Glossary
P
Parent directory A directory that contains other directories, each of which is then called a subdirectory See also subdirectory.
Password The secret word you enter next to the password prompt at login time to permit only authorized access. Keep your password secret and change it occasionally in order to protect your account from unauthorized use See also user account.
Path The hardware address of a device that is attached to the I/O system of your workstation.
Path name A slash/separated series of zero or more directory names followed by a filename, that together describe the path within the file system from some starting point to a destination object. Pathnames (other than the degenerate empty case) begin with the name of the starting point, and include every directory name between the starting point and the destination object. A pathname ends with the name of the destination object See also name, object.
Permissions A set of rights (read, write, execute) associated with an object in the file system.
Determines who may use the object and how.
PID Process Identifier. Also referred to as a process ID See also process ID.
PIM. Processor Internal Memory. The pim command is a command used by the Boot Console Interface for determining specific system faults. See also processor internal memory.
Pointer Sometimes called the “mouse pointer,” the pointer’s location on the display corresponds to the mouse’s location. The pointer’s shape often depends on the object its
Process A computing environment in which you may execute programs; a program currently running in the system.
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