8-bit sound: Sound which is approximately equal in quality to broadcast radio sound. (see Sample size for further explanation.)

16-bit sound: Sound which is approximately equal in quality to standard audio Cds. (see Sample size for further explanation.)

Access time: The time it takes for the computer to begin reading from or writing to a storage device such as a hard drive or CD-ROM drive.

Acrobat: This software lets you convert any document to an Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) file.
Anyone can open your document across a broad range of hardware and software, and it will look exactly as you intended — with layout, fonts, links, and images intact. It also allows you and your team to increase productivity by approving and commenting on documents from within a Web browser.

Acrobat Distiller: Converts Adobe PostScript® files to universally
accessible Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF).

Acrobat Reader: A free software that lets you view and print Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) files on all major computer platforms, as well as fill in and submit Adobe PDF forms online. An expanded version of Acrobat Reader for Windows offers additional functionality, including support for the visually impaired and the ability to search a collection of Adobe PDF files.

Adaptec Toast: Used to put music and data onto recordable CD's.

ADC: Analog Digital Conversion - The method of converting analog data to digital data (as in analog to digital sound.)

Adobe Acrobat: Acrobat Reader is a free software product from Adobe, designed to view .pdf (portable document format) documents downloaded from the World Wide Web.

Adobe Acrobat Distiller: A software program from Adobe which converts postscript files to portable document format (.pdf) files. Postscript files have special coding which instruct the printer how to print the document.

Adobe Photoshop: High-end software from Adobe which is used to edit digital images. After using a scanner to digitize a picture, you can use Photoshop to edit and save pictures in a form that can be used in Web pages, PowerPoint presentations, and word processing documents.

After Effects: Creates motion graphics and visual effects for film, video, multimedia, or the Web.

alpha channel: in video and computer graphics, an extra signal, bit or set of bits used to control special effects such as transparency and overlay

analog video: a signal that represents video image information directly by changes in signal size or timing, rather than encoding the information as digital number
values

anti-alias: to smooth over sharp or small jagged edges to create more pleasing images or reduce the effects of limitations in signal capture or storage

Apple DVD Player: Plays Digital Video Discs on a Macintosh computer

application: often called programs, the means by which you use the computer to combine technology and your work.

Audio board: An expansion board that you put inside a PC to improve the quality of the PC's sound output. Also called a sound board or sound card.

authoring system: 1) the hardware and software used to create a multimedia project, but not necessarily needed for playback, 2) a programming environment
designed to help users create computer-aided instruction (CAI) lessons

AVI: Audio Video Interleave - A specification that allows for the capture and storage of video and waveform audio in a single data stream. Because of speed and
memory limitations, AVI offers only rough animation, not full-motion video.

bitmapped: referring to video displays and other graphic output, a system where each possible dot of the display is controlled independently by one or
more corresponding bits in memory

broadband: said of a communications link that provides a large bandwidth (range of frequencies) to accommodate several independent channels

broadcast quality: common term for video images good enough to be used on broadcast television

browser: Software which lets you view material designed for the World Wide Web. Microsoft Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator are the most commonly used Web browsers. A browser usually displays documents created in Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), the language used for creating Web pages.

CD or Compact Disc: An optical read-only disc that is used to store digital audio, data, or video. CD-ROMs are inexpensive to make and can hold up to about 600 megabytes of data

cd-rom: an acronym for "Compact Disc Read Only Memory", a type of optical data disk that uses the same basic technology as the popular CD audio
disks to store computer data.

central processing unit: CPU, the brain of the computer which contains a microprocessor that controls the computer

cmyk: a color model based on the cyan (C), magenta (M), yellow (Y), and black (K) inks used in color printing.

coaxial cable (coax): a type of wire that surrounds a central conductor with an insulating layer and a foil shield or wire braid; this arrangement provides high
bandwidth and good protection against signal interference and radiation

Composer: A program from Netscape which can be used to create and edit HTML documents. Composer is a WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) editor, meaning that you can create the Web page as you want it to look on the screen, and the program adds the HTML source code necessary to make sure that the page looks right in a Web browser. Composer can be downloaded free from Netscape.

Composite video: A color video signal that contains all of the color information in one signal. (also see S-Video)

Compression: A process that allows data to be stored or transmitted using less than the normal number of bits.

computer platform: the hardware architecture of a particular model or family of computers; it is the standard to which software developers write their programs; it
may also refer to the system software

CorelDraw: Used to create vector illustrations, paintings and animations.

