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A p p e n d i c e s
178
Operating System
A group of control programs that convert
application commands,including driver
programs,into the exact form required by
a specific brand and model of microprocessor
in order to produce the desired results from
that particular equipment.
PAL
Phase Alternation by Line. The standard for
color television in Western Europe and most of
Asia and Africa..
Parallel Port
A connection to another device through which
data is transferred as a block of bits simultane-
ously with a wire for each bit in the block and
with other wires only for control of the device
not for transfer of data.
PIO
Parallel Input/Output.
Pitch (keyboard)
The distance between the centers of the letter
keys of keyboard.
Pixel
The smallest element of a display, a dot of color
on your display screen. The more pixels per
area the clearer your image will appear.
POST
Power On Self Test.A program which is part of
the BIOS which checks the configuration and
operating condition of your hardware whenever
power is applied to your computer. Status and
error messages may be displayed before the
operating system is loaded. If failures so serious
that operation can not continue are detected
the operating system will not be loaded.
Program
An integrated set of coded commands to your
computer telling your hardware what to do and
how and when to do it.
Partition
A block of space on a hard disk which is set
aside and made to appear to the operating
system as if it were a separate disk and is
addressed by the operating system accordingly.
PCI
Peripheral Component Interconnect.A local
(internal to a computer) bus standard devel-
oped by Intel Corporation.
PCMCIA
PCMCIA is a trademark of the Personal
Computer Memory Card International
Association. The Personal Computer Memory
Card International Association is an organiza-
tion that sets standards for add-in cards for
personal computers.
Peripheral Device
A piece of equipment which performs a specific
function associated with but not integral to
a computer. Examples: a printer, a modem,
a CD-ROM.