Author Topic: Computer Terms Beginning with "C"  (Read 7138 times)

Offline MysteRy

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Re: Computer Terms Beginning with "C"
« Reply #15 on: March 27, 2014, 01:25:59 PM »
Cell

Example: "The annual revenue is located in cell D21 of the company's financial spreadsheet."

A cell is a location in a spreadsheet defined by the intersection of a row and column. For example, cell C7 is the cell located in the seventh row of column C. Cells may contain several types of data, including numbers, dates, and text. Static cells contain data that is directly entered by the user. Dynamic cells contain formulas and display the result of calculations based on the content of other cells in the spreadsheet.

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Re: Computer Terms Beginning with "C"
« Reply #16 on: March 27, 2014, 01:26:59 PM »
Certificate

An SSL certificate, or secure certificate, is a file installed on a secure Web server that identifies a website. This digital certificate establishes the identity and authenticity of the company or merchant so that online shoppers can trust that the website is secure and reliable. In order to verify that these sites are legitimate (they are who they say they are), the companies and their websites are verified by a third party, such as Verisign or Thawte.

Once the verification company establishes the legitimacy of an organization and the associated website, they will issue an SSL certificate (for the small fee of a few hundred dollars). This digital certificate is installed on the Web server and will be viewable when a user enters a secure area of the website. You can tell you are visiting a secure page when the URL starts with "https." To view the certificate, click the lock icon near one of the edges of your browser window.

Because digital certificates verify a company's current status, they do not last forever. SSL certificates typically expire every one to three years. If the certificate is not renewed in time, you may see an alert box pop up that says "This website's certificate has expired." This error has nothing to do with you or your computer, but is displayed because the Web server you connected to has not renewed its SSL certificate. While this does not necessarily mean the site is fraudulent, it does show that the site is less than professional.

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Re: Computer Terms Beginning with "C"
« Reply #17 on: March 27, 2014, 01:28:43 PM »
CGI

Example: "A common CGI script is 'formmail.pl', which allows users to send e-mail through a form on a website."

CGI stands for "Common Gateway Interface" and is a standard set of rules that define how scripts and programs can be run on a Web server. The "Common" in "Common Gateway Interface" refers to how CGI scripts can run on multiple server platforms and may be written in several different languages.

Most Web servers include a folder named "cgi-bin" in the root directory of each website. Any scripts placed inside this folder must abide by the CGI rules and permissions. For example, a script stored in the cgi-bin folder may be able to access system resources that other scripts cannot. Many websites still use CGI scripts, but Web developers now often write scripts in languages like PHP, ASP, and JSP. These scripts can be included directly within an HTML page instead of being referenced from another location.

CGI is also short for "Computer Generated Imagery," which refers to 3D computer graphics used in film, TV, and other types of multimedia.

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Re: Computer Terms Beginning with "C"
« Reply #18 on: March 27, 2014, 01:33:15 PM »
Character

A character is any letter, number, space, punctuation mark, or symbol that can be typed on a computer. The word "computer," for example, consists of eight characters. The phrase "Hi there." takes up nine characters. Each character requires one byte of space, so "computer" takes up 8 bytes. The list of characters that can be typed is defined by the ASCII and extended ASCII set. Some of the symbols available are pretty strange and may even make you say, "That's quite a character!"

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Re: Computer Terms Beginning with "C"
« Reply #19 on: March 27, 2014, 02:02:53 PM »
Checksum

Example: "Since the checksums of the CDs matched, he knew the discs were identical."

A checksum is a calculated sum used to check the integrity of a file. It can be generated from one of many algorithms, such as cyclic redundancy check (CRC) or a cryptographic hash function. When the checksums of two sets of data match, it indicates that the data sets are identical. Therefore, checksums are a quick and easy way to verify disk images, burned discs, and other types of files.

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Re: Computer Terms Beginning with "C"
« Reply #20 on: March 27, 2014, 02:07:34 PM »
Chip

Technically speaking, a computer chip is a piece of silicon with an electronic circuit embedded in it. However, the word "chip" is often used as a slang term that refers to various components inside a computer. It typically describes an integrated circuit, or IC, such as a central processor or a graphics chip, but may also refer to other components such as a memory module.

