Glossary 73
Class 1: A standard for fax transmission. The Toshiba internal modem
supports class 1.
choose: To use the mouse or keyboard to select a menu item, a button or
an icon.
click: To press and release a mouse button. In Windows, refers to the left
mouse button, unless otherwise stated.
COM1 and COM2: Names that the operating system gives the
computer’s serial ports to distinguish between them.
commands: Instructions that tell the computer and its devices what to do.
You can enter commands individually using the keyboard or
pointing device or combine them into macros or programs.
Command state: A state in which data from the personal computer is
received as commands to control the internal modem. Data from the
personal computer will not be output to the telephone line.
Compression: The translation of data (video, audio, digital or a
combination) to a more compact form for storage or transmission.
In computer terms, files are compressed by removing repetitive and
blank characters. Depending on the type of file, this can result in a
size reduction of over 90%. Modems use compression to reduce the
amount of time needed to send or receive a file.
Configuration: 1) The set of components in a computer system (such as
memory, printers and disk drives). 2) How parts of the system are
set up. For example, the configuration of the serial port includes the
baud rate, parity, data bits and stop bits.
CTS signal: A Clear to Send signal is an RS-232C standard that indicates
the modem is ready for transmission.
DDAA: Data Access Arrangement is a circuit that isolates a device from
phone lines.
data: Information that a computer can process. The word “data” is
actually plural for “datum,” meaning a single piece of information.
data bits: A data communications parameter controlling the number of
bits used to represent a character. If data bits = 7, the computer can
generate 128 unique characters, if data bits = 8, the computer can
generate 256 unique characters.