Epson Equity II - Manual (Page 63)

Disk drive
The physical device which allows the computer to read from and
write to a disk. A floppy disk drive has a disk slot on the front panel
of the main unit into which you insert diskettes. A hard disk is per-
manently fixed inside the main unit and hidden behind the front
panel.
Diskette
A flat piece of flexible plastic coated with magnetic material and used
to store data permanently. Also called floppy disk.
DOS
The Disk Operating System that controls the computer’s input and
output functions. See Operating system.
Double-density
A type of diskette format that allows you to store twice as much data
as the single-density format. A double-sided, double-density diskette
for the Equity II has a storage capacity of 360KB.
File
A group of related pieces of information called records, or entries,
stored together on disk. Text files consist of words and sentences.
Program files consist of code and are used by computers to interpret
and carry out instructions.
Floppy disk
See Diskette.
Format
To prepare a new disk (or erase an old one) so that it can receive
information. Formatting a disk divides it into tracks and sectors and
creates addressable locations on it.
GW-BASIC
Microsoft’s extended version of the Beginner’s All-purpose Symbolic
Instruction Code. A programming language designed to be easy to
use and understand.
Hard disk
The enclosed unit used to store data permanently. Unlike a floppy
disk, it is fixed in place. It can process data more rapidly and store
many more files than a floppy disk.
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