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The IT Professional’sCompanion:An ITTerminology Guide

1-800-COURSESwww.globalknowledge.com

Expert Reference Series of White Papers

Introduction

The rapidly changing pace of information technology leads to acronyms and terms being created and usedseemingly overnight.This glossary is a guide to the most commonly used and confused ITterms designed tohelp managers better communicate with (and understand)their ITstaff.

Glossary

10Base5 (10 Mbps,baseband,500 meter):

one of several physical media specified by 802.3 for use in anEthernet local area network LAN);consists of Thickwire coaxial cable with a maximum segment length of 500 meters

10Base2 (10 Mbps,baseband,185 meter):

one of several physical media specified by IEEE 802.3 for usein an Ethernet local area network LAN);consists of Thickwire coaxial cable with a maximum segment length of 185 meters

10BaseT (10 Mbps,baseband,unshielded twisted-pair):

one of several physical media specified byIEEE 802.3 for use in an Ethernet local area network (LAN);is ordinary telephone twisted pair wire

100BaseT (100 Mbps,baseband,unshielded twisted-pair):

one of several physical media specified byIEEE 802.3 for use in an Ethernet local area network (LAN);referred to as Fast Ethernet because of its highertransmission speed

AAL (ATM adaptation layer):

adapts PDUs passed down from higher layers onto ATM cells

Active hub:

allows multiple devices to be wired to a central location to share the same media and regener-ate the signal;also referred to as multiport repeaters

ADSL (asymmetric digital subscriber line):

typical form of xDSL telephone companies offer to residences

AGP (accelerated or advanced graphics port):

ahigh-speed,point-to-point channel for attaching agraphics card to a computer’s motherboard,primarily to assist in the acceleration of 3D computer graphics

ALU (arithmetic logic unit):

adigital circuit that calculates an arithmetic operation (e.g.,addition,subtrac-tion) and logic operations between two numbers;the fundamental building block of the Central ProcessingUnit (CPU) or a computer

AM (amplitude modulation):

atechnique used for transmitting information via a radio carrier wave

The IT Professional’s Companion:An IT Terminology Guide

Amplitude:

height of the wave at any point in the wave

ANSI (American National Standards Institute):

avoluntary organization that coordinates the develop-ment and use of consensus standards in the United States and represents the needs and views of U.S.stake-holders in standardization forums around the globe

API (application programming interface):

gives programmers a formal set of routines to call on to useunderlying network services

Application layer:

performs the functions of file transfer,e-mail,etc.(see OSI Model)

Architecture:

how a system is designed;includes how the components are connected to and operate witheach other

ARP (address resolution protocol):

network layer protocol provided with TCP/IP;used to map an IP (inter-net protocol) address to a MAC(media access card) address

ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange):

relates a number from 0 to 255 in thebinary (base 2) form to keyboard characters

ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit):

an integrated circuit designed for a particular use (e.g.,achip designed solely to run a cell phone)

Asynchronous communication:

describes when devices,such as computers,rely on their own internalclocks;it provides connectivity to printers,modems,fax machines,etc.

ATM (asynchronous transfer mode):

high bandwidth,cell-switching technology;designed to carry manydifferent types of information,including voice,video,image,data,and graphics;another form of STDM (statis-tical time division multiplexing)

AUI (attachment unit interface):

a15-pin connection that provides a path between a node’s Ethernetinterface and the medium attachment unit (MAU);also known as a transceiver

AS (Autonomous system):

collection of IP networks under the control of a single entity

B(bearer) channel:

carries voice,video,image,or data traffic,depending upon the equipment andapplications available

Bandwidth:

expressed in a range of frequencies using hertz as the unit of measurement;also called analogcapacity

Base 2 System:

binary number system,only two discrete values (0 and 1) are possible and all numbers are acombination of these two characters;digital signals are numbers sent in the Base 2 system

Base 10 System:

the decimal system