-rate 2 SDRAM — A type of DDR SDRAM that uses a
BTU — British thermal unit — A measurement of heat output. 4-bit prefetch and other architectural changes to boost memory speed to over
400 MHz.
bus — A communication pathway between the components in your computer.
device — Hardware such as a disk drive, printer, or keyboard that is installed in or
bus speed — The speed, given in MHz, that indicates how fast a bus can transfer connected to your computer.
information.
device driver — See driver.

DIMM — dual in-line memory module — A circuit board with memory chips that EMI — electromagnetic interference — Electrical interference caused by
connects to a memory module on the system board. electromagnetic radiation.

DIN connector — A round, six-pin connector that conforms to DIN (Deutsche EPP — enhanced parallel port — A parallel connector design that provides
Industrie-Norm) standards; it is typically used to connect PS/2 keyboard or mouse bidirectional data transmission.
cable connectors.
ESD — electrostatic discharge — A rapid discharge of static electricity. ESD can
disk striping — A technique for spreading data over multiple disk drives. Disk striping damage integrated circuits found in computer and communications equipment.
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can speed up operations that retrieve data from disk storage. Computers that use disk expansion card — A circuit board that installs in an expansion slot on the system
striping generally allow the user to select the data unit size or stripe width. board in some computers, expanding the capabilities of the computer. Examples
include video, modem, and sound cards.
DMA — direct memory access — A channel that allows certain types of data transfer
between RAM and a device to bypass the processor. expansion slot — A connector on the system board (in some computers) where you
insert an expansion card, connecting it to the system bus.
DisplayPort — An interface standard of the Video Electronics Standards Association
(VESA) used for digital displays. ExpressCard — A removable I/O card adhering to the PCMCIA standard. Modems
and network adapters are common types of ExpressCards. ExpressCards support both
DMTF — Distributed Management Task Force — A consortium of hardware and the PCI Express and USB 2.0 standard.
software companies who develop management standards for distributed desktop,
network, enterprise, and Internet environments. Express Service Code — A numeric code located on a sticker on your Dell™
computer. Use the Express Service Code when contacting Dell for assistance. Express
domain — A group of computers, programs, and devices on a network that are Service Code service may not be available in some countries. Also see Service Tag.
administered as a unit with common rules and procedures for use by a specific group
of users. A user logs on to the domain to gain access to the resources. extended display mode — A display setting that allows you to use a second monitor as
an extension of your display. Also referred to as dual display mode.
DRAM — dynamic random-access memory — Memory that stores information in
integrated circuits containing capacitors. extended PC Card — A PC Card that extends beyond the edge of the PC Card slot
when installed.
driver — Software that allows the operating system to control a device such as a
printer. Many devices do not work properly if the correct driver is not installed in the
computer.
F
DSL — Digital Subscriber Line — A technology that provides a constant, high-speed Fahrenheit — A temperature measurement scale where 32° is the freezing point and
Internet connection through an analog telephone line. 212° is the boiling point of water.

dual-core — A technology in which two physical computational units exist inside a FBD — fully-buffered DIMM — A DIMM with DDR2 DRAM chips and an
single processor package, thereby increasing computing efficiency and multi-tasking Advanced Memory Buffer (AMB) that speeds communication between the DDR2
ability. SDRAM chips and the system.

dual display mode — A display setting that allows you to use a second monitor as an FCC — Federal Communications Commission — A U.S. agency responsible for
extension of your display. Also referred to as extended display mode. enforcing communications-related regulations that state how much radiation
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DVD-R — DVD recordable — A recordable version of a DVD. Data can be recorded computers and other electronic equipment can emit.
only once onto a DVD-R. Once recorded, the data cannot be erased or written over.
fingerprint reader — A strip sensor that uses your unique fingerprint to authenticate
DVD+RW — DVD rewritable — A rewritable version of a DVD. Data can be written your user identity to help secure your computer.
to a DVD+RW disc, and then erased and written over (rewritten). (DVD+RW
technology is different from DVD-RW technology.) folder — A term used to describe space on a disk or drive where files are organized and
grouped. Files in a folder can be viewed and ordered in various ways, such as
DVD+RW drive — drive that can read DVDs and most CD media and write to alphabetically, by date, and by size.
DVD+RW (rewritable DVDs) discs.
format — The process that prepares a drive or disk for file storage. When a drive or
DVI — digital video interface — A standard for digital transmission between a disk is formatted, the existing information on it is lost.
computer and a digital video display.
FSB — front side bus — The data path and physical interface between the processor
E and RAM.