While "chip" is a somewhat ambiguous term, it should not be confused with the term "card." For example, a laptop might have a graphics chip embedded in the motherboard, while a desktop computer may contain a graphics card connected to a PCI or AGP slot. A graphics card may contain a chip, but the chip cannot contain a card. Similarly, a CPU may contain a chip (the processor), but it may also contain several other components. Therefore, the term "chip" can be used to refer to specific components, but should not be used describe multiple components that are grouped together.

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Re: Computer Terms Beginning with "C"
« Reply #21 on: March 27, 2014, 02:10:01 PM »
Chipset

A chipset describes the architecture of an integrated circuit. This includes the layout of the circuitry, the components used within the circuit, and the functionality of the circuit board. For example, the chipset of a modem card is much much different than the chipset of a computer's CPU.

Processors themselves also have different chipsets. For example, A PowerPC processor, which uses RISC architecture, will have a much different chipset than an Intel processor that uses CISC technology. Even a Pentium II and Pentium III have slightly different chipsets, though they are both made by Intel. Regardless of what chipset a circuit uses, the important thing is that it works with other components inside the computer. Therefore, whenever you upgrade your computer's hardware, make sure you buy components that are compatible with the chipsets in your machine.

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Re: Computer Terms Beginning with "C"
« Reply #22 on: March 27, 2014, 02:12:06 PM »
CISC

Stands for "Complex Instruction Set Computing." This is a type of microprocessor design. The CISC architecture contains a large set of computer instructions that range from very simple to very complex and specialized. Though the design was intended to compute complex instructions in the most efficient way, it was later found that many small, short instructions could compute complex instructions more efficiently. This led to a design called Reduced Instruction Set Computing (RISC), which is now the other major kind of microprocessor architecture. Intel Pentium processors are mainly CISC-based, with some RISC facilities built into them, whereas the PowerPC processors are completely RISC-based.

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Re: Computer Terms Beginning with "C"
« Reply #23 on: March 27, 2014, 02:14:53 PM »
Clean Install

A clean install is an operating system (OS) installation that overwrites all other content on the hard disk. Unlike a typical OS upgrade, a clean install removes the current operating system and user files during the installation process. When a clean install finishes, the hard disk only contains the new operating system, similar to a computer that is used for the first time.

In most cases, a clean install is not necessary when upgrading your operating system. It is much easier and safer to perform a standard "upgrade and install," which simply upgrades the necessary files and leaves the user files in place. However, sometimes an OS upgrade is not possible because important files have become lost or corrupted. In this case, a clean install may be the only option. Some users may also prefer to perform a clean install so that no lingering problems from the previous OS will affect the newly installed operating system. Additionally, a clean install may be appropriate when installing an OS on a new hard drive or when transferring ownership of a computer to another person.

Both Windows and Mac OS X allow you to perform a clean install when upgrading your operating system. The installer will give you the choice between a standard upgrade (typically the default option) and a clean installation near the beginning of the installation process. Windows 7 also lets you format and partition your installation disk if you select a clean install. In Mac OS X, you can use the Disk Utility program to format or partition your drive before you perform the clean install.

Important: Since a clean install wipes out all data on the primary hard disk, it is crucial to back up your data before performing the installation. While it is wise to make sure you have a recent backup of your data before any OS upgrade, it is extremely important when performing a clean install. Backing up your data to an external hard drive or another computer are both good options. It is also smart to check your backup and make sure it contains all the files you need so you do not accidentally lose any files.

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Re: Computer Terms Beginning with "C"
« Reply #24 on: March 27, 2014, 02:17:43 PM »
Clean Room

A simple definition of this would be "the opposite of my bedroom." But technically speaking, a clean room is a highly purified and regulated room for producing equipment sensitive to contamination. For example, the production of microprocessors is done in a clean room, since the smallest amounts of dust could create flaws in their production. Therefore, the air in a clean room is constantly filtered. Other aspects such as temperature, humidity, and pressure may be regulated as well.

