6 mins read
LastPass is a cloud-based password manager that stores users’ login information online in a secure database and allows users to...
5 mins read
Ubiquitous in early computing from 1970 until the early 2000s, the floppy disk is a portable storage device that has...
6 mins read
A disk drive is a device that allows a computer to read from and write data to a disk. The...
6 mins read
A storage area network (SAN) is a high-speed network that provides access to data storage at the block level. It...
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Big Data is a phrase used to mean a massive volume of both structured and unstructured data that is so...
2 mins read
A petabyte is 1015 bytes of digital information. The unit symbol for the petabyte is PB. It is a measure...
3 mins read
A little preventative maintenance goes a long way when it comes to your Windows-based PCs. All Windows operating systems come...
4 mins read
A thumb drive, or USB flash drive, is a small device with flash memory used for storing, reading, writing, and...
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A compact disc (CD) is a polycarbonate disc measuring 120 mm in diameter with one or more metal layers capable...
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The M.2 form factor is a type of solid state drive card that inserts into a computer‘s motherboard. It serves...
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Disaster recovery is the process of maintaining stored data after a natural or man-made disaster or emergency threatens the location...
1 min read
Non-Volatile Memory Express, or NVMe, is a communications standard and protocol developed to fully utilize the speed of the PCIe bus for faster, more efficient storage hardware access.
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Solid State Arrays, or SSAs, are shared storage device resources comprised of solid state drives (SSDs). Solid State Arrays typically...
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Storage Spaces Direct is a feature introduced in Windows Server 2016 that extends the software-defined storage (SDS) stack in Windows...
1 min read
Copy Data Virtualization is an approach to data management originally created by Actifio that applies the virtualization approach to data,...
1 min read
Copy data refers to data in an organization that has been copied and retained for backup, archival and/or Governance, Risk...
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The data storage industry is in no danger of diminished growth anytime soon. The amount of data we need to...
1 min read
Block-level storage is a type of storage commonly deployed by larger businesses and enterprises in storage area networks (SANs) and...
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File-level storage is the predominant storage technology used on hard drives, network-attached storage (NAS) systems and similar storage systems. File-level...
1 min read
OneDrive for Business is a Microsoft cloud storage service for business. It is a personal library intended for storing and...
If you know a college grad looking for a lucrative career, give them two words of advice: data storage. The...
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Although it is almost impossible to keep up with the pace of ongoing product releases, here are three recent highlights...
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ESM is short for enterprise storage management. Enterprise storage management, or ESM for short, is the phrase used to describe...
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There’s a number of vendors that sell enterprise storage hardware or offer cloud-based enterprise storage. View Webopedia’s Enterprise storage vendor...
When you deploy a new enterprise storage system, you must decide whether to design and build your own storage system...
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If you’re looking for a solid cloud storage provider, here’s 5 to try. Cloud storage basically means “the storage of...
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Flash storage describes any device or system that uses flash memory. It’s a broad term that can describe anything from...
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Software-defined storage (SDS) is an intelligent storage architecture that separates storage hardware from the software that manages it. SDS manages...
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Also known as VM-aware storage, virtualization-aware storage is storage technology that facilitates management and monitoring of storage performance and integration...
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Canvio Connect is a portable USB 3.0 hard drive that enables personal cloud storage. The Canvio Connect comes preinstalled with...
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Hadoop MapReduce (Hadoop Map/Reduce) is a software framework for distributed processing of large data sets on compute clusters of commodity...
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The Hadoop Distributed File System (HDFS) is a sub-project of the Apache Hadoop project. This Apache Software Foundation project is...
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Cloud backup is not a one-size-fits-all solution. Cloud backup trends, white papers and research gives small businesses knowledge and a...
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In storage technology, online backup means to back up data from your hard drive to a remote server or computer...
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The storage cloud is a service model where data is stored in a system in a remote location. This data...
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iCloud is a cloud-based computing and storage service from Apple, Inc. Like similar file sharing/storage services, iCloud enables users to...
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This Storage Area Network (SAN) reference article introduces the basic purpose and function of a SAN and examine its role...
1 min read
A service provider that enables data access on demand to users regardless of their geographic location. Also called Data as...
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All organizations must store and manage data in a database. Database software is key to efficiently accessing, controlling and sharing...
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What is backup software? Software designed to duplicate important data in the event of a hard drive failure, user error,...
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When do you need to be concerned with formatting hard disk drive? If you’re installing a new hard drive for...
1 min read
A technique used in data storage and backup that enables a system to perform a routine backup of data, even...
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Business Intelligence software, also called BI software, is software that is designed to analyze business data to better understand an...
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SAN services, short for Storage Area Network (SAN) services, is a technology used by businesses to obtain greater flexibility in...
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The exact number of times a specific Web site has been accessed or viewed by a user. A page impression...
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In cloud computing, multi-tenant is the phrase used to describe multiple customers using the same public cloud.
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Enterprise storage is a broad category of technology that includes products and services designed to assist large organizations with saving...
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Also called a modular data center or data center-in-a-box. A data center container is a method of deploying data centers...
A combination of the acronyms DR (disaster recovery) and SaaS (software as a service / storage as a service). The...
1 min read
WAN optimization is a phrase used to describe applications and products used to manage and accelerate the flow of data...
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The term storage management encompasses the technologies and processes organizations use to maximize or improve the performance of their data...
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Storage networking is the practice of linking together storage devices and connecting them to other IT networks. Storage networks provide...
1 min read
A feature of the Data Set management command available in the ATA8-ACS-2 specification. The command is used in the operating...
1 min read
Also called dual active, it is a phrase used to describe a network of independent processing nodes where each node...
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In computer systems and networking, availability is a general term that is used to describe the amount of time over...
1 min read
A term associated with the use of solid state drive (SSD) technology in data storage applications. One of the biggest...
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The phrase used to describe the implementation and management of tiered storage solutions to obtain a lower cost per capacity...
1 min read
Gray market is a slang term used to describe distributors who sell equipment or product without having obtained authorization from...
1 min read
The phrase used to describe the inner hole of a disc. This is the area used by the drive to...
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The term used to describe the process of creating a DVD. Authoring includes tasks such as creating the DVD navigation...
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The final version of a disc image which is sent to a replication facility for manufacturing.
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Slang term used to describe a video enthusiast – that is, a person who has an extremely high interest in...
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Decode refers to reversing the process of an encoding method. Data that has been encoded for storage or transmission is...
1 min read
The phrase used to describe the method of preparing data for storage or transmission. Encoding data usually means redundancies are...
