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Glossary
A
access time
The time period between the supply of an access signal and the
output or acceptance of the data by the addressed system. Examples
are the access times for DRAMs, SRAMs, hard drives, and CD-ROM
drives. Hard drive access time is the time it takes for a computer to
get data from the drive. A hard drive with an 11 ms access time is
fast. A CD-ROM drive with a 280-ms access time is fast.
ACPI
Advanced Configuration and Power Interface. A power management
specification developed by Intel, Microsoft, and Toshiba. When
installed on the system, ACPI will enable the operating system to
control the amount of power given to each device attached to the
computer. With ACPI, the operating system can turn off peripheral
devices (such as CD-ROM drives) when they are not in use. As
another example, ACPI will enable manufacturers to produce
computers that automatically power up as soon as you touch the
keyboard.
adapter
An expansion board or component on the system board that
communicates with peripherals (such as the display monitor or
network devices).
address
A hexadecimal number that represents a location in storage or
memory. Also used to identify communication ports. To
communicate with a storage device.
AGP
Accelerated Graphics Port. A high-speed, high-performance video
standard supported by a dedicated connector on the system board.
The connector allows the connection of an AGP board to the system
board's AGP bus. AGP boards feature 64- or 128-bit graphics
acceleration with an integrated digital video engine and accelerated
3-D graphics, texture mapping, and shading functions. Fast refresh
rates, high resolution, and color depth allow for incredible graphics
suitable for multimedia and graphic intensive applications.
Glossary 1
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