Dell TL2000 User Guide - Page 265

Glossary This glossary defines the special terms, abbreviations, and acronyms that are used in this publication. If you do not find the term you are looking for, refer to the index or to the Dictionary of Computing, 1994. Numbers 2:1 compression. The relationship between the quantity of data that can be stored with compression as compared to the quantity of data that can be stored without compression. In 2:1 compression, twice as much data can be stored with compression as can be stored without compression. A A. Ampere. ac. Alternating current. access method. A technique for moving data between main storage and input or output devices. accessor. This component contains the library robot and bar code reader. The accessor moves cartridges to and from the I/O Station, storage slots, and tape drives. adapter card. A circuit board that adds function to a computer. adj. Adjustment. alphanumeric. Pertaining to a character set that contains letters, numerals, and usually other characters, such as punctuation marks. alter. To change. ambient temperature. The temperature of air or other media in a designated area, particularly the area surrounding equipment. ampere (A). A unit of measure for electric current that is equivalent to a flow of one coulomb per second, or to the current produced by one volt applied across a resistance of one ohm. ANSI. American National Standards Institute. archive. To collect and store files in a designated place. ASCII. American National Standard Code for Information Interchange. A 7 bit coded character set (8 bits including parity check) that consists of control characters and graphic characters. assigning a device . The establishing of the relationship of a device to a running task, process, job, or program. assignment. The naming of a specific device to perform a function. asynchronous. Pertaining to two or more processes that do not depend upon the occurrence of specific events such as common timing signals. attention (notice). A word for calling attention to the possibility of danger to a program, device, or system, or to data. Contrast with caution and danger. ATTN. Attention. B backup. To make additional copies of documents or software for safekeeping. bar code. A code representing characters by sets of parallel bars of varying thickness and separation which are read optically by transverse scanning. bar code label. Paper bearing a bar code and having an adhesive backing. The bar code label must be affixed to a tape cartridge to enable the library to identify the cartridge and its volume serial number. bar code reader. A laser device specialized for scanning and reading bar codes and converting them into either the ASCII or EBCDIC digital character code. bezel. Decorative and safety cover. bicolored. Having two colors. bit. Either of the digits 0 or 1 when used in the binary numbering system. BOM or bill of materials. A list of specific types and amounts of direct materials expected to be used to produce a given job or quantity of output. browser. A client program that initiates requests to a Web server and displays the information that the server returns. buffer . A routine or storage used to compensate for a difference in rate of flow of data or time of occurrence of events, when transferring data from one device to another. I-1