| Glossary of Terms |
| All Numbers A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z |
O
Object Linking and Embedding (OLE)
A technique exploiting the properties of objects to enable two applications to exchange information without the need for human action. In some systems, a whole spreadsheet or a portion of one may be captured as an object and 'embedded' in another application, such as a database. Changes in the value of cells in the spreadsheet will then automatically update the database.
Object Oriented Programmed System (OOPS)
Despite the rather unfortunate acronym, Object Oriented Programmed Systems are seen by many as an important advance. Software tools for OOP have been under development for some years promising a level of re-usability of written code, and practical applications are beginning to appear. Initial OOPS business software applications, however, have failed to live up to expectations in the area of re-usability, suggesting that OOPS is still somewhat a Tools Vendor's marketing strategy, and not yet a major advance in business software development.
oblique
A style of text created by slanting a roman font to simulate italics when a true italic font doesn�t exist on the computer or printer.
OCR
(See "Optical Character Recognition (OCR)".)
ODBC
(See "Open Database Connectivity (ODBC)".)
OEM
(See "Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM)".)
offline
The state in which a device cannot communicate with or be controlled by a computer. Although a device is offline when it is disconnected or turned off, the term is not necessarily synonymous with being either physically disconnected or shut down. A printer, for example, can be offline (temporarily disengaged), yet still be turned on and connected to the computer by a printer cable.
ohm
The unit of measure for electrical resistance. A resistance of 1 ohm will pass 1 ampere of current when a voltage of 1 volt is applied.
OLE
(See "Object Linking and Embedding (OLE)".)
on-screen display
Control settings that appear on your monitor.
onboard cache
Nonremoveable internal memory.
online
Activated and ready for operation; capable of communicating with or being controlled by a computer. For example, a printer is online when it can be used for printing; a database is online when it can be used by a person who connects with the computer on which it is stored.
OOPS
(See "Object Oriented Programmed System (OOPS)".)
Open Database Connectivity (ODBC)
A technology and set of standards based on SQL and now published by Microsoft, enabling any conforming database to be accessed readily via ODBC Comms Drivers by applications written in any ODBC conforming language.
open file
A file that can be read from or written to or both. A program must first open a file before the file�s contents can be used, and it must close the file when done.
operating system
The software responsible for controlling the allocation and usage of hardware resources such as memory, central processing unit (CPU) time, disk space and peripheral devices.
Optical Character Recognition (OCR)
A page-scanning technology that reads printed, or sometimes hand-written, characters and converts them to coded characters a computer can work with (usually ASCII).
optical disc
A nonmagnetic metal disk that is used to store digital information.
Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM)
This is often a misnomer, since this title is given to third parties who sell on other's hardware or peripherals with features they have added.
orthogonality / parallelogram
A deviation from true perpendicular (90 degrees) of vertical or horizontal from each other.
OS/2
An operating system that can be used to control microprocessors.
output
The results of processing, whether sent to the screen or printer, stored on disk as a file, or sent to another computer in a network.
OverDrive
A type of microprocessor from Intel designed to replace a computer's existing i486SX or i486DX microprocessor. The OverDrive is functionally identical to Intel's i486DX2 microprocessors, but the OverDrive is an end-user product (sold to and installed by the user), whereas the i486DX2 is sold only to computer manufacturers who build it into their own systems.
Several glossary definitions supplied and copyrighted by:
Microsoft® Corporation. To order the Microsoft Press Computer Dictionary, call Microsoft Press at 800-MSPRESS.
MDA Computing Ltd. For MDA Computing�s complete glossary of terms, go to www.mdagroup.com.
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