Compaq Presario,Presario 1211 Supplementary Manual page 144

online Help A manual that displays on
the screen while you are actually working
in a program and need help. It can be
accessed through the Help menu at the top
of the screen. Help for Windows can be
accessed from the Start button on the
taskbar.
online shopping Ordering products on
the Internet. You can purchase books,
flowers, music CDs, toys, groceries,
stocks, airline tickets, and used cars.
OS (operating system) The interface
that permits a person and a computer to
"talk" to one another. Microsoft Windows,
the most popular operating system,
displays icons, menus, and dialog boxes to
find out what you want. You use a mouse
and keyboard to reply. See Microsoft
Windows. See also interface.
parallel port A connector on the back of
the computer for plugging in a parallel
cable attached to a parallel device, such as
a printer. Data is transferred, one byte at a
time, through eight data wires (one for
each bit in the byte). All eight bits travel
side by side and arrive at the same time. A
parallel port is faster than a serial port,
which lets data through one bit at a time.
See digital. See also serial port.
PC card A removable device that is
designed to plug into a PCMCIA slot to
accommodate devices such as a modem,
fax, and rotating storage media.
path A sequence of information that
directs the operating system to a file. For
example, C:\Windows\Clouds.bmp is the
path to a bitmap file named Clouds. It is
located in a folder named Windows, which
is located on the C drive.
peripheral An external device connected
to a computer. Examples are a monitor,
keyboard, mouse, printer, scanner,
joystick, and digital camera.
pixel One of the individual dots, or picture
elements, that compose a graphical image.
See graphics.
playlist Tracks chosen to play from a CD
or DVD.
plug-and-play A feature, introduced
with Windows 95, to simplify the use of
some peripheral devices. Once the device
has been installed (in accordance with the
manufacturer's instructions), you can plug
it into the computer while the computer is
running. The operating system
automatically recognizes the new device.
(In order to connect a non-plug-and-play
device, you must first shut down the
computer.) See peripheral.
pop-up menu A list of options that pops
up when you right-click an icon on the
desktop or taskbar, the vacant part of the
desktop, a selection in a document, or a file
in Windows Explorer. See right-click.