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(1) A device or program that uses predefined algorithms to encode, or compress audio or video data for storage or...
1 min read
In DVD and video production, angle refers to a scene in the video that has been recorded from several different...
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Short for Burst Cutting Area, BCA is a circular section located near near the center of a DVD disc where...
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Short for Copy Guard Management System, CGMS is a method of copy protection used to prevent unauthorized disc copying. The...
1 min read
An unintentional conditioned air leak that prevents a data centerair cooling system from reaching some computer equipment. The cooled air...
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Also called a data center chiller, it’s a cooling infrastructure used in a data centers and industrial facilities. A chiller...
1 min read
Abbreviated as Cisco UCS, the Unified Computing System is designed to simplify traditional architectures and dramatically reduce the number of...
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A Solaris file system that uses storage pools to manage physical storage. The ZFS pooled storage model eliminates the concept...
1 min read
A popular set of a set of Unix/X solitaire computer games that are based on the games that are available...
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Short for full-disk encryption (FDE) hard drive it is a Seagate technology that performs encryption on the disk drive at...
1 min read
The term used to describe the process of distributing data across several storage devices to improve performance.
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In digital asset management (DAM) systems, a Lightbox is the term used to describe an area within the Web site...
1 min read
A power management mode that conserves power by powering down the system. In hibernate mode the current state of the...
1 min read
A disposable DVD format that provides a limited time play duration of up to 48 hours after the packaging has...
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On the Internet a digital footprint is the word used to describe the trail, traces or “footprints” that people leave...
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See under EDRM.
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Refers to data that is visible to the system’s operating system or the application software with which it was created....
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In e-discovery terminology, the data custodian is usually the person responsible for, or the person with administrative control over, granting...
1 min read
Short for Electronic Discovery Reference Model, EDRM is an e-discovery standard that was designed to improve systems interoperability and the...
1 min read
In e-discovery terminology, ESI or electronically stored information, refers to all information stored in computers and storage devices. This includes...
1 min read
Short for electronic discovery, e-discovery is a term used to describe the compiling, storing and securing of digital information, such...
1 min read
The application log file contains events that are logged by the applications used on a computer system. Events that are...
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The system log file contains events that are logged by the operating system components. These events are often predetermined by...
1 min read
A buzzword marketing term used by Dell to describe the typical 8, 16, or 32-MB of disk cache in the...
1 min read
Short for Redundant Array of Independent Nodes, RAIN is a data storage and protection system architecture. It uses an open...
6 mins read
Some things in life you simply can’t afford to lose, and when it comes to your business, data should be...
1 min read
An alternative theory to Nyquist’s Law that indicates signals and images can be reconstructed from fewer measurements than what is...
1 min read
Information interoperability describes the ability to meaningfully exchange information among separately developed information technology (IT) systems. This means the separate...
1 min read
The name used to describe Sun Microsystems’ storage appliance for fixed content archiving. The network-attached storage appliance uses technology that...
1 min read
Acronym for Fault, Configuration, Accounting, Performance, and Security, FCAPS is the key concept used to define the overall functionality of...
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In data restoration, the backup window is a predetermined amount of time in which specific data must be restored to...
1 min read
An ISO standard for representing knowledge structures and associating information and resources to those structures. The topic map represents the...
1 min read
A small, portable storage device used for storing and viewing your digital images. The device is a portable hard drive...
1 min read
In computer systems and networks a run book is a set of defined procedures developed by the administrator or IT...
1 min read
Holographic storage is a mass storagetechnology that uses three-dimensional holographic images to enable more information to be stored in a...
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Abbreviated as HHDD, a hybrid hard disk drive is a large-buffer computer hard drive that uses non-volatile flash memory (also...
1 min read
In data center terminology, the equipment footprint refers to the physical area that is occupied only by data centerequipment. It...
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A type of flooring supported by a metal grid and typically used in data centers. Raised flooring can be removed...
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In data center terminology, the server cage area is where the company and their customers, where applicable, would store data...
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In storage terminology a massive array of idle disks, or MAID as it is abbreviated, is a technology that uses...
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(1) Acronym for ATA Disk on Chip. ADC is a chip that contains both a solid state disk (SSD) and...
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In storage terminology, the term consolidation is used mainly to refer to the concept of centralized storage where resources are...
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Abbreviated as BCD, binary-coded decimal is a format for representing decimal numbers (integers) in which each digit is represented by...
1 min read
Formally called buffer-to-buffer credit (BBC) spoofing, and also called buffer-to-buffer credits, this is a technology that effectively removes limitations on...
1 min read
Short for disk-to-disk-to-tape, D2D2T is an archiving device where data is first backed up on a disk system, but then...
1 min read
Abbreviated as RTO, Recovery Time Objective is a term associated with business continuity and disaster recover. Specifically, the RTO is...
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What is metadata? Metadata is used to summarize basic information about existing data. In the technology space, “meta” means an...
1 min read
Abbreviated as CTM, Close to Metal is an ATI device that is designed to expose the parallel array of floating-point...
1 min read
In data storage terminology, thin provisioning is the term used to describe the consolidation and automated process of allocating just...
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A type of backup where only the user specified files and directories are backed up. A selective backup is commonly...
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Microsoft Cluster Server (MSCS) is a term used to describe a cluster configuration where the servers are separated geographically and...
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Abbreviated as GFS, a Global File System is a cluster file system that enables a cluster of computers to simultaneously...
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Red Hat GFS (Global File System) is an open source cluster file system and volume manager that executes on Red...
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A technology used in server and network storage. Once data has been written to the primary storage site, new writes...
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A physical disk that contains primary partitions, extended partitions, or logical drives. Basic disks can be accessed by all versions...
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Supported by Windows 2000, dynamic disk is a physical disk initialized for dynamic storage. It holds simple volumes, spanned volumes,...
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Short for Fibre Channel ATA FATA is a hybrid hard drive first introduced by HP in 2004 that combines both...
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Data at rest is subject to threats from hackers and other malicious threats. To prevent this data from being accessed,...
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The term used to describe all data in storage but excludes any data that frequently traverses the network or that...
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The term used to describe any storage medium that must be inserted into a storage drive by a person before...
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In data recovery, a bare metal restore is one where a computer system is backed up from bare metal state....
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A hard drive that is outside of the computer case in its own enclosure. Most external hard drives support the...
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The casing that holds a hard drive which can be externally connected to a computer system. Also called a hard...
