Toshiba Tecra A8, SATELLITE PRO A120 manual Glossary-7

Glossary

escape: 1) A code (ASCII code 27), signaling the computer that what follows are commands; used with peripheral devices such as printers and modems.

2) A means of aborting the task currently in progress.

escape guard time: A time before and after an escape code is sent to the modem which distinguishes between escapes that are part of the transmitted data, and escapes that are intended as a command to the modem.

execute: To interpret and execute an instruction.

Extended Capability Port: An industry standard that provides a data buffer, switchable forward and reverse data transmission, and run length encoding (RLE) support.

F

fast infrared: An industry standard that enables cableless infrared serial data transfer at speeds of up to 4 Mbps.

file: A collection of related information; a file can contain data, programs, or both.

fingerprint sensor: The fingerprint sensor compares and analyzes the unique characteristics in a fingerprint.

firmware: A set of instructions built into the hardware which controls and directs a microprocessor’s activities.

floppy disk: A removable disk that stores magnetically encoded data.

floppy disk drive (FDD): An electromechanical device that reads and writes to floppy disks.

Fn-esse:A TOSHIBA utility that lets you assign functions to hot keys.

folder: An icon in Windows used to store documents or other folders.

format: The process of readying a blank disk for its first use. Formatting establishes the structure of the disk that the operating system expects before it writes files or programs onto the disk.

function keys: The keys labeled F1 through F12 that tell the computer to perform certain functions.

G

gigabyte (GB): A unit of data storage equal to 1024 megabytes. See also megabyte.

graphics: Drawings, pictures, or other images, such as charts or graphs, to present information.

H

hard disk: A non-removable disk usually referred to as drive C. The factory installs this disk and only a trained engineer can remove it for servicing. Also called fixed disk.

User’s Manual Glossary-7