Dell OptiPlex GX240 User Manual

Page 274

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API

Application Program Interface. The interface through which an application
program accesses the

and other services.

APIC

Advanced programmable interrupt controller. Prioritizes and manages

IRQs

for the various devices in a

. Without an APIC, the microprocessor must

control IRQs.

ASCII

American Standard Code for Information Interchange. The basis of character
sets used in many present-day computers. ASCII can be used to convey some

control codes

, the space character, numbers, most basic punctuation, and

unaccented lower- and upper-case letters.

Advanced Technology. An IBM®

introduced in 1984 that has an Intel

80286

microprocessor

, 16-bit

bus

, and 1.2

floppy drive.

ATA

Advanced Technology Attachment. A specification for drive interface. See

IDE

ATAPI

Advanced Technology Attachment Packet Interface. An interface used to
connect

, tape, and other drives with a computer.

Binary

A system of numbers having 2 as its base and using 0 and 1 for its notation.
Binary code is used by computers because it works well with digital electronics
and logic.

BIOS

Basic input/output system. Composed of software and data stored on a

ROM

chip. The BIOS initializes communication between the

microprocessor

and

devices

such as the keyboard and video adapter. The BIOS also controls

system functions such as error messages and beep codes. The BIOS can be
updated, or “flashed,” which can correct errors, support new hardware, and
so on.

System setup

allows you to configure certain options in the BIOS.

Bit

A shortened reference to

binary

digit. A bit is the smallest unit of storage and

represents a quantity that can have only one of two possible values, such as
true or false, or 0 or 1.