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Short for drive letter access, DLA is a type of commercially available package that enables users to access optical storage...
1 min read
The high definition (HD) version of the DivX format. DivX HD supports six-channel, 5.1 Dolby Digital surround sound and delivers...
1 min read
Abbreviated as PBC, playback control is a way top control disc play on VCDs. Playback control allows users to interact...
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A hybrid filesystem that uses both UDF and ISO 9660. Also called a UDF bridge, it was commonly used until...
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A video codec that was implemented by Microsoft as Windows Media Video (WMV) 9. VC-1 is standardized by the Society...
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(1) Short for Visual Cryptography, a type of image encryption that works without needing complex calculations to decrypt. Visual cryptography...
1 min read
A cross-platform media player that can be used for playing multiple audio and video formats such as MPEG-2, MPEG-4, DivX,...
1 min read
In video editing, an extro is a short video clip used at the end of a disc. Usually the extro...
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In video editing, firstplay is the first track played on a DVD video or film. Usually it is a short...
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A number that uniquely identifies the physical sector on a disk. See sector.See also track.
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DVD-Video offers five different types of navigation data that provides efficient interaction for users, which include the following: Video Manager...
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Short for Video Object VOB is a DVD video movie file format. VOB contains several multiplexed streams of video, audio,...
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Short for User Operation Prohibitions UOP is a selection on a DVD that has been flagged to prevent certain user...
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Short for Video Compact Disc VCD is a CD (CD-R or CD-RW) that contains moving pictures and sound. A VCD...
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A software tool used to author Video CDs (VCD and SVCD) by using your camcorder, video, digital images, music and...
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An open source program that allows you to author VCD or SVCD BIN/CUECD images from MPEG files.
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Acronym for Partial-Constant Angular Velocity, also called partial CAV, P-CAV a method of writing data to CD-R and CD-RW media.
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The process used to create a master disc, also called a gold version, which is then duplicated for consumer distribution....
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A DVD-RAM drive that can read and write CD-R and CD-RW media.
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DVD movies are usually coded with what is called a country or regional code or a zone lock. The three...
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Short for eXtendedSVCD, XSVCD is a nonstandardized recording format that offers features similar to SVCD. However, it can produce a...
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Short for eXtendedVCD it is a non-standardized recording format that offers features similar to VCD, however it can use a...
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Xvid (formerly XviD) is an open source video codec based on MPEG-4 technology standards. Xvid was created to offer a...
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Short for High-quality Video Compact Disc, HQ-VCD is enhancement to Video CD developed by a Chinese government-backed committee of manufacturers...
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Short for K Video Compression Dynamics, KVCD is a modification to the MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 GOP structure that allows you...
1 min read
Short for four character code, FourCC is a sequence of four byte characters that identifies data formats. The the FourCC...
1 min read
A 3-inch DVD media that was developed for camcorders. A single sided MiniDVD has the capacity to hold 1.4GBof data,...
1 min read
Short for Digital VHS D-VHS is a VHS format capable of storing digital signals on the magnetic tape. It offers...
1 min read
Abbreviated as DVD-A, DVD-Audio is is a DVD format designed to hold audio data, usually high-quality music, similar in nature...
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A DVD-VHS combo is a multi-format recorder that enables users to copy VHS to DVD within a single device. Depending...
1 min read
A DVD that is created with and contains only digital audio files in the MP3 format. Not all DVD players...
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A software tool published by Apple Computer that enables users to create DVD masters suitable for replication. The latest versions...
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DVD-SVCD is not a valid DVD standard, since the DVD standard does not support the SVCD resolution. The term DVD-SVCD...
1 min read
DVD-VCD, is the term most often used to describe a DVD-Video disc that has data on it that has been...
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DVD-Video discs use UDF with all required data specified by UDF and ISO 13346 to allow playing in computer systems....
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(pronounced as separate letters) DVD10 refers to a double-sided, single layer DVD that can hold 8.75GB of audio and video...
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(pronounced as separate letters) A double-sided, double layer DVD that can hold 15.9GB of audio and video data. It is...
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Playback circuitry used to compensate for irregularities in disk rotation or tape movement. The irregularities would otherwise result in scan...
1 min read
VIDEO_TS is a UDF file name used for video directory on DVD disc volume. Compare with AUDIO_TS.
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A combo drive refers to optical drives that are capable of recording and/or reading two or more types of optical...
1 min read
In video editing edge enhancement is a technique used to clean up a picture in preparation for DVD encoding. This...
1 min read
D1 is a resolution standard for TV and DVD-Video. In the NTSC system, Full D1 represents 720×480 pixels. The specifications...
1 min read
The number of sectors that are interleaved to combat burst-like error characteristics of discs. Sixteen sectors are interleaved in DVD....
1 min read
Short for Compact disc plus graphics. CD+G is an audio compact disc that contains graphics data in addition to audio...
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A type of CD format that is enhanced to support multisessions. CD-Plus can store both video and audio data.
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Short for Compact Disc Audio, CDA (.cda) are audio files that can be stored on CD media. The .cda files...
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Cdrdao is open source software (released under the GPL) for recording compact discs. Cdrdao records audio or data CD-Rs in...
1 min read
On DVD movies, a chapter is a marker used for navigation purposes. The movie file is broken into segments, called...
1 min read
Chroma bug is a slang name for a Chroma Upsampling Error (CUE). The chroma bug is the tiny horizontal streaks...
1 min read
Short for China Video Disc, CVD is an enhancement to Video CD, that was developed by a Chinese government-backed committee...
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Short for Super Video CD, SVCD is a CD standard developed by Chinese consumer electronics manufacturers, the Chinese government and...
1 min read
A vague term referring to the minimum quality considered acceptable for broadcast television. Until the 1980’s, 3/4″ Umatic tape was...
1 min read
In video terminology, when encoding in MPEG video GOP is the abbreviation for Group Of Pictures. In a motion sequence,...
1 min read
A AUDIO_TS is a UDF file name used for audio directory on a DVDdisc volume. Compare with VIDEO_TS.
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A type of camcorder recording media format that handles recording, manipulating, storing and playing back video images digitally. A Mini...
1 min read
(1) In computer technology, encoding is the process of putting a sequence of characters into a special format for transmission...
1 min read
An image format commonly found on the Internet. BIN/CUE images are CD-Images that come in both a .bin and .cue...
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A flash device is divided into physical erase units.
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The USB Flash Drive Alliance is a consortium of technology companies launched to educate consumers about the exceptional portability, capacity and utility of USB flash drives.
