Basic Input/Output System. Routines in ROM (Read Only Memory) that handle the transfer of information among various hardware components, and between the hardware and your operating system and other software.
BitA binary digit (0 or 1). The smallest unit of information a computer can process and store. The value of a bit represents a single electrical pulse through a circuit, or a small spot on a disk, that contains either a 0 or a 1.
BootThe process a computer performs to start itself up, check its components, and then load the operating system into its memory.
BusA wire or group of wires that sends information from component to component in the computer. The speed of a bus increases by the number and width of the channels the bus uses to move data.
A sequence of eight bits of data that represent one character. See also Bit and Character.
Cache
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G l o s s a r y 3