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364 Glossary
P
parallel connector — An I/O port often used to connect a parallel printer to your computer. Also referred to as an LPT
port.
partition — A physical storage area on a hard drive that is assigned to one or more logical storage areas known as logical
drives. Each partition can contain multiple logical drives.
PC Card — A removable I/O card adhering to the PCMCIA standard. Modems and network adapters are common types
of PC Cards.
PCI — peripheral component interconnect — PCI is a local bus that supports 32-and 64-bit data paths, providing a high-
speed data path between the processor and devices such as video, drives, and networks.
PCI Express — A modification to the PCI interface that boosts the data transfer rate between the processor and the
devices attached to it. PCI Express can transfer data at speeds from 250 MB/sec to 4 GB/sec. If the PCI Express chip set
and the device are capable of different speeds, they will operate at the slower speed.
PCMCIA — Personal Computer Memory Card International Association — The organization that establishes standards
for PC Cards.
PIO — programmed input/output — A method of transferring data between two devices through the processor as part of
the data path.
pixel — A single point on a display screen. Pixels are arranged in rows and columns to create an image. A video resolution,
such as 800 x 600, is expressed as the number of pixels across by the number of pixels up and down.
Plug-and-Play — The ability of the computer to automatically configure devices. Plug and Play provides automatic
installation, configuration, and compatibility with existing hardware if the BIOS, operating system, and all devices are
Plug and Play compliant.
POST — power-on self-test — Diagnostics programs, loaded automatically by the BIOS, that perform basic tests on the
major computer components, such as memory, hard drives, and video. If no problems are detected during POST, the
computer continues the start-up.
processor — A computer chip that interprets and executes program instructions. Sometimes the processor is referred to
as the CPU (central processing unit).
PS/2 — personal system/2 — A type of connector for attaching a PS/2-compatible keyboard, mouse, or keypad.
PXE — pre-boot execution environment — A WfM (Wired for Management) standard that allows networked computers
that do not have an operating system to be configured and started remotely.
R
RAID — redundant array of independent disks — A method of providing data redundancy. Some common
implementations of RAID include RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 5, RAID 10, and RAID 50.
RAM — random-access memory — The primary temporary storage area for program instructions and data. Any
information stored in RAM is lost when you shut down your computer.
readme file — A text file included with a software package or hardware product. Typically, readme files provide
installation information and describe new product enhancements or corrections that have not yet been documented.
read-only — Data and/or files you can view but cannot edit or delete. A file can have read-only status if:
• It resides on a physically write-protected floppy disk, CD, or DVD.