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Short for True Flash File System TrueFFS is a technology patented by msystems (formerly M-Systems) for flash drive management. TrueFFS...
1 min read
U3 is a software solution that turns USB Flash drives into smart drives. Flash drives that meet the U3 specification...
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Using USB devices, such as a flash drive to boot a Windows PC. Windows XP Embedded Service Pack 2 Feature...
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A USB flash drive that comes with pre-installed software. The software enables the USB flash drive to run active programs...
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Short for high availability cluster multiprocessing, HACMP is an IBM cluster system for AIX-based computing platforms. IBM’s HACMP product was...
1 min read
Abbreviated as MDM, Master Data Management and also called Reference Data Management, is a type in Information Technology (IT) that...
1 min read
Short for Business Continuity Planning, BCP a term that covers both disaster recovery planning (DRP) and business resumption planning. BCP...
1 min read
The part of a hard disk to which the read/write arms attaches. All the heads are attached to a single...
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Short for Advanced Video Coding High Definition, AVCHD is a format for High Definition (HD) video (for recording and playback)...
1 min read
Abbreviated as WADS, wide area data services (or WDS) is a superset of smaller market segments that include WAN optimization,...
1 min read
A four tier system that provides a simple and effective means for identifying different data center site infrastructure design topologies....
Short for Aggregate group Backup And Recovery Support, ABARS is a backup system for MVS S/390 mainframes from IBM. ABARS...
1 min read
Short for Automated Cartridge System Library Software, ACSLS is the software that controls an Automated Cartridge System (ACS). See also...
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Abbreviated as ACS, Automated Cartridge System is a storage and retrieval system, often used for library management. The ACS provides...
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In data storage technology, ECCST is short for Enhanced Capacity Cartridge System Tape. It is a double length tape cartridge...
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Abbreviated as SSA, Serial Storage Architecture is an open industry-standard interface that provides a high-performance, serial interconnect technology used to...
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Data deduplication is a technique used to reduce the amount of storage space an organization needs to save its data....
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Abbreviated as IIM, intelligent information management is a set of processes and underlying technology solutions that enable organizations to understand,...
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Abbreviated as MCS, a Metadata Catalog Service is a mechanism for storing and accessing descriptive metadata and allows users to...
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Short for Mean Time until Data Loss, in data storage, MTDL is the average time until a component failure can...
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Short for Mean Time To Repair, in data storage, MTTR is the average time before an electronic component can be...
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Abbreviated as OSD, an Object-Based Storage Device is a device that implements the standard in which data is organized and...
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(1) Short for Disk-based Data Protection, where a disk or RAID system is used as a data backup and archival...
Abbreviated as ICM, information classification and management is a class of application-independent software that use advanced indexing, classification, policy and...
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A single, integrated storage infrastructure that functions as unification engines to simultaneously support Fibre Channel, IP Storage Area Networks (SAN)...
1 min read
The Hyper CD-ROM is a tri-dimensional multilayer optical memory, based on the phenomenon of controlled extinction of the fluorescence. The...
1 min read
Refers to a software utility used to completely wipe-out hard disk drives. This type of utility can usually overwrite single...
1 min read
Abbreviated as SQA, and also called software assurance, it is a level of confidence that software is free from vulnerabilities,...
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tiered storage An underlying principle of ILM (information lifecycle management), tiered storage is a networked storage method where data is...
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Tiered storage is an underlying principle of ILM (information lifecycle management). It is a storage networking method where data is...
1 min read
The process of writing more audio or data than the official capacity limit on a compact disc. Overburning a CD...
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Virtual tape is a concept that has been in the data center for many years. It was originally introduced for...
1 min read
In databases a flat file refers to data files that contain records with no structured relationships. Flat files may contain...
1 min read
Abbreviated as EIS, Executive Information System is a reporting application targeted for use by executives. Same as decision support system.
1 min read
Storage Bridge Bay (SBB) is a specification that defines mechanical, electrical and low-level enclosure management requirements for an enclosure controller...
1 min read
Barebones is a phrase used to describe a partially built PC. A barebones system package will differ depending on the...
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Storage Resource Management (SRM) refers to software that manages storage from a capacity, utilization, policy and event-management perspective. This includes...
1 min read
A virtual copy of a device or filesystem. Snapshots imitate the way a file or device looked at the precise...
1 min read
Pronounced AH-peh-ree, and is the Latin word for “to open.” Aperi is an open source initiative brought forward by nine...
1 min read
A collection of knowledge in the form of subject-problem-solution information that pertains to a specific topic or subject of interest....
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Longitudinal recording is a method of recording data to a hard disk drive (HDD). Used over the last 50 years,...
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Perpendicular recording is a method of recording data to a hard disk drive (HDD). Perpendicular recording aligns data bits vertically...
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Seagate was founded in 1979 and was the first company to build 5.25-inch hard disk drives for the PC. At...
1 min read
A bootable CD-ROM format specification that allows a computer to boot from a CD-ROM. El Torito was proposed by IBM...
1 min read
Mount Rainier is a standard that provides background formatting and defect management for storage on CD-RW and DVD+RW. This makes...
1 min read
Practices that promote or preserve the shape of an entire data infrastructure (e.g., network, servers, databases, storage, software). Data Infrastructure...
1 min read
Scanner term used to describe one scaling control option that will scan the document or image at actual size (not...
1 min read
In the world of computers the word fried is a slang word used used to refer to hardware or systems...
1 min read
The term compound document is used to describe an electronic document comprising of more than one type of file. For...
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Enterprise Content Management (ECM) is the document management term which describes the technologies used by organizations to capture, manage, store,...
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An imaging application for handling printed forms. Forms processing systems often use OCR engines and data validation routines to extract...
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The process of scanning, indexing and storing documents to an imaging system as they are produced or received in the...
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Short for geographic information science. The field of study involving GIS technology, with focus on sensing, cartography, surveying, spatial statistics,...
1 min read
Web content management (WCM) is a bundled or stand-alone application used to create, manage, store and deploy content on Web...
1 min read
The process of storing and displaying map data in digital form (to store and retrieve on a computer).
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Also known as geospatial data or geographic information it is the data or information that identifies the geographic location of...
1 min read
(1) In computer science an image is an exact replica of the contents of a storage device (a hard disk...
1 min read
Short for the Internet Fibre Channel Protocol, iFCP allows an organization to extend Fibre Channel storage networks over the Internet...
1 min read
Short for Storage over IP, SoIP technology refers to the merging of Fibre Channel technologies with IP-based technology to allow...
