- BD
- Blu-ray Disc is another type of optical disc storage media format used mainly for high-definition video and data storage. They are capable of storing much more data than even a regular DVD+R DL, but you must have a special drive to play them.
- BD-R and BD-RE
- The recordable version of the BD.
- BIOS:
- The Basic Input/Output System.
- BHO:
- Browser Helper Object. These are programs that integrate into Internet Explorer and have almost unlimited access to the computer. They can be helpful but are most often used by malicious software makers to watch where you go online or display pop-up ads.
- BSOD:
- Blue Screen of Death. Acronym used in reference to the Microsoft error screen.
- CD:
- Compact Disc - an optical disc having a diameter of 120mm used to store digital data. (There are mini compact discs with diameters of 60-80mm as well)
- CD-R:
- CD Recordable - a compact disc which can be used to write data onto it.
- CD-RW:
- CD ReWritable, available since 1997, is capable having data written to it and erased approximately 1000 times.
- CPU:
- Central Processing Unit, often called simply the Processor.
- CRT:
- Cathode Ray Tubes is one of the most common displays for computers. Although these television-like displays are still very popular today, they are slowly phasing out.
- DPF:
- Download Program File. Just like a browser helper object these can be useful, but are more often used by malicious software to load programs when you load Internet Explorer.
- DVD:
- Digital Versatile Disc is a type of optical media similar to a CD but with significantly more capactiy.
- DVD-R
- DVD Recordable can be used for writing data.
- DVD-RW
- DVD-ReWritable can be written to multiple times just like a CD-RW. The entire disc must be erased in order to add new data.
- DVD+R
- DVD+Recordable is an optical disc, with a storage capacity of 4.7GB, which can only be written to once.
- DVD+RW
- DVD+ReWritable is the name of a standard for optical discs which can hold 4.7GB of data and includes the ability to add and remove data without erasing the entire disc.
- DVD+R DL
- DVD Recordable Dual Layer, also known as DVD+R9, can hold twice what a normal DVD is capable of holding. While most drives can read these fine, you must have a dual layer capable burner to create them.
- DVD+RW DL
- DVD ReWritable Dual Layer is nothing but a double layer rewritable version of a DVD+RDL.
- FDD
- Floppy Disk Drive. The FDD is part of your computer used to read floppy discs.
- GPU
- Stands for Graphics Processing Unit. This processing chip will be on your video card, or, if you do not have a dedicated video card, it will be on your motherboard.
- HDD:
- Hard Disk Drive. The HDD, often called simply the hard drive, is essentially the warehouse of the computer. It stores all the saved information for that computer.
- HKCU:
- An acronym for Hkey_Current_User or Handle Key Current User.
- HKLM:
- An acronym for Hkey_Local_Machine or Handle Key Local Machine.
- I/O:
- Input / Output. This term is used in reference to the many ports on the back of your computer where you plug in devices that you use to input information or the computer uses to output information.
- LCD:
- Liquid Crystal Displays are lightweight, energy efficient, and growing more popular over the older CRT display.
- PC:
- Personal Computer. PC is used to refer to just about any computer that is not a Macintosh.
- PSU:
- Power Supply Unit. A PSU do not actually supply the power, they merely convert power coming from the outlet into electricity that the computer can use.
- RAM:
- Random Access Memory. RAM is used to hold information for programs that you are using.
- TFT LCD:
- Thin Film Transistor Liquid Crystal Display has a superior pciture quality than that of an ordinary LCD. A TFT LCD uses 1 transistor for each pixel on the screen, allowing the power to be turned off and on faster, thereby increasing the brightness and smoothing the motion of objects displayed.
- USB:
- Universal Serial Bus gives a standardized plug for a variety of peripherals.
