| Glossary | |
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I/O capacity | The number of inputs and outputs that a PC is able to handle. This number | |
| ranges from around one hundred for smaller PCs to two thousand for the largest | |
| ones. | |
I/O delay | The delay in time from when a signal is sent to an output to when the status of the | |
| output is actually in effect or the delay in time from when the status of an input | |
| changes until the signal indicating the change in the status is received. | |
I/O device | A device connected to the I/O terminals on I/O Units. I/O devices may be either | |
| part of the Control System, if they function to help control other devices, or they | |
| may be part of the controlled system. | |
I/O interrupt | An interrupt generated by a signal from I/O. | |
I/O point | The place at which an input signal enters the PC System, or at which an output | |
| signal leaves the PC System. In physical terms, I/O points correspond to termi- | |
| nals or connector pins on a Unit; in terms of programming, an I/O points corre- | |
| spond to I/O bits in the IR area. | |
I/O refreshing | The process of updating output status sent to external devices so that it agrees | |
| with the status of output bits held in memory and of updating input bits in memory | |
| so that they agree with the status of inputs from external devices. | |
I/O response time | The time required for an output signal to be sent from the PC in response to an | |
| input signal received from an external device. | |
I/O Unit | The Units in a PC that are physically connected to I/O devices to input and output | |
| signals. I/O Units include Input Units and Output Units, each of which is available | |
| in a range of specifications. | |
I/O word | A word in the IR area that is allocated to a Unit in the PC System and is used to | |
| hold I/O status for that Unit. | |
IBM PC/AT or compatible | A computer that has similar architecture to, that is logically compatible with, and | |
| that can run software designed for an IBM PC/AT computer. | |
increment | Increasing a numeric value, usually by 1. | |
indirect address | An address whose contents indicates another address. The contents of the | |
| second address will be used as the actual operand. | |
initialization error | An error that occurs either in hardware or software during the PC System | |
| startup, i.e., during initialization. | |
initialize | Part of the startup process whereby some memory areas are cleared, system | |
| setup is checked, and default values are set. | |
input | The signal coming from an external device into the PC. The term input is often | |
| used abstractly or collectively to refer to incoming signals. | |
input bit | A bit in the IR area that is allocated to hold the status of an input. | |
input device | An external device that sends signals into the PC System. | |
input point | The point at which an input enters the PC System. Input points correspond | |
| physically to terminals or connector pins. | |
input signal | A change in the status of a connection entering the PC. Generally an input signal | |
| is said to exist when, for example, a connection point goes from low to high volt- | |
| age or from a nonconductive to a conductive state. | |
install | The preparation necessary to use a program or software package, such as the | |
| LSS or SSS, on a computer. |
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