Corel WordPerfect Suite: Word processing, spreadsheet and presentation software.

course templates: Generic class Web pages created by the Lava Java for use by instructors. Instructors can download course templates and customize them by inserting information about their classes. The completed documents can be posted on the World Wide Web, where they can be accessed by students.

cpu: Central Processing Unit; the brain of the computer which contains a microprocessor that controls the computer

data projector: A device for taking the information that you would normally see on a computer monitor and projecting it onto to a larger movie screen. By projecting your work instead of displaying it on a monitor, you can show a PowerPoint slide show, a Web page, or other projects you've developed on the computer to a larger group of people.

default: the customary setup

DeskScan II : Software from Hewlett-Packard used in conjunction with a scanner. Using DeskScan II, pictures or documents can be "scanned in" to the computer (turned into digital files), edited, and placed in one of the right formats to be posted on a Web page or inserted into PowerPoint presentations.

desktop: the background and layout of the items on your screen; most of the work that is done on a computer is otherwise done on a desk; the gray
area created by the finder is called the desktop

digital audio: Data that is recorded and processed to create sound for editing and playback.

digital camera: input device that translates three-dimensional images to digital data

digital video: Video that is recorded and processed for editing and playback.

digitize: The process of converting analog data to digital data.

Director: Used to create interactive CD-ROM or DVD content, Kiosk stands, high quality presentations, and Shockwave content for the Web.

directories: Just as a drawer is a space where one keeps folders in a file cabinet, a directory is a place to store folders on a computer. For instance, you could have a directory called "teaching" that contains individual file folders filled with information about each class that you teach. Directories contain folders (or subdirectories), and folders contain files.

display: the computer screen

dither: to place small dots of black, white, or color in an area of an image to soften an edge, to visually smooth a jagged line, or simulate a shade or
tone.

dots per inch (dpi): Computers can only fit a certain amount of information on to a monitor screen (or other display device). This is measured in how many dots can be shown in one inch of screen space. PC monitors range from 60-120 dots per inch, but usually cannot display more than 72 dpi. Because of this limitation, you should not post very high-resolution (over 72 dpi) images to a Web page. Viewers will not be able see any difference, and the larger file size will slow the download time.

dpi: dots per inch; number of dots your printer can print per inch.

download: Transferring files or information from a remote computer to your computer.

Dreamweaver: A professional Web authoring and site management software.

dual speed: A CD-ROM drive that accesses data at 300kB per second. This is twice as fast as a standard audio CD player or single speed CD-ROM drive.

DVI: Digital Video Interactive - A form of video compression from Intel.

dynamic range: The span of volume between the loudest and softest sounds in an audio recording. Sample size affects dynamic range. 16-bit audio yields a dynamic range of 96 dB, and 8-bit audio yields 48 dB.

email attachments: Programs and documents can be sent "attached" to email messages. These attachments are not part of the message, and must be read or viewed separately. Attachments do not have to be text documents; any computer file (images, programs, spreadsheets, etc.) can be attached to email. Most email programs allow you to attach information in this way.

Epson Scan II: Used to scan images and text from an Epson flatbed scanner.

ethernet: one of the most popular types of local area network connections

Excel: A program in the Microsoft Office Suite that creates spreadsheets. Initially developed for accounting, spreadsheets like Excel are now used for a variety of other projects which require that data be organized in a table or grid.

expansion board: increases the hardware capacity of a computer by expanding the number of printed circuit boards that can be plugged into it.

extension: the period and up to 3 characters at the end of a DOS filename

fidelity: closeness of the received signal to the original; in most audio and video formats, there is a trade-off between fidelity and maximum storage
capacity

file extension: These are the three letters which come after the dot in the name of a file, and tell your computer what kind of file it is. Examples are .jpg (an image file), .doc (a Microsoft Word document), .txt (a text file).

Filemaker Pro: A cross-platform desktop database and management tool which allows you to quickly create database solutions that you can use to track and manage people, projects, and information.

file size: The size of the file is the amount of disk storage space taken up taken up by a file (measured in bytes). Generally, smaller files will load (appear on the screen) faster on the World Wide Web, and it is to your advantage to make files as small as possible.

filtering: A digital conversion process that improves the fidelity of audio recording.

Final Cut Pro: An new industry standard software for digitally editing video. You can output video to tape or the Web.