FTP — file transfer protocol — A standard Internet protocol used to exchange files
ECC — error checking and correction — A type of memory that includes special between computers connected to the Internet.
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circuitry for testing the accuracy of data as it passes in and out of memory.
G
ECP — extended capabilities port — A parallel connector design that provides
improved bidirectional data transmission. Similar to EPP, ECP uses direct memory G — gravity — A measurement of weight and force.
access to transfer data and often improves performance.
GB — gigabyte — A measurement of data storage that equals 1024 MB
EIDE — enhanced integrated device electronics — An improved version of the IDE (1,073,741,824 bytes). When used to refer to hard drive storage, the term is often
interface for hard drives and CD drives. rounded to 1,000,000,000 bytes.
GHz — gigahertz — A measurement of frequency that equals one thousand million numbers for a fee.
Hz, or one thousand MHz. The speeds for computer processors, buses, and interfaces 346
are often measured in GHz.

graphics mode — A video mode that can be defined as x horizontal pixels by y vertical K
pixels by z colors. Graphics modes can display an unlimited variety of shapes and
fonts. Kb — kilobit — A unit of data that equals 1024 bits. A measurement of the capacity of
memory integrated circuits.
GUI — graphical user interface — Software that interacts with the user by means of
menus, windows, and icons. Most programs that operate on the Windows operating KB — kilobyte — A unit of data that equals 1024 bytes but is often referred to as
systems are GUIs. 1000 bytes.

H key combination — A command requiring you to press multiple keys at the same
time.

hard drive — A drive that reads and writes data on a hard disk. The terms hard drive kHz — kilohertz — A measurement of frequency that equals 1000 Hz.
and hard disk are often used interchangeably.

heat sink — A metal plate on some processors that helps dissipate heat. L
hibernate mode — A power management mode that saves everything in memory to a LAN — local area network — A computer network covering a small area. A LAN
reserved space on the hard drive and then turns off the computer. When you restart usually is confined to a building or a few nearby buildings. A LAN can be connected to
the computer, the memory information that was saved to the hard drive is another LAN over any distance through telephone lines and radio waves to form a
automatically restored. wide area network (WAN).
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LCD — liquid crystal display — The technology used by laptop computer and flatpanel
HTTP — hypertext transfer protocol — A protocol for exchanging files between displays.
computers connected to the Internet.
LED — light-emitting diode — An electronic component that emits light to indicate
Hz — hertz — A unit of frequency measurement that equals 1 cycle per second. the status of the computer.
Computers and electronic devices are often measured in kilohertz (kHz), megahertz
(MHz), gigahertz (GHz), or terahertz (THz). local bus — A data bus that provides a fast throughput for devices to the processor.

I LPT — line print terminal — The designation for a parallel connection to a printer or
other parallel device.

IC — integrated circuit — A semiconductor wafer, or chip, on which thousands or

millions of tiny electronic components are fabricated for use in computer, audio, and M
video equipment.
Mb — megabit — A measurement of memory chip capacity that equals 1024 Kb.
IDE — integrated device electronics — An interface for mass storage devices in which
the controller is integrated into the hard drive or CD drive.
Mbps — megabits per second — One million bits per second. This measurement is
typically used for transmission speeds for networks and modems.
IEEE 1394 — Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. — A highperformance
serial bus used to connect IEEE 1394-compatible devices, such as digital
MB — megabyte — A measurement of data storage that equals 1,048,576 bytes. 1 MB
cameras and DVD players, to the computer.
equals 1024 KB. When used to refer to hard drive storage, the term is often rounded to
1,000,000 bytes.
infrared sensor — A port that allows you to transfer data between the computer and
infrared-compatible devices without using a cable connection.
MB/sec — megabytes per second — One million bytes per second. This measurement
is typically used for data transfer ratings.
integrated — Usually refers to components that are physically located on the
computer’s system board. Also referred to as built-in.
media bay — A bay that supports devices such as optical drives, a second battery, or a
Dell TravelLite™ module.
I/O — input/output — An operation or device that enters and extracts data from your
computer. Keyboards and printers are I/O devices.
memory — A temporary data storage area inside your computer. Because the data in
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I/O address — An address in RAM that is associated with a specific device (such as a
memory is not permanent, it is recommended that you frequently save your files while
serial connector, parallel connector, or expansion slot) and allows the processor to
you are working on them, and always save your files before you shut down the
communicate with that device.
computer. Your computer can contain several different forms of memory, such as
RAM, ROM, and video memory. Frequently, the word memory is used as a synonym
IrDA — Infrared Data Association — The organization that creates international for RAM.
standards for infrared communications.
memory address — A specific location where data is temporarily stored in RAM.
IRQ — interrupt request — An electronic pathway assigned to a specific device so
that the device can communicate with the processor. Each device connection must be
memory mapping — The process by which the computer assigns memory addresses to
assigned an IRQ. Although two devices can share the same IRQ assignment, you
physical locations at start-up. Devices and software can then identify information that
cannot operate both devices simultaneously.
the processor can access.
ISP — Internet service provider — A company that allows you to access its host server
memory module — A small circuit board containing memory chips, which connects to
to connect directly to the Internet, send and receive e-mail, and access websites. The
the system board.
ISP typically provides you with a software package, user name, and access phone

