R
RAM: a form of temporary internal storage whose contents can be retrieved and altered
by the user; also called "read and write memory. (RAM originally stood for random
access memory, a misleading term no longer employed, but the acronym remains in
common usage.)
read: to accept or obtain data from some source, that is, a storage device.
real time processing: the capability of a system to receive data, process it, and
provide output fast enough to control or affect an activity being performed; response
time is instantaneous.
**record: a group of logically related items (units of data) treated as a unit.
remote system: a
communications system in
which the terminals are widely separated
so that telephone lines, microwave stations, or satellites must be used to link up to the
central computer.
routine: an ordered set of general-use instructions.
S
falls between that of a metal and an insulator.
sequential access: a type of storage in which data can only be accessed in the
sequence in which it is stored in the device.
silicon: a semiconducting element from which computer chips are made.
silicon chip: very small electronic component, or wafer, capable of storing thousands
of computer circuit elements.
*smart card: storage medium, larger in capacity than a floppy disk, but smaller in size;
likely to become the preferred storage medium of the future. (4-3b)
soft copy: nonpermanent visual record.
software: programs used to direct computer problem-solving and oversee operations.
solid state: pertaining to electronic devices, transistors or crystals that can control
current without the use of moving parts, heated filaments, or vacuum tubes.
MD0058
G-7