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The term coaster is often to used to describe an optical disk that was ruined while trying to burn, or...
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Integrated Facilities Management Systems (IFMS) is an IT based fiscal and financial management information system (budgeting and accounting system) that...
1 min read
A technology developed by Yamaha Corp. and Fuji Photo Film Co. that enables consumers to burn images directly onto a...
1 min read
Short for Recovery Point Objective, it is a term associated with business continuance and disaster recovery.
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A group of individuals responsible for maintaining the business recovery procedures and coordinating the recovery of business functions and processes....
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The chronological sequence of recovery activities, or critical path, that must be followed to resume an acceptable level of operations...
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Data synchronization technologies are designed to synchronize a single set of data between two or more devices, automatically copying changes...
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Short for Synchronization Markup Language, SyncML is a platform-independent data synchronization standard. It is used to synchronize data, such as...
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Wide area file services, or WAFS, is a storage technology that allows businesses and enterprises to access remote data centers...
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Automatic fall-over is a term associated with content management and contingency planning for system disaster and recovery. It is an...
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Short for automatic backup system. See also redundant and back-up.
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The M-JPEG2000 codec (MJ2K) is a video adaptation of the JPEG2000 standard. M-JPEG2000 will treat a video stream as a...
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Zeta is an operating system (OS) based on BeOS. Zeta is an attempt to update BeOS with support being added...
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LightScribe is a direct disc labeling technology that burns text and graphics onto the surface of a CD or DVD...
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Abbreviated as CDP and also called continuous backup, continuous data protection refers to backing up computer data by saving as...
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Refers to the disk where the root directory is stored. A root disk is usually a fixed disk or hard...
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The tape volume serial number or VOLSER is the method used to uniquely identify a tape volume. The VOLSER is...
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Industry Foundation Classes (IFCs) are data elements that represent the parts of buildings, or elements of the process, and contain...
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The LTO (Linear Tape Open) Ultrium format is the high-capacity, single-reel implementation of LTO technology. It is ideally suited for...
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Short for Linear Tape Open, a technology that was developed jointly by HP, IBM and Certance (Seagate) to provide a...
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A Cache Logical Partition (CLPR) defines the assignment of a specific data cache allocation and the assignment of one or...
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Storage Logical Partition (SLPR) defines the assignment of one or more Cache Logical Partitions (CLPRs) and the assignment of one...
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DVD Video Recording, or DVD VR format, is a DVD recording format that enables you to produce a DVD movie...
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Files are stored on the disk in what is called called clusters (a group of disk sectors). Size on disk...
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The OpenURL standard is a syntax to create Web-transportable packages of metadata and/or identifiers about an information object. OpenURL provides...
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High Availability, or HA as it is abbreviated, refers to the availability of resources in a computer system, in the...
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Eight-to-Fourteen Modulation, or EFM as it is abbreviated, is an encoding technique used by CDs and provides a way of...
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As defined by RFC 3492, Punycode is a simple and efficient transfer encoding syntax designed for use with Internationalized Domain...
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Cylinder zero refers to the outermost cylinder in a hard disk that can be used for data storage. See also...
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What is an ISO Image? ISO image is a term commonly associated with CD and DVD burning. An ISO image...
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Short for Universal Media Disc, it is a proprietary optical disc format developed by Sony for use with the Playstation...
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A Nassi-Schneiderman (NS) diagram is a graphical method of stating algorithms. It is a diagrammatic approach to algorithm design but...
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Short for Walking Optimal Power Control II, WOPC II is an algorithm that dynamically adjusts laser power to optimize quality...
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A VTL, or virtual tape library, is an archival backup solution that combines traditional tape backup methodology with low-cost disk...
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Called the IEEE 802.1AB. Link Layer Discovery Protocol (LLDP), it is an emerging standard which provides a solution for the...
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A synthetic backup is identical to a regular full backup in terms of data, but it is created when data...
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Dual layer refers to a DVD recording technology that provides users with 8.5-GB of recording space (as opposed to 4.7GB...
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RIFF is a file structure for multimedia resource files, it is not a file format but rather the structure that...
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Short for Web Map Service, WMS is the production of spatially referenced data dynamically from geographic information. The map itself...
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NAND Flash architecture is one of two flash technologies (the other being NOR) used in memory cards such as the...
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NOR architecture is one of two technologies (the other being NAND) used in memory cards. NOR flash is the preferred...
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Acronym for GUID partition table Computers with an Intel Itanium processor use the Extensible Firmware Interface (EFI) between firmware, hardware,...
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1. Software crippleware is a type of shareware program that is distributed free to the user. In crippleware vital features...
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)Also referred to as 1RU, although RU is not technically correct. U is the standard unit of measure for designating...
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A disk array is a hardware element that contains a large group of hard disk drives (HDDs). It may contain...
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(pronounced as separate letters) Short for Storage Management Initiative Specification, an interface standard that enables interoperability in both hardware and...
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Distributed file system (DFS) is a method of storing and accessing files based in a client/server architecture. In a distributed...
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(pronounced as separate letters) (n.) A single-sided, single layer DVD that can hold up to 4.7GB (120 minutes) of high...
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(pronounced as separate letters) (n.) A single-sided, dual-layer DVD that can hold 8.54GB (or fours hours) of audio and video...
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Short for disk-to–disk, a type of data storage backup in which the data is copied from a disk-typically a hard...
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Short for disk-to–tape, a type of data storage backup in which the data is copied from a disk-typically a hard...
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(n.) Abbreviated as UDF, a universal vendor-independent file system for optical media designed for data interchange and portability, allowing an...
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(n.) In reference to data storage, an archive that cannot be accessed by any users. Access to the data is...
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(n.) In reference to data storage, an archive that can be accessed by many authorized users. Access to the data...
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Short for emergency power off; also referred to as an EPO switch. A button or switch that shuts down the...
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Short for Advanced Optical Disc, Blu-ray’s competing HD-DVD technology format. AOD and Blu-ray are similar in that they both use...
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An HD-DVD format that uses a 405nm-wavelength blue-violet laser technology, in contrast to the 650nm-wavelength red laser technology used in...
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Short for high definition-DVD, a generic term for the technology of recording high-definition video on a DVD. In general, HD-DVD...
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An entity relationship model, also called an entity-relationship (ER) diagram, is a graphical representation of entities and their relationships to...
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(k ld s t)(n.) A disaster recovery facility that provides only the physical space for recovery operations while the organization...
