Toshiba Satellite 4030CDT User Manual page 224

buffer: An area of memory where information is held until it can be
processed. Buffers are frequently used to compensate for the fact
that some parts of the system are faster than others. For example,
the computer sends information to a printer many times faster than
even the fastest printer can handle it. A print buffer stores printer
information, enabling the computer to continue with other tasks.
As the printer prints a page, it looks in the buffer to see what to do
next.
bus: An electrical circuit that connects the microprocessor with other
parts of the computer, such as the video adapter, disk drives and
ports. It is the highway along which data flows from one device to
another. See also local bus.
bus speed: The speed at which the central processing unit (CPU) com
municates with the other elements of the computer. For example,
the speed at which data moves between the CPU and the serial
ports.
byte: A sequence of eight bits. A byte is the smallest addressable unit
of data. Each byte represents an integer up to 255 in decimal
(11111111 in binary, or FF in hexadecimal), or a character (such
as a letter, numeral, or other symbol). See also binary, bit,
gigabyte, hexadecimal, kilobyte, megabyte.
cache: An area of very fast memory in which frequently used informa
tion is duplicated for quick access. Accessing data from cache is
faster than accessing it from system Random Access Memory. See
also disk cache.
capacity: The amount of data that can be stored in a computer's mem
ory or on a storage device such as a hard disk, diskettes, or
CD-ROM. Capacity is usually measured in terms of kilobytes
(KB), megabytes (MB) or gigabytes (GB). See also gigabyte, kilo
byte, megabyte.
card: See board.
CardBus: A PCMCIA standard which adapts the PC Card slot to
accept CardBus PC Cards. Inserting a CardBus Card establishes a
32-bit interface between the computer's central processor and the
high-speed peripheral device connected to the PC Card. CardBus
delivers faster data transfer than previous PC Card interfaces.
Part I: Getting To Know Your Computer