G L O S S A R Y

 

Glossary

big-endian

A byte-ordering method in memory where the address n of a word

 

corresponds to the most significant byte. In an addressed memory

 

word, the bytes are ordered (left to right) 0, 1, 2, 3, with 0 being the

 

most significant byte.

BLT

BLock Transfer.

bus

The pathway used to communicate between the CPU, memory, and

 

various input/output devices, including floppy and hard disk drives.

 

Available in various widths (8-, 16-, and 32-bit), with accompanying

 

increases in speed.

cache

A high-speed memory that resides logically between a central

 

processing unit (CPU) and the main memory. This temporary

 

memory holds the data and/or instructions that the CPU is most

 

likely to use over and over again and avoids accessing the slower

 

hard or floppy disk drive.

CAS

Column Address Strobe. The clock signal used in dynamic RAMs to

 

control the input of column addresses.

CISC

Complex-Instruction-Set Computer. A computer whose processor

 

is designed to sequentially run variable-length instructions, many of

 

which require several clock cycles, that perform complex tasks and

 

thereby simplify programming.

CPU

Central Processing Unit. The master computer unit in a system.

DCE

Data Circuit-terminating Equipment.

DIMM

Dual Inline Memory Module.

DMA

Direct Memory Access. A method by which a device may read or

 

write to memory directly without processor intervention. DMA is

 

typically used by block I/O devices.

DRAM

Dynamic Random Access Memory. A memory technology that is

 

characterized by extreme high density, low power, and low cost. It

 

must be more or less continuously refreshed to avoid loss of data.

DTE

Data Terminal Equipment.

ECC

Error Correction Code

EEPROM

Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory. A

 

memory storage device that can be written repeatedly with no

 

special erasure fixture. EEPROMs do not lose their contents when

 

they are powered down.

GL-2

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Motorola MVME2300 Series manual O S S a R Y