Clean rooms are rated by class, according to a Federal standard. A Class 1,000 clean room has no more than 1,000 particles larger than 0.5 microns in a cubic foot of air. A Class 100 clean room has no more than 100 particles. The people who work in clean rooms need to wear special suits that prevent them from contaminating the room. They look almost like astronaut suits, but are not quite as heavy and don't require the large boots for walking on the moon.

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Re: Computer Terms Beginning with "C"
« Reply #25 on: March 27, 2014, 02:20:03 PM »
Client

In the real world, businesses have clients. In the computer world, servers have clients. The "client-server" architecture is common in both local and wide area networks. For example, if an office has a server that stores the company's database on it, the other computers in the office that can access the datbase are "clients" of the server.

On a larger scale, when you access your e-mail from a mail server on the Internet, your computer acts as the client that connects to the mail server. The term "client software" is used to refer to the software that acts as the interface between the client computer and the server. For example, if you use Microsoft Outlook to check your e-mail, Outlook is your "e-mail client software" that allows you to send and receive messages from the server. Isn't exciting how it all works?

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Re: Computer Terms Beginning with "C"
« Reply #26 on: March 27, 2014, 02:23:04 PM »
Clip Art

Clip art is a collection of pictures or images that can be imported into a document or another program. The images may be either raster graphics or vector graphics. Clip art galleries many contain anywhere from a few images to hundreds of thousands of images.

Clip art is typically organized into categories, such as people, objects, nature, etc., which is especially helpful when browsing through thousands of images. Most clip art images also have keywords associated with them. For example, a picture of a female teacher in a classroom may have the keywords "school," "teacher," "woman," "classroom," and "students" associated with it. Most clip art programs allow you to search for images based on these keywords.

When you find a clip art image you want to use, you can copy it to your computer's clipboard and paste it into another program, such as Photoshop or Microsoft Word. You may also be able to export the image to the Desktop or another folder on your hard disk. Most clip art is royalty free, meaning you can use the images without paying royalties to the creators of the images. So if you buy a clip art package with 50,000 images for $50.00, you are only paying 1/10 of one cent for each image. That's a pretty good deal.

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Re: Computer Terms Beginning with "C"
« Reply #27 on: March 27, 2014, 02:25:52 PM »
Clipboard

The clipboard is a section of RAM where your computer stores copied data. This can be a selection of text, an image, a file, or other type of data. It is placed in the clipboard whenever you use the "Copy" command, which is located in the Edit menu of most programs.

Data from the clipboard can be pasted into a document or program using the "Paste" command, which is also located in most programs' Edit menu. For example, an image copied to the clipboard from your photo album may be pasted into an image editing program such as Photoshop. A Web address can be copied to the clipboard from an e-mail and pasted into your Web browser's address field.

Some programs allow you to see what data is stored in the clipboard. For example, the Finder in Mac OS X allows you to choose "Show Clipboard" from the Edit menu. When you copy data to the clipboard, whatever data was already stored in the clipboard is typically replaced by the new data. Because the clipboard data is stored in RAM, it is also deleted when your computer is shut down or restarted.

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Re: Computer Terms Beginning with "C"
« Reply #28 on: March 27, 2014, 02:28:18 PM »
CLOB

Example: "The database administrator created a CLOB field to store large text entries."

CLOB is short for "Character Large Object." It is a data type used to store large amounts of character data. CLOBs are supported by several modern database management systems (DBMSes), though some SQL operations cannot be used on CLOB fields. The CLOB data type is similar to a BLOB, but is used for storing text rather than binary data.

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Re: Computer Terms Beginning with "C"
« Reply #29 on: March 27, 2014, 02:29:47 PM »
Clock Cycle

Example: "Most CPU processes require several clock cycles."

A clock cycle, or clock tick, is one increment of the CPU clock, during which the smallest unit of processor activity can be performed. Common clock cycle activities include load, store, and jump operations. These operations are typically performed in a series to complete a calculation, such as adding or subtracting two numbers.

The clock speed of a processor is measured in clock cycles per second, or "hertz." For example, a CPU that completes three billion clock cycles per second has a clock speed of 3,000 megahertz, or 3 gigahertz.