MHz — megahertz — A measure of frequency that equals 1 million cycles per second. PCMCIA — Personal Computer Memory Card International Association — The
The speeds for computer processors, buses, and interfaces are often measured in MHz. organization that establishes standards for PC Cards.

Mini PCI — A standard for integrated peripheral devices with an emphasis on PIO — programmed input/output — A method of transferring data between two
communications such as modems and NICs. A Mini PCI card is a small external card devices through the processor as part of the data path.
that is functionally equivalent to a standard PCI expansion card.
pixel — A single point on a display screen. Pixels are arranged in rows and columns to
Mini-Card — A small card designed for integrated peripherals, such as create an image. A video resolution, such as 800 x 600, is expressed as the number of
communication NICs. The Mini-Card is functionally equivalent to a standard PCI pixels across by the number of pixels up and down.
expansion card.
Plug-and-Play — The ability of the computer to automatically configure devices. Plug
modem — A device that allows your computer to communicate with other computers and Play provides automatic installation, configuration, and compatibility with
over analog telephone lines. Three types of modems include: external, PC Card, and existing hardware if the BIOS, operating system, and all devices are Plug and Play
internal. You typically use your modem to connect to the Internet and exchange compliant.
e-mail.
POST — power-on self-test — Diagnostics programs, loaded automatically by the
module bay — See media bay. 349
BIOS, that perform basic tests on the major computer components, such as memory,
MP — megapixel — A measure of image resolution used for digital cameras. hard drives, and video. If no problems are detected during POST, the computer
continues the start-up.
ms — millisecond — A measure of time that equals one thousandth of a second.
Access times of storage devices are often measured in ms. processor — A computer chip that interprets and executes program instructions.
Sometimes the processor is referred to as the CPU (central processing unit).
N PS/2 — personal system/2 — A type of connector for attaching a PS/2-compatible
keyboard, mouse, or keypad.
network adapter — A chip that provides network capabilities. A computer may
include a network adapter on its system board, or it may contain a PC Card with an PXE — pre-boot execution environment — A WfM (Wired for Management)
adapter on it. A network adapter is also referred to as a NIC (network interface standard that allows networked computers that do not have an operating system to be
controller). configured and started remotely.

NIC — See network adapter. R

notification area — The section of the Windows taskbar that contains icons for
providing quick access to programs and computer functions, such as the clock, volume RAID — redundant array of independent disks — A method of providing data
control, and print status. Also referred to as system tray. redundancy. Some common implementations of RAID include RAID 0, RAID 1,
348 RAID 5, RAID 10, and RAID 50.

ns — nanosecond — A measure of time that equals one billionth of a second. RAM — random-access memory — The primary temporary storage area for program
instructions and data. Any information stored in RAM is lost when you shut down your
NVRAM — nonvolatile random access memory — A type of memory that stores data computer.
when the computer is turned off or loses its external power source. NVRAM is used for
maintaining computer configuration information such as date, time, and other system readme file — A text file included with a software package or hardware product.
setup options that you can set. Typically, readme files provide installation information and describe new product
enhancements or corrections that have not yet been documented.

O read-only — Data and/or files you can view but cannot edit or delete. A file can have
read-only status if:
optical drive — A drive that uses optical technology to read or write data from CDs, • It resides on a physical CD or DVD.
DVDs, or DVD+RWs. Example of optical drives include CD drives, DVD drives, • It is located on a network in a directory and the system administrator has assigned
CD-RW drives, and CD-RW/DVD combo drives. rights only to specific individuals.