Fireworks: by Macromedia, is software for making graphics on the web. It's three tools in one: a bitmap editor, a vector editor, and a JavaScript generator for buttons and rollovers.

Flash: A professional standard software for producing high-impact Web experiences, made by Macromedia. It can create vector-based graphics, animations and movies. Developers can also use it to build advanced web applications using scripting, forms and server-side connectivity.

frame rate: for a video image or movie, the number of complete images shown per second.

Freehand: An award winning tool for creating vector-based illustrations and layouts for print or the Web.

FrontPage: A Microsoft program used to create and edit HTML documents. It can be used to create large complex Web sites. FrontPage is a WYSIWYG (what-you-see-is-what-you-get) editor, meaning that you can create the Web page exactly as you want it to look on the screen, and the program adds the HTML source code necessary to make sure that the page looks right in a Web browser.

FTP (File Transfer Protocol): A method of transfering files from one computer to another. Usually, it is used to copy files from a personal computer to a server, so that they can be accessed by others. There are several common software programs that are used to transfer files (depending on which operating system your computer is running): WS_FTP, Internet Neighborhood, or Fetch. FTP is often used to download files from Internet sites, many of which allow users to log in anonymously and download public repositories of material (programs, images, text, etc.). These sites are called "anonymous ftp sites."

FTP Explorer: is a file transfer protocol client that lets you upload your material to your web site.

Full-motion video: Video reproduction at 30 frames per second for NTSC signals or 25 frames per second for PAL signals.

gb: gigabyte or 1 billion bytes

generation: for an image or copy, the number of reproduction steps from the original (which is the first generation); in general, higher generation numbers
are likely to be less sharp.

.gif (Graphic Interchange Format): One of the most common file formats for images on the World Wide Web. Images saved as .gif files tend to take up more space than other image formats, but reproduce images more faithfully.

gigabyte: GB, which means 1 billion bytes

GoLive: A professional Web authoring and site management software made by Adobe.

GroupWise: accelerates organizational responsiveness and productivity by allowing users of all types to communicate and work together across all types of networks, as one Net.

hard drive: software and data are stored here for safekeeping when your computer power is turned off and for quick access when your computer is
turned on.

hardware: the physical components of the computer system, which include the computer, monitor, printer, and disk drives.

home page: The first page that your browser will open when you access a Web address (URL). The home page generally serves as a gateway to the rest of the Web site by providing links to the other pages. The file that generates the page is usually called "index.html"

HTML: Hypertext Markup Language is the code used to write most documents on the World Wide Web. HTML codes (called "tags") tell your browser how to arrange text and images on the computer screen You can write the code yourself using any text editor, or can use any one of several commercially available HTML editors to create a document.

HTML document: A document or Web page that is written in Hypertext Markup Language.

HTML editor: A program used to edit documents which are written in Hypertext Markup Language. Common programs are Microsoft FrontPage, FrontPage Express, Claris Home Page, and Netscape Composer.

http: hypertext transfer protocol (http) is the standard method used to transfer data in HTML format from server to a remote computer. Web addresses often begin with http://, indicating that the documents you will access are written in HTML.

Hyper Text Markup Language: The code used to write most documents on the World Wide Web. HTML codes tell your browser how to arrange text and images on the computer screen You can write the code yourself using any text editor, or can use any one of several commercially available HTML editors to create a document.

hyperlinks: Text or images on a Web page that, when clicked with a mouse, cause your browser to load another page of HTML. Because a simple mouse click allows the user to easily go from one page of hypertext to another, these pages are said to be "hyperlinked." Text links are usually (but not always) underlined in blue, while hyperlinks that are images often take the form of "buttons."

hypermedia: a system or document that presents multiple pathways that the user can select and follow, rather than simply follow from beginning to end; it
may include text, graphics, sound and other types of data

hypertext: a system or document that provides multiple pathways through a collection of text that the user can select and follow, rather than simply
presenting material from beginning to end

icon: A small graphic symbol that represents a program, file, or folder on a computer. Clicking on an icon with a mouse generally causes the program to run, the folder to open, or the file to be displayed (if possible).

Illustrator: An industry-standard vector graphics creation software for print and the Web,made by Adobe.

in-betweening or tweening: a mode or function in computer animation programs that draws the needed intermediate images to create simulated motion between two given points.

