What is Active-Matrix?
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Active-matrix technology is used in high-quality flat-panel displays, such as laptop screens and thin computer monitors. The images on active matrix screens are created by laying diodes, or small semiconductors, over a grid of ultra-small wires. When a current passes through the diodes, they light up in different colors, depending on the strength of the current. Thousands of these diodes next to each other form an image on the screen.
To keep the diodes in an on or off state, active-matrix displays use transistors, which are not found in the lower-quality passive-matrix displays. The transistors help make the active-matrix displays brighter and give them more contrast than passive-matrix displays.
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What is ADSL?
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Stands for "Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line." ADSL is a type of DSL, which is a method of transferring data over copper telephone lines. While symmetrical DSL (SDSL) uploads and downloads data at the same speed, ADSL has different maximum data transfer rates for uploading and downloading data.
For example, an ADSL connection may allow download rates of 1.5Mbps, while upload speeds may only reach 256Kbps. Since most users download much more data than they upload, this difference usually does not make a noticeable impact on Internet access speeds. However, for Web servers or other computers that send a lot of data upstream, ADSL would be an inefficient choice.
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What is Affiliate?
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An affiliate is an entity with a relationship with a peer or a larger entity.
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What is AIFF?
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Stands for "Audio Interchange File Format." AIFF is an audio format originally developed by Apple Computer for storing high-quality sampled audio data. AIFF files are similar to Windows WAVE files in both size and quality. Both AIFF and WAVE files can hold CD quality audio and therefore can be burned onto an audio CD. Though the AIFF format was created by Apple, audio programs on both the Mac and PC can typically read the files.
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What is Alert Box?
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An alert box, sometimes called a message box, is a small window that pops up on your screen to warn you that your computer is about to perform an operation with potentially damaging consequences. For example, when you choose to empty the Trash or Recycle Bin on your computer, an alert box may pop up, saying "Are you sure you want to permanently remove these items?" You are then given the choice to select "OK," to delete the items, or "Cancel," to prevent the items from being removed.
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What is ANSI?
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Stands for "American National Standards Institute." ANSI's primary goal is to enhance the global competitiveness of U.S. businesses and to improve the American quality of life by promoting and facilitating voluntary consensus standards and conformity assessment systems. "Voluntary" standards are driven by marketplace needs rather than regulated by the government. "Conformity assessment systems" test the compliance of a product or service to a standard. ANSI does not itself develop standards or conduct tests, rather it facilitates this work by "accrediting" (i.e., recognizing) qualified groups with appropriate expertise. The Institute is the official U.S. representative to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). ANSI is a private, nonprofit membership organization with offices in Washington, DC and New York City.
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What is Applet?
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This a Java program that can be embedded in a Web page. The difference between a standard Java application and a Java applet is that an applet can't access system resources on the local computer. System files and serial devices (modems, printers, scanners, etc.) cannot be called or used by the applet. This is for security reasons -- nobody wants their system wiped out by a malicious applet on some wacko's Web site. Applets have helped make the Web more dynamic and entertaining and have given a helpful boost to the Java programming language.
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What is ASCII?
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Stands for "American Standard Code for Information Interchange." ASCII is the universal standard for the numerical codes computers use to represent all upper and lower-case letters, numbers, and puctuation. Without ASCII, each type of computer would use a different way of representing letters and numbers, causing major chaos for computer programmers (allowing them even less sleep than they already get).
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What is ATM?
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Stands for "Asynchronous Transfer Mode." Most people know of ATMs as automated teller machines -- those friendly boxes that allow you to withdraw cash from your bank or credit account while charging you a ridiculous surcharge for the service. In the computer world, however, ATM has a different meaning. Asynchronous Transfer Mode is a networking technology that transfers data in packets or cells of a fixed size.
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What is ActiveX?
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This Microsoft-based technology was built to link desktop applications to the World Wide Web. Using ActiveX development tools, software developers can create interactive Web content for their applications. For example, Word and Excel documents can be viewed directly in Web browsers that supports ActiveX. While ActiveX is a useful technology, the downside is that you need to have a up-to-date version ActiveX installed on your machine in order to use ActiveX-enabled content.
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What is Adware?
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Adware is free software that is supported by advertisements. Common adware programs are toolbars that sit on your desktop or work in conjunction with your Web browser. They include features like advanced searching of the Web or your hard drive and better organization of your bookmarks and shortcuts. Adware can also be more advanced programs such as games or utilities. They are free to use, but require you to watch advertisements as long as the programs are open. Since the ads often allow you to click to a Web site, adware typically requires an active Internet connection to run.
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What is Affiliate Network?
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An affiliate network is composed of a group of merchants and a group of affiliates. Merchants join the network and affiliates join the network in order to advertise the merchant products in exchange of a commision from the merchant. Affiliate networks present some great advantages for the merchant and the affiliate. The merchant gets potential access to a wide networks of affiliates. The affiliate dos not necessarly need to make a certain sale amount for one particular merchant but rather for the entire range of merchants before getting paid.
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What is AIX?
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Stands for "Advanced Interactive Executive," though some Linux fans have been known to refer to it as "Ain't UNIX." AIX is an operating system developed by IBM and is in fact Unix-based. It is typically used for enterprise servers and comes with a robust set of security options such as Kerberos V5 network authentication and dynamic secure tunnel authentication. AIX allows the system administrator to divide memory, CPU, and disk access between various jobs. The system supports IBM's 64-bit POWER processor and is backwards-compatible with 32-bit applications. It also runs most Linux applications (after recompiling them) and has full support for Java 2. If all that jargon makes no sense to you, relax -- AIX is not your typical consumer operating system. It is mainly used for servers in large businesses where IT geeks get to work with it.
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What is Analog?
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As humans, we perceive the world in analog. Everything we see and hear is a continuous transmission of information to our senses. This continuous stream is what defines analog data. Digital information, on the other hand, estimates analog data using only ones and zeros.
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What is API?
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Stands for "Application Program Interface," though it is sometimes referred to as an "Application Programming Interface." An API is a set of commands, functions, and protocols which programmers can use when building software for a specific operating system. The API allows programmers to use predefined functions to interact with the operating system, instead of writing them from scratch.
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What is Application?
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An application, or application program, is a software program that runs on your computer. Web browsers, e-mail programs, word processors, games, and utilities are all applications. The word "application" is used because each program has a specific application for the user. For example, a word processor can help a student create a research paper, while a video game can prevent that same student from getting the paper done.
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What is ASP?
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Active Server Pages (ASP) is Microsoft's server-side technology for dynamically-generated web pages that is marketed as an adjunct to Internet Information Server (IIS).
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What is Authoring Tool?
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An authoring tool is a software application used to create multimedia content typically for delivery on the World Wide Web.
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