Disk drive
The physical device that allows the computer to read from and write to a disk. A floppy disk drive has a disk slot on the front panel of the main unit into which you insert diskettes. A hard disk is permanently fixed inside the main unit, hidden behind the front panel.
Diskette
A flat piece of flexible plastic coated with magnetic material and used to store data permanently. Also called floppy disk.
DOS
The Disk Operating System that controls the computer’s input and output functions. See Operating system.
A type of diskette format that allows you to store twice as much data as the
File
A group of related pieces of information called records, or entries, stored together on disk. Text files consist of words and sentences. Program files consist of code and are used by computers to interpret and carry out instructions.
Floppy disk
See Diskette.
Format
To prepare a new disk (or erase an old one) so that it can receive informa- tion. Formatting a disk divides it into tracks and sectors and creates addressable locations on it.
Graphics
Lines, angles, curves, and other nonalphanumeric data.
Microsoft’s extended version of the Beginner’s
Hard disk
The enclosed unit used to store data permanently. Unlike a floppy disk, it is fixed in place. It can process data more rapidly and store many more files than a floppy disk.
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