Used Laptops Glossary

10/100BASE ETHERNET CARD

Provides either 10 MB or 100 MB Ethernet connections depending on used network. These Ethernet cards are used for network connections, as well as connecting high-speed modems (e.g. DSL or cable modems) to your laptop.

BUFFER

An amount of memory, which temporarily stores data to help compensate for differences in the transfer rate of data from one device to another.

BUS

The connection or path between the CPU and the input/output (I/O) devices of the connection between two processors.

CACHE

Portion of a processor that holds recently accessed data. It is designed to speed up the subsequent accesses to the same data. When data is read the first time, a copy is saved in the cache, along with its address. The cache is normally constructed with faster memory chips than those in the main memory, so that data returned from the cache is delivered faster than from the main memory.

DRAM (DYNAMIC RANDOM ACCESS MEMORY)

A type of memory component in which the memory cells require periodic recharging.

DRIVER

Software that comes with a peripheral. Drivers allow the peripheral to communicate with the laptop. Here is a web page that should give you some more information:  What are Software Drivers.

DVD (DIGITAL VIDEO DISC)

Refers to an optical disc with multiple data layers that exceeds the capacity of a standard CD-ROM and that may contain video, audio, or any other type of digital data.

ETHERNET

Ethernet is a LAN in which the different nodes on the network are connected by a coaxial cable. The Ethernet standard is able to transmit data at a rate of 10 mbps.


FAST ETHERNET (100BASE)

A shared language media of LANs, it transmits at a leading rate of 100 Mbps.

FIRE WIRE

Also referred to as IEEE 1394, this is a high-speed external connection used for connecting peripherals.

GB (GIGABYTE)

1,023,741,824 bytes (1024 megabytes).

I/O (INPUT/OUTPUT)

Flow of information to and from laptops and their attached devices.

LAN (LOCAL AREA NETWORK)

A LAN is a group of PC's, other computers & peripherals, all linked together, so that each device is located in close proximity to all the other devices.

NI-CD BATTERY

Re-chargeable battery. To optimize performance, this type of battery should be completely discharged before recharging.

NI-MH BATTERY

A type of rechargeable battery that usually has a longer life than the Ni-Cd Battery. This battery can be recharged at any time without damage.

PASSIVE-MATRIX SCREENS

Flat panel display technology comprised of a grid of horizontal and vertical wires with an LCD controller at every pixel.
 

PCMCIA Slots

Short for Personal Computer Memory Card International Association, and pronounced as separate letters.  You can find out more by viewing this faq page.  In addition this is a more in-depth description here.

PIXEL

The smallest element assigned to an independent color and intensity and displayed on a laptop monitor screen. A pixel is a dot with either a square or rectangular shape.

PLUG & PLAY

Intel standard allowing additional hardware to be added to and subtracted from a laptop system without having to reconfigure or restart the laptop.

PORT CONNECTION

Link of communication between hardware components. Types of connection include Fire Wire, Parallel, USB, Serial, and SCSI.

RAM (RANDOM ACCESS MEMORY)

Temporary storage area that the processor uses to execute programs and hold data. A PC with low amount of RAM will take a longer time to perform the simplest task as the information in the RAM is constantly being replaced (the RAM storage is full). When the power of a laptop is switched off, the RAM contents are lost.

RESOLUTION

A measure of picture clarity based on the number of pixels used to reproduce the image.

REWRITE

To erase and re-record a CD-ReWritable disc.

SCSI (SMALL COMPUTER SYSTEM INTERFACE)

Standard for a system-level interface between laptops and such peripherals as hard disks, CD-ROM's, printers and scanners.

SDRAM (SYNCHRONOUS DYNAMIC RANDOM ACCESS MEMORY)

A type of RAM that is considerably faster and more reliable than standard RAM.

SVGA (SUPER VISUAL GRAPHICS ARRAY)

A SVGA monitor can display up to 1280 X 1024 pixels using up to 16 million different colors.

TFTs (THIN-FILM TRANSISTORS)

A type of active-matrix screen.

USB (UNIVERSAL SERIAL BUS)

An input/output (I/O) bus capable of data transfer at 12 mbps, with up to 127 devices connected in a daisy chain. USB devices may be hot plugged, meaning that power does not have to be turned off to connect or disconnect a peripheral.

VGA (VIDEO GRAPHICS ARRAY)

The basic specification provides for 640 x 480 pixel resolution and 256 simultaneous colors. The standard has been expanded by graphics card manufacturers.

VRAM (VIDEO RAM)

Video random-access memory; a special memory chip that is designed for video applications. Usually has a special port for video information. Other data travels through another port.

XGA (EXTENDED GRAPHICS ARRAY)

A high-resolution graphics standard that provides resolutions 640 by 480 or 1024 by 768 pixels, and supports simultaneous colors up to 65 thousand. XGA allows monitors to be non-interlaced.

XJack