refresh rate — The frequency, measured in Hz, at which your screen's horizontal lines
P are recharged (sometimes also referred to as its vertical frequency). The higher the
refresh rate, the less video flicker can be seen by the human eye.
partition — A physical storage area on a hard drive that is assigned to one or more
resolution — The sharpness and clarity of an image produced by a printer or displayed
logical storage areas known as logical drives. Each partition can contain multiple
on a monitor. The higher the resolution, the sharper the image.
logical drives.
RFI — radio frequency interference — Interference that is generated at typical radio
PC Card — A removable I/O card adhering to the PCMCIA standard. Modems and
frequencies, in the range of 10 kHz to 100,000 MHz. Radio frequencies are at the
network adapters are common types of PC Cards.
lower end of the electromagnetic frequency spectrum and are more likely to have
interference than the higher frequency radiations, such as infrared and light.
PCI — peripheral component interconnect — PCI is a local bus that supports 32-and
64-bit data paths, providing a high-speed data path between the processor and devices
ROM — read-only memory — Memory that stores data and programs that cannot be
such as video, drives, and networks.
deleted or written to by the computer. ROM, unlike RAM, retains its contents after
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PCI Express — A modification to the PCI interface that boosts the data transfer rate
you shut down your computer. Some programs essential to the operation of your
between the processor and the devices attached to it. PCI Express can transfer data at
computer reside in ROM.
speeds from 250 MB/sec to 4 GB/sec. If the PCI Express chip set and the device are
capable of different speeds, they will operate at the slower speed.
RPM — revolutions per minute — The number of rotations that occur per minute.
Hard drive speed is often measured in rpm. Network connections cannot be protected by surge protectors. Always disconnect the
network cable from the network connector during electrical storms.
RTC — real time clock — Battery-powered clock on the system board that keeps the
date and time after you shut down the computer. SVGA — super-video graphics array — A video standard for video cards and
controllers. Typical SVGA resolutions are 800 x 600 and 1024 x 768.
RTCRST — real-time clock reset — A jumper on the system board of some computers The number of colors and resolution that a program displays depends on the
that can often be used for troubleshooting problems. capabilities of the monitor, the video controller and its drivers, and the amount of
video memory installed in the computer.

S S-video TV-out — A connector used to attach a TV or digital audio device to the

computer.
SAS — serial attached SCSI — A faster, serial version of the SCSI interface (as
opposed to the original SCSI parallel architecture). SXGA — super-extended graphics array — A video standard for video cards and
controllers that supports resolutions up to 1280 x 1024.
SATA — serial ATA — A faster, serial version of the ATA (IDE) interface.
SXGA+ — super-extended graphics array plus — A video standard for video cards and
ScanDisk — A Microsoft utility that checks files, folders, and the hard disk’s surface controllers that supports resolutions up to 1400 x 1050.
for errors. ScanDisk often runs when you restart the computer after it has stopped
responding. system board — The main circuit board in your computer. Also known as the
motherboard.
SCSI — small computer system interface — A high-speed interface used to connect
devices to a computer, such as hard drives, CD drives, printers, and scanners. The system setup — A utility that serves as an interface between the computer hardware
SCSI can connect many devices using a single controller. Each device is accessed by an and the operating system. System setup allows you to configure user-selectable options
individual identification number on the SCSI controller bus. in the BIOS, such as date and time or system password. Unless you understand what
effect the settings have on the computer, do not change the settings for this program.
SDRAM — synchronous dynamic random-access memory — A type of DRAM that is
synchronized with the optimal clock speed of the processor. T
serial connector — An I/O port often used to connect devices such as a handheld
digital device or digital camera to your computer. TAPI — telephony application programming interface — Enables Windows programs
to operate with a wide variety of telephony devices, including voice, data, fax, and
Service Tag — A bar code label on your computer that identifies your computer when 352
video.
you access Dell Support at support.dell.com or when you call Dell for customer service
text editor — A program used to create and edit files that contain only text; for
or technical support. Also see Express Service Code. example, Windows Notepad uses a text editor. Text editors do not usually provide
word wrap or formatting functionality (the option to underline, change fonts, and
so on).
setup program — A program that is used to install and configure hardware and
TPM — trusted platform module — A hardware-based security feature that when
software. The setup.exe or install.exe program comes with most Windows software
combined with security software enhances network and computer security by enabling
packages. Setup program differs from system setup.
features such as file and e-mail protection.
shortcut — An icon that provides quick access to frequently used programs, files,
travel module — A plastic device designed to fit inside the module bay of a laptop
folders, and drives. When you place a shortcut on your Windows desktop and doubleclick
computer to reduce the weight of the computer.
the icon, you can open its corresponding folder or file without having to find it
first. Shortcut icons do not change the location of files. If you delete a shortcut, the
original file is not affected. Also, you can rename a shortcut icon. U
SIM — Subscriber Identity Module — A SIM card contains a microchip that encrypts
voice and data transmissions. SIM cards can be used in phones or laptop computers. UMA — unified memory allocation — System memory dynamically allocated to
351 video.