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(n.) Short for static friction, a condition in which a hard disk drive’s read/write heads become stuck to the disk...
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Short for bi-directional frame, or bi-directional predictive frame, a video compression method used by the MPEG standard. In a motion...
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In video compression technology, another name for a P-frame or a B-frame.
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Short for intraframe, a video compression method used by the MPEG standard. In a motion sequence, individual frames of pictures...
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In video compression technology, another name for an I-frame.
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Short for predictive frame, or predicted frame, a video compression method used by the MPEG standard. In a motion sequence,...
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The raised area on a CD or DVD where data is stored. CDs and DVDs store data in lands and...
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The recessed area on a CD or DVD where data is stored. CDs and DVDs store data in lands and...
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Abbreviated as CAS, an object-oriented system for storing data that are not intended to be changed once they are stored...
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Short for Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine, a standard in the field of medical informatics for exchanging digital information...
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Also called rotational delay, the amount of time it takes for the desired sector of a disk (i.e., the sector...
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)A method of recording data on a hard disk drive whereby the sectors per track on the drive are not...
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Also called a disk clone, an exact copy of a computer s hard drive. The copy includes all the partition...
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A file located on a user’s hard disk in which a browser stores the Web site data for every Web...
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Also called a lost allocation unit, or a lost file fragment. A data fragment that does not belong to any...
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The right to perform necessary tasks on content, such as make a backup copy on disk or create a temporary...
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Short for Decrypt CSS, an algorithm for circumventing the CSS copy protection used in DVDs, allowing the decryption of the...
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The act of copying digital content for use on a device other than the one for which it is was...
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Also called 12-bit FAT, the file allocation table (FAT) for a floppy disk. The location of files on a floppy...
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Short for zoned constant linear velocity, a type of CLV data read/write method that separates a CD or DVD compact...
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Also called life expectancy or shelf life, the time it takes for a data-storing medium to lose half of its...
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Short for Windows Media Audio, a Microsoft file format for encoding digital audio files similar to MP3 though can compress...
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The condition wherein the data transferred to a buffer exceeds the storage capacity of the buffer and some of the...
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The primary partition on a hard drive that typically contains and boots the operating system.
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A part of a physical disk drive that has been partitionedand allocated as an independent unit, and functions as a...
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The actual tangible unit of hardware of a disk or tape drive. Contrast with logical drive.
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A partition on a hard drive that can contain only one logical drive.
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(v.) (1) To install an upgrade of an operating system (OS) on a hard drive that already has an OS...
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Often referred to as a CompactFlash card, a very small removable mass storage device that relies on flash memory technology,...
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(adj.) Short for magneto-optical, a type of data storage technology that combines magnetic disk technologies with optical technologies, such as...
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(n.) A fluid in which fine particles of iron, magnetite or cobalt are suspended, typically in an oil. A ferrofluid...
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The conversion of an object instance to a data stream of byte values in order to prepare it for transmission.
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An attribute defined by a programmer to store the instance of any data type in metadata. Also see attribute-based programming...
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Short for DVD+Recordable, a recordable DVD format similar to CD-R. A DVD+R can only record data once and then the...
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Short for DVD+ReWritable, a re-recordable DVD format similar to CD-RW. The data on a DVD+RW disc can be erased and...
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Short for Short for DVD-Recordable, a recordable DVD format similar to CD-R. A DVD-R can only record data once and...
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A DVDformat wherein DVD-RAM discs can be recorded and erased repeatedly but are only compatible with devices manufactured by the...
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Short for DVD-ReWritable, a re-recordable DVD format similar to CD-RW or DVD+RW. The data on a DVD-RW disc can be...
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Abbreviated DSS, the term refers to an interactive computerized system that gathers and presents data from a wide range of...
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Moving data from one system, or domain, to another without compromising security or losing any of the data. Domain migration...
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Short for Universal Transformation Format, a method of converting Unicode characters, which are 16 bits each, into 7- or 8-bit...
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(n.) Short for high-level format, a formatting method that initializes portions of the hard disk and creates the file system...
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(n.) Short for low-level format, a formatting method that creates the tracks and sectors on a hard disk. Low-level formatting...
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Short for Open Document Management API, an open industry standard that enables desktop applications to interface with a document management...
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Short for Advanced Intelligent Tape, a magnetic tape storage system developed by Sony. AIT uses 8mm cassette tapes that can...
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Another name for tagged command queuing, a method of processing requests from a host device to a hard drive.
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Short for tagged command queuing, a method of processing requests from a host device to a hard drive that is...
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Short for trusted computing base. TCB refers to the totality of protection mechanisms (hardware, firmware and software) that provide a...
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(1) A named collection of data in an IBM mainframe operating system. A data set in an IBM mainframe is...
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Also called Codd’s Law, Codd’s Rules is a set of 13 rules used to determine if a DBMS can be...
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A theory argued by Robert Metcalfe, inventor of Ethernet, which states that the power of a network increases by the...
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Short for interrecord gap, the space between two consecutive physical blocks on a data recording medium, such as a hard...
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Overwriting is the rewriting or replacing of files and other data in a computer system or database with new data....
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Originally used to refer to the large windowed rooms that contained an enterprise’s mainframe computers and other hardware devices necessary...
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Short for operational data store, a type of database that serves as an interim area for a data warehouse in...
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Short for Dynamic Drive Overlay, specialized software that allows a BIOS that does not support LBA to access hard drives...
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See DDO.
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(n.) In a DBMS, a trigger is a SQL procedure that initiates an action (i.e., fires an action) when an...
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Short for Emergency Repair Disk, a Windows backup disk created by using the Backup utility. The ERD contains information about...
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Short for Digital Asset Management, a system that creates a centralized repository for digital files that allows the content to...
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COE is short for common operating environment. A COE specifies a common IT architecture within an organization and promotes interoperability...
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The backup of all data files that have been modified since the last archival backup. Compare with differential incremental backup.
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The backup of all data files that have been modified since the last incremental backup or archival backup. Compare with...
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Burn is a slang term meaning to write data to a CD-ROM (“burn a CD or DVD“). A CD burner...
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Also known as a footbath, a sheepdip is the process of checking physical media, such as floppy disks or CD-ROMs,...
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Space dedicated on a hard drive for temporary storage of data. Scratch disks are commonly used in graphic design programs,...
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The process of removing a precise set of infrequently used reference data from an overloaded relational database and keeping it...
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Short for Sony/Philips Digital Interface, a standard audio file transfer format. Developed jointly by the Sony and Phillips corporations, S/PDIF...
