MAD HATTER PAGE 4

 

 

COMPUSPEAK MADE EASY

Remember the good old days when offices
and classreoms needed nothing more than
the odd manual typewriter and a gestet-
ner machine?

Well those days are long gone.

Today with the introduction of highly
sophisticated, complex electronic equip-
ment it is becoming essential for em-
ployees at every level to familiarize
themselves with the new, and oftimes
confusing, terminology that accompanies
these products of the computer age.

To help those of us unfamiliar with the
Orwellian world of space age technology
here is a glossary of computer terms:

COMPUTER - a device which solves prob-
lems by accepting information, perform-
ing prescribed operations on the infor-
mation and producing results in a form
readable either by humans or by other
machines.

INPUT - the information to be processed
by a computer.

KEY-TO-DISK - the process of recording
information directly onto a magnetic
disk from a typewriter-like keyboard.
CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT(CPU) - the part
of the computer that includes the cir-
cuits controlling the interpretation
and execution of instructions.

ON-LINE - devices and data files which
are connected and available to the
central processing unit of a computer.
CATHODE RAY TUBE(CRT) - a device com
prised of a display screen and key-
board which is used to enter informa-
tion into a computer or word processor,
or to receive and display results pro-
duced by the computer.

VIDEO DISPLAY TERMINAL (VDT)- same as
cathode ray tube.

HARDWARE - physical equipment that makes
up a computer system.

SOFTWARE - the collection of programs
and routines which control the proces-
sing performed by a computer.

|

 

PROGRAM - a set of instructions which
directs a computer to perform specific
operations so as to achieve a desired
result,

MEMORY - the part of a computer that
stores information for future retrieval
and processing.

INTERFACE - the connection or common
boundary between two computers or two
parts of a computer system.

OUTPUT - information that has been
processed by a computer.

MINICOMPUTER - a small and relatively
inexpensive computer.

 

WORD PROCESSOR - a device used to deoree

manipulate and retrive pages of infor-
mation.

ELECTRONIC MAIL - the transmission of
mail or messages electronically.
FLOPPY DISK - small flexible disk
(similar to 45 rpm records) used for
low cost low capacity data storage.
Disk storage capacity is measured by K
units (Kolobytes).

DISTRIBUTED-LOGIC WORK-PROCESSING
SYSTEM - where both the work station
and central processor have separate
processing capabilities.

SHARED-LOG WORD-PROCESSING SYSTEM -
where many work stations use the logic

and capabilities of a central processor.

STAND-ALONE SYSTEM - a word processing
system which contains its own work sta-
tions and processors, usually micro-
processor-controlled.

(From Education Today, February 1982.)