Acc 270 Chapter 3 Terms

Front 1

Hardware

Back 1

any machinery that assists in the input, processing, storage, and output activities of an information system

Front 2

Central processing unit (CPU)

Back 2

The part of the computer that consists of three associated elements:
the arithmetic/logic unit
the control unit
and the register areas

Front 3

arithmetic/logic unit

Back 3

the part of the CPU that performs mathematical calculations and makes logical comparisons

Front 4

Control unit

Back 4

the part of the CPU that sequentially accesses program instructions
-
decodes them, and coordinates the flow of data in and out of the ALU, registers, primary storage, and even secondary storage and various output devices

Front 5

Register

Back 5

a high-speed storage area in the CPU used to temporarily hold small units of program instructions and data immediately before, during, and after execution by the CPU

Front 6

Primary storage

Back 6

the part of the computer that holds program instructions and data

Front 7

instruction time

Back 7

the time it takes to perform the fetch-instruction and decode instruction steps of the instruction phase

Front 8

execution time

Back 8

the time it takes to execute an instruction and store the results

Front 9

machine cycle

Back 9

the instruction phase followed by the execution phase

Front 10

pipe lining

Back 10

a form of CPU operation in which multiple execution phases are performed in a single machine cycle

Front 11

MIPS

Back 11

millions of instructions per second

Front 12

clock speed

Back 12

a series of electronic pulses produced at a predetermined rate that affects machine cycle time

Front 13

microcode

Back 13

predefined, elementary circuits and logical operations that the processor performs when it executes an instruction

Front 14

megahertz (MHz)

Back 14

millions of cycles per second

Front 15

gigahertz (GHz)

Back 15

billions of cycles per second

Front 16

Moore's Law

Back 16

a hypothesis that states that transistor densities on a single chip double every 18 months

Front 17

byte (B)

Back 17

eight bits that together represent a single character of data

Front 18

random access memory (RAM)

Back 18

a form of memory in which instructions or data can be temporarily stored

Front 19

read-only memory (ROM)

Back 19

a nonvolatile form of memory

Front 20

cache memory

Back 20

a type of high-speed memory that a processor can access more rapidly than main memory

Front 21

multiprocessing

Back 21

the simultaneous execution of two or more instructions at the same time

Front 22

coprocessor

Back 22

the part of the computer that speeds processing by executing specific types of instructions while the CPU works on another processing activity

Front 23

multicore microprocessor

Back 23

a microprocessor that combines two or more independent processors into a single computer so they can share the workload and deliver a big boost in processing capacity.

Front 24

parallel computing

Back 24

the simultaneous execution of the same task on multiple processors to obtain results faster

Front 25

massively parallel processing systems

Back 25

a form of multiprocessing that speeds processing by linking hundreds or thousands of processors to operate at the same time

Front 26

single instruction/ multiple data

Back 26

a form of parallel computing in which the processors all execute the same instruction on many data values simultaneously

Front 27

multiple instruction / multiple data

Back 27

a form of parallel computing in which the processors all execute different instructions

Front 28

grid computing

Back 28

the use of a collection of computers to work in a coordinated manner to solve a common problem

Front 29

secondary storage (permanent storage)

Back 29

devices that store larger amounts of data, instructions, and information more permanently than allowed with main memory

Front 30

sequential access

Back 30

a retrieval method in which data must be accessed in the order in which it is stored

Front 31

direct access

Back 31

a retrieval method in which data can be retrieved without the need to read and discard other data

Front 32

sequential access storage device

Back 32

a device used to sequentially access secondary storage data

Front 33

direct access storage device

Back 33

a device used for direct access of secondary storage data

Front 34

magnetic tape

Back 34

a secondary storage medium

Front 35

magnetic disk

Back 35

a common secondary storage medium

Front 36

redundant array of independent/inexpensive disks (RAID)

Back 36

a method of storing data that generates extra bits of data from existing data, allowing the system to create a "reconstruction map" so that if a hard drive fails, the system can rebuild lost data

Front 37

disk mirroring

Back 37

a process of storing data that provides an exact copy that protects users fully in the event of data loss

Front 38

virtual tape

Back 38

a storage device that manages less frequently needed data so that it appears to be stored entirely on tape cartridges

Front 39

optical disc

Back 39

a rigid disc of plastic onto which data is recorded by special lasers that physically burn pits in the disc

Front 40

compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM)

Back 40

a common form of optical disc on which data, once it has been recorded, cannot be modified

Front 41

digital video disc (DVD)

Back 41

a storage medium used to store digital video or computer data

Front 42

flash memory

Back 42

a silicon computer chip that, unlike RAM, is nonvolatile and keeps its memory when the power is shut off

Front 43

network-attached storage

Back 43

storage devices that attack to a network instead of to a single computer

Front 44

storage area network

Back 44

the technology that provides highspeed connections between data storage devices and computers over a network

Front 45

policy based storage management

Back 45

automation of storage using previously defined policies

Front 46

data entry

Back 46

converting human-readable data into machine-readable form

Front 47

data input

Back 47

transferring machine-readable data into the system

Front 48

source data automation

Back 48

capturing and editing data where the data is initially created and in a form that can be directly input to a computer, thus ensuring accuracy and timeliness

Front 49

speech recognition technology

Back 49

input devices that recognize human speech

Front 50

digital camera

Back 50

an input device used with a PC to record and store images and video in digital form

Front 51

magnetic stripe card

Back 51

a type of card that stores limited amounts of data by modifying the magnetism of tiny iron-based particles contained in a band on the card

Front 52

point-of-sale device (POS)

Back 52

a terminal used in retail operations to enter sales information into the computer system

Front 53

Radio frequency identification (RFID)

Back 53

a technology that employs a microchip with an antenna that broadcasts its unique identifier and location to receivers

Front 54

pixel

Back 54

a dot of color on a photo image or a point of light on a display screen

Front 55

LCD displays

Back 55

flat displays that use liquid crystals-organic, oil-like material placed between two polarizers- to form characteristics and graphic images on a backlit screen

Front 56

digital audio player

Back 56

a device that can store, organize, and play digital music files

Front 57

MP3

Back 57

a standard format for compressing a sound sequence into a small file

Front 58

handheld computer

Back 58

a single-user computer that provides ease of portability because of its small size

Front 59

thin client

Back 59

a low-cost, centrally managed computer with essential but limited capabilities and no extra drives

Front 60

workstation

Back 60

a more powerful personal computer that is used for technical computing, such as engineering

Front 61

server

Back 61

a computer designed for a specific task, such as network or internet applications

Front 62

scalability

Back 62

the ability to increase the capability of a computer system to process more transactions in a given period by adding more, or more powerful, processors

Front 63

blade server

Back 63

a server that houses many individual computer motherboards that include one or more processors

Front 64

mainframe computer

Back 64

a large, powerful computer often shared by hundreds of concurrent users connected to the machine via terminals

Front 65

supercomputers

Back 65

the most powerful computer systems with the fastest processing speeds