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A cache of database connections maintained in the database’s memory so that the connections can be reused when the database...
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Quantum computing is a revolutionary leap in computation, capable of solving problems in seconds that would take classical supercomputers thousands...
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A work area in which the air quality, temperature and humidity are highly regulated in order to protect sensitive equipment...
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The process of converting a media file or object from one format to another. Transcoding is often used to convert...
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Short for Card Edge Low Profile, the socket into which COAST circuit boards are plugged.
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Short for Cache on a Stick, a cache technology developed by Intel. COAST is a small circuit board with cache...
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In information technology, accounting is the process of keeping track of a user’s activity while accessing a network’s resources, including...
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(n) A set of bits, bytes or characters grouped together for transmission. (v) An intermittent asynchronous transmission of a specific...
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Before sound as acoustic energy can be manipulated on a computer, it must first be converted to electrical energy (using...
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A type of CAM. Token passing uses a token, or series of bits, to grant a device permission to transmit...
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Short for remote terminal unit. In SCADA systems, an RTU is a device installed at a remote location that collects...
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(1) Short for transactions per second, a measurement used to determine how many transactions have been processed in one second...
SCADA is an acronym for supervisory control and data acquisition, a computer system for gathering and analyzing real time data....
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In magnetic disk drive storage technology, the fluctuation of magnetization due to thermal agitation.
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Short for double-byte character set, a character set that uses two-byte (16-bit) characters rather than one-byte (8-bit) characters. Some languages,...
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A term used to describe a peripheral device that is housed within the main container of the computer. These internal...
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Short for giant magnetoresistive, GMR is a hard disk drive storage technology. The term is usually referred to in reference...
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Short for metropolitan statistical area/rural service area, cellular service areas used by the FCC to license cellular telephone service. There...
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A form of core memory for data storage. The core is made of tiny ferrite rings threaded with wires that...
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A direct-access, or random-access, storage device. A magnetic drum, also referred to as drum, is a metal cylinder coated with...
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A storage service provider (SSP) is a company that provides computer storage space and related management services. Storage service providers...
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(1) A program or algorithm that replicates itself over a computer network and usually performs malicious actions, such as using...
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(n.) A non-data space on a computer’s hard disk where the read/write heads rest, or park, when the computer’s power...
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In a Microsoft NT File System (NTFS), hot fixing of disk sectors prevents data from being stored in a bad...
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Introduced by Constellation 3D Inc. (C3D), Fluorescent Multi-Layer Disc (FMD-ROM) holds up to 140 GB of data. This is currently...
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Near-line storage is used by corporations, including data warehouses, as an inexpensive, scalable way to store large volumes of data....
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A software program that “grabs” digital audio from a compact disc and transfers it to a computer’s hard drive. The...
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(cash c h r &ns) (n.) A protocol for managing the caches of a multiprocessor system so that no data...
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Solid-state drives (SSD) are a new generation of storage devices aimed at replacing traditional mechanical hard-disk drives (HDD). SSDs use...
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Short for Geographic Information Systems, tools used to gather, transform, manipulate, analyze, and produce information related to the surface of...
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As more and more processors begin to include L2 cache into their architectures, Level 3 cache is now the name...
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Short for Data Space Transfer Protocol, a protocol used to index and categorize data using a XML-based catalogue. Data, no...
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Ghost imaging, using ghosting software, is a method of converting the contents of a hard drive — including its configuration...
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Confetti-like pieces of paper formed from punch cards or paper tapes. May have been derived from the word Chadless keypunch,...
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The shaft that rotates in the middle of a disk drive. In a removable disk, the spindle remains attached to...
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The extent to which a system contains separate components(like granules). The more components in a system — or the greater...
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Just a Bunch Of Disks Used to refer to hard disks that aren’t configured according to RAID— a subsystem of...
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Short for Texture Element. Like a pixel, a texel is the base unit of a graphic, although texels make up...
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Computer Output to Laser Disk (COLD) is the storage of data on optical disk, such as CD-ROMs. Storing large volumes...
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(pronounced von noi-man) An early computer created by Hungarian mathematician John von Neumann (1903-1957). It included three components used by...
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The process of sending data off-site, where it can be protected from hardware failures, theft, and other threats. Several companies...
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A portion of L1 cache reserved for direct and private usage by the CPU. Typically, a cache is used to...
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A device or program that translates encoded data into its original format (e.g., it decodes the data). The term is...
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Short for AT Attachment Packet Interface, an extension to EIDE (also called ATA-2) that enables the interface to support CD-ROM...
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A microprocessor bus that connects the CPU to a Level 2 cache. Typically, a backside bus runs at a faster...
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Caddy is the name of the plastic case that holds a CD-ROM. Some older CD-ROM players required a caddy, but...
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Reduction of signal strength during transmission. Attenuation is the opposite of amplification, and is normal when a signal is sent...
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Short for Single Connector Attachment, a type of disk drive connector that includes connection pins for the power cables as...
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In computing uninstall means to remove an application from a computer. Uninstalling removes all files that were added to the...
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Short for CD-ROM File System, the Windows 95 driver for CD-ROM players. CDFS replaces MSCDEX, which was used for DOS...
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Short for Microsoft CD-ROM Extension, a driver that enables DOS and Windows 3.x systems to recognize and control CD-ROM players....
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The unused space in a disk cluster. The DOS and Windows file systems use fixed-size clusters. Even if the actual...
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VCACHE is the disk cache system in Windows 95. VCACHE replaces the Smartdrive system used in older versions of Windows....
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A magnetic tape technology developed by 3M Corporation that allows for higher data densities. Travan has been standardized by the...
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A new specification for CD-ROM and compact disc players that enables them to read discs created by CD-RW drives. The...
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Short for Document Object Model, the specification for how objects in a Web page (text, images, headers, links, etc.) are...
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Short for High Floppy Disk, a type of high-density floppy disk developed by Sony that can hold 200 MB of...
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A type of data compression that works by storing compressed versions of files on the hard disk. A disk compression...
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Pronounced tee-neff, and short for Transport Neutral Encapsulation Format, a proprietary format used by the Microsoft Exchange and Outlook e-mail...
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Short for Hierarchical Storage Management, a data storage system that automatically moves data between high-cost and low-cost storage media. HSM...
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(1) Short for Digital video express, a new DVD-ROM format promoted by several large Hollywood companies, including Disney, Dreamworks SKG,...
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Acronym for Self-Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Technology, an open standard for developing disk drives and software systems that automatically monitor...