smart card — A card that is embedded with a processor and a memory chip. Smart UPS — uninterruptible power supply — A backup power source used when the
cards can be used to authenticate a user on computers equipped for smart cards. electrical power fails or drops to an unacceptable voltage level. A UPS keeps a
computer running for a limited amount of time when there is no electrical power. UPS
systems typically provide surge suppression and may also provide voltage regulation.
S/PDIF — Sony/Philips Digital Interface — An audio transfer file format that allows Small UPS systems provide battery power for a few minutes to enable you to shut
the transfer of audio from one file to another without converting it to and from an down your computer.
analog format, which could degrade the quality of the file.
USB — universal serial bus — A hardware interface for a low-speed device such as a
standby mode — A power management mode that shuts down all unnecessary USB-compatible keyboard, mouse, joystick, scanner, set of speakers, printer,
computer operations to save energy. broadband devices (DSL and cable modems), imaging devices, or storage devices.
Devices are plugged directly in to a 4-pin socket on your computer or in to a multi-port
Strike Zone™ — Reinforced area of the platform base that protects the hard drive by hub that plugs in to your computer. USB devices can be connected and disconnected
acting as a dampening device when a computer experiences resonating shock or is while the computer is turned on, and they can also be daisy-chained together.
dropped (whether the computer is on or off).
UTP — unshielded twisted pair — Describes a type of cable used in most telephone
surge protectors — Prevent voltage spikes, such as those that may occur during an networks and some computer networks. Pairs of unshielded wires are twisted to protect
electrical storm, from entering the computer through the electrical outlet. Surge against electromagnetic interference, rather than relying on a metal sheath around
protectors do not protect against lightning strikes or against brownouts, which occur each pair of wires to protect against interference.
when the voltage drops more than 20 percent below the normal AC-line voltage level.

UXGA — ultra extended graphics array — A video standard for video cards and Zip — A popular data compression format. Files that have been compressed with the
controllers that supports resolutions up to 1600 x 1200.
Zip format are called Zip files and usually have a filename extension of.zip. A special
V kind of zipped file is a self-extracting file, which has a filename extension of.exe. You
can unzip a self-extracting file by double-clicking it.
video controller — The circuitry on a video card or on the system board (in computers
with an integrated video controller) that provides the video capabilities—in Zip drive — A high-capacity floppy drive developed by Iomega Corporation that uses
combination with the monitor—for your computer. 3.5-inch removable disks called Zip disks. Zip disks are slightly larger than regular
353 floppy disks, about twice as thick, and hold up to 250 MB of data.

video memory — Memory that consists of memory chips dedicated to video functions.
Video memory is usually faster than system memory. The amount of video memory
installed primarily influences the number of colors that a program can display.

video mode — A mode that describes how text and graphics are displayed on a
monitor. Graphics-based software, such as Windows operating systems, displays in
video modes that can be defined as x horizontal pixels by y vertical pixels by z colors.
Character-based software, such as text editors, displays in video modes that can be
defined as x columns by y rows of characters.

video resolution — See resolution.

virus — A program that is designed to inconvenience you or to destroy data stored on

your computer. A virus program moves from one computer to another through an
infected disk, software downloaded from the Internet, or e-mail attachments. When
an infected program starts, its embedded virus also starts.

V — volt — The measurement of electric potential or electromotive force. One V

appears across a resistance of 1 ohm when a current of 1 ampere flows through that
resistance.

W — watt — The measurement of electrical power. One W is 1 ampere of current

flowing at 1 volt.

WHr — watt-hour — A unit of measure commonly used to indicate the approximate

capacity of a battery. For example, a 66-WHr battery can supply 66 W of power for
1 hour or 33 W for 2 hours.

wallpaper — The background pattern or picture on the Windows desktop. Change

your wallpaper through the Windows Control Panel. You can also scan in your favorite
picture and make it wallpaper.

WLAN — wireless local area network. A series of interconnected computers that

communicate with each other over the air waves using access points or wireless routers
to provide Internet access.

write-protected — Files or media that cannot be changed. Use write-protection when

you want to protect data from being changed or destroyed.

WWAN — wireless wide area network. A wireless high-speed data network using
cellular technology and covering a much larger geographic area than WLAN.

WXGA — wide-aspect extended graphics array — A video standard for video cards
and controllers that supports resolutions up to 1280 x 800.

XGA — extended graphics array — A video standard for video cards and controllers
that supports resolutions up to 1024 x 768.

ZIF — zero insertion force — A type of socket or connector that allows a computer
chip to be installed or removed with no stress applied to either the chip or its socket.