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A sorting algorithm that works by first organizing the data to be sorted into a special type of binary tree...
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A DOS and Windows utility that defragments your hard disk. In Windows 95, you run Defrag by selecting Start->Programs->Accessories->System Tools->Disk...
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A DOS and Windows utility that finds different types of errors on hard disks and is able to correct some...
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A caching method in which modifications to data in the cache aren’t copied to the cache source until absolutely necessary....
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Short for Audio Interchange File Format, a common format for storing and transmitting sampled sound. The format was developed by...
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A disk storage technology developed by Imation Corporation that supports very high-density diskettes. SuperDisk diskettes are etched with a servo...
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Short for Direct Access Storage Device, and pronounced daz-dee, another name for disk drive in the world of mainframes.
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Short for Digital Linear Tape, a type of magnetic tape storage device originally developed by DEC and now marketed by...
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Occurring while a program is executing. For example, a runtime error is an error that occurs during program execution and...
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A type of memory cache built into many modern DRAM controller and chipset designs. Pipeline burst caches use two techniques...
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A DOS and Windows utility that prepares a hard disk for formatting by creating one primary partitionon the disk.
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A new type of read-only compact disc that can hold a minimum of 4.7GB (gigabytes), enough for a full-length movie....
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A video format for displaying full-length digital movies. A number of manufacturers are just beginning to sell DVD-Video players, which...
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An interprocess control (IPC) protocol for exchanging information between two applications, possibly running on different computers in a network. Named...
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A protocol developed by Quantum Corporation and Intel that supports burst mode data transfer rates of 33.3 MBps. This is...
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Analyzing and manipulating images with a computer. Image processing generally involves three steps: 1. Import an image with an optical...
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Short for CD-ROM/eXtended Architecture, a specification developed by Sony, Phillips and Microsoft that enables many different types of data —...
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The specification covering writable CDs, including CD-R. This informal name describes the Philips and Sony’s Recordable CD Standard that was...
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The standard for audio CDs, developed by Phillips and Sony. The specification is formally known as Compact Disc-Digital Audio (CD-DA)....
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Abbreviation of Digital Data Storage, the industry standard for digital audio tape (DAT) formats. There are currently four kinds of...
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Dell Technologies is a multinational technology company specializing in computer hardware and software, data storage, and IT services for individuals,...
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Short for constant angular velocity, a technique for accessing data off of rotating disks. With CAV, the disk rotates at...
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Short for constant linear velocity, a method used by most older CD-ROM players to access data. With CLV, the rotation...
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A field of computer science covering digital images – images that can be stored on a computer, particularly bit-mapped images....
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Areal density is also called bit density. It is the amount of data that can be packed onto a storage...
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A technique in which data is written to two duplicate disks simultaneously. This way if one of the disk drives...
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A version of the file allocation table (FAT) available in Windows 95 OSR 2 and Windows 98. FAT32 increases the...
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(pronounced as separate letters) Short for logical block addressing, a method used with SCSI and IDE disk drives to translate...
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(n.) The salvaging of data stored on damaged media, such as magnetic disks and tapes. There are a number of...
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A disk caching system provided by Microsoft with later versions of DOS and used with Windows 3.1. Disk caching provides...
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A type of rewritable optical disk that employs the phase change recording method.
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A network file system (NFS) is a client/server application that allows users to access shared files stored on computers within...
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The IBM designation for families of half-inch magnetic tape drives typically used on mainframes and AS/400s.
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(k osk) (n.) A booth providing a computer-related service, such as an Automated Teller Machine (ATM). Another type of Kiosk...
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A technique for spreading data over multiple disk drives. Disk striping can speed up operations that retrieve data from disk...
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Short for pulse code modulation, a sampling technique for digitizing analog signals, especially audio signals. PCM samples the signal 8000...
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Officially named ISO-8859-1, a standard character set developed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). ISO Latin-1 is a superset...
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A removable disk drive developed by Iomega Corporation. The Jaz drive has a 12-ms average seek time and a transfer...
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Short for CD–ReWritable disk, a type of CD disk that enables you to write onto it in multiple sessions. One...
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Short for redundant array of independent disks, RAID is a storage device that uses multiple disks to provide fault tolerance,...
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A high-capacity floppy disk drive developed by Iomega Corporation. Zip disks are slightly larger than conventional floppy disks, and about...
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Short for digital versatile disc or digital video disc, a type of optical disk technology similar to the CD-ROM. A...
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Short for Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions, a specification for formatting non-ASCII messages so that they can be sent over the...
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An encoding scheme that converts binary data into ASCII characters. Any file, whether it be a graphics file, a text...
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A set of algorithms for converting files into a series of 7-bit ASCII characters that can be transmitted over the...
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The time a program or device takes to locate a single piece of information and make it available to the...
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Describes the combined set of all letters in the alphabet and the numbers 0 through 9. It is useful to...
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)A collection of special characters and associated codes adopted by the ANSI standards organization. The ANSI character set includes many...
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To compress a file using the ARC format. The ARC data compression format, created by Systems Enhancement Associates, is particularly...
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Archival backup is a type of data backup in which all files are copied to a backup storage device. Archival...
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(v.) (1) To copy files to a long-term storage medium for backup. Large computer systems often have two layers of...
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A text file in which each byte represents one character according to the ASCII code. Contrast with a binary file,...
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Pronounced ask-ee, ASCII is the acronym for the American Standard Code for Information Interchange. It is a code for representing...
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(v.) In computing the phrase backup means to copy files to a second medium (a disk or tape) as a...
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A portion of a disk that cannot be used because it is flawed. When you format a disk, the operating...
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In DOS systems, a BAK file is a file with a .BAK extension, indicating that the file is a backup....
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Short for drive bay, this refers to a site in a personal computer where a hard or floppy disk drive,...
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Named after a Swiss scientist who discovered the principle of aerodynamic lift, the Bernoulli disk drive was a special type...
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A binary file is a file stored in binary format. A binary file is computer-readable but not human-readable. All executable...
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A format for representing data used by some applications. The other main formats for storing data are text formats (such...
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Pertaining to a number system that has just two unique digits. For most purposes, we use the decimal number system,...
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Definition updated by Sam Ingalls ← What is a bitmap? A bitmap is a file format or memory organization of...
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Block graphics is a phrase used to describe graphical images created in character mode.
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(n.) (1) In word processing, a block is a group of characters that you have marked to perform some action...
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(n.) A temporary storage area, usually in RAM. The purpose of most buffers is to act as a holding area,...