Indesign: A page layout and publishing design software made by Adobe.

imagemap: An invisible (on a Web browser) grid that is overlayed on top of an existing image on a Web page (usually a .gif file or a .jpg file), which allows the image to serve as a hyperlink to another Web page. Several different hyperlinks can be mapped onto different parts of a single image.

ImageReady: Works in conjunction with Adobe Photoshop to create images and effects for the Web. It can be used to create background images, buttons, navigation bars, rollovers, slices and logos for the Web.

interface: (v) to connect two pieces of computer hardware together; (n) the means by which two things communicate

interlaced: for video signals and displays, ones that paint each image in two passes (fields) down the screen, with the first pass creating the odd lines and
the second the even lines; this reduces bandwidth for transmitted video, but causes flicker in computer graphics

internet: a system of worldwide networks that enable the user to send electronic mail, conduct research, chat, and participate in news groups

Internet Explorer: A popular Web browser, created by Microsoft, used to view pages on the World Wide Web.

Java: A programming language created by Sun Microsystems which allows the user to create programs which run well in a netwroked environment (such as the World Wide Web). Java programs are commonly called "applets" and can be used to add anything from calculators to animated images to Web sites.

Javascript: A type of programming code written in Sun Microsystems' Java programming language. Javascript can make your Web pages interactive in a variety of ways. For example: telling users whether they've filled out a form correctly, displaying animated images, or allowing images to change when users touch them with the mouse pointer.

.jpg: (Joint Photographic Experts Group) A commonly used file format for images on the World Wide Web. .jpg (also called .jpeg) files use compressed data, so they take up less disk space, but often sacrifice some image quality to do this.

jog: in a video editing system, to change the position in a video clip by a single frame or small number of frames

Kai's Powertools: Used with Photoshop to create eye-catching visual effects, such as 3D textures, fiery flames, glistening liquid droplets, chrome letters, etc.

keyframe: in animation or video editing, an image used as a starting, ending or reference point

kilobyte: the amount of memory required to store approximately 1000 characters of information

lcd panel: a projection device that is used to show a large group the images which would normally be seen on a computer monitor

linear editing: video editing methods where you have to shuttle the tape back and forth to get from a clip at the beginning of the source reel to one at the end

line in: an input on an audio or video system that expects a pre-amplifier-level signal (typically 100mV to 1V)

LISTSERV/listservs: Electronic mail-based discussion groups. Users submit their names to the LISTPROC server via email and are added to the list, Users then receive all email messages that are sent to the list. LISTSERVs are a convenient way for people to electronically discuss a common interest.

Lossless compression: A type of data compression that makes it possible to recover the original data with no loss of image quality.

Lossy compression: A type of data compression that sacrifices some of the original data in return for higher compression ratios than can be achieved with lossless compression.

luminance: the brightness or intensity of an image or signal, particularly the brightness without regard to color

mailto: A function that allows users to send email to the authors or sponsors of a Web site just by clicking on a hyperlink. This function will not work if the browser does not support the ability to send mail.

maximize button: located in the upper right hand corner of the title bar; used to enlarge a window to fill the entire desktop

mb: megabyte or 1 million bytes

Media Cleaner: It is one of the best tools on the market for creating streaming media. It allows you to put audio and video on your web site.

megabyte: MB, or 1 million bytes

megahertz: mhz; refers to the clock speed of your processor

menu bar: a horizontal area across the top of the screen just below the title bar; the symbols and words in it represent menus of commands

mhz: megahertz; refers to the clock speed of your processor

Microcase: Software and data used to introduce real social science analysis and exploration to students.

.MID: a MIDI file extension.

MIDI: Musical Instrument Digital Interface - A digital communications standard that lets electronic musical instruments and computers communicate with each other.
MIDI files are typically saved with a .MID file extension.

minimize button: located in the upper right hand corner of the title bar; used to reduce a window to an icon

modem: short for modulator/demodulator, a device that lets two computers communicate with each other via the telephone lines

morph: 1) to change one image into another by moving corresponding elements rather than by cross-fading; 2) a graphics program published by
Gryphon Software in both Mac and Windows versions that produces such changes

MPEG: Motion Pictures Experts Group - A form of interframe compression.

MS Office: Software and data used to introduce real social science analysis and exploration to students.

MS Visual Studio: A programming language and environment developed by Microsoft. Based on the BASIC language, Visual Basic was one of the first products to provide a graphical programming environment and a paint metaphor for developing user interfaces. Instead of worrying about syntax details, the Visual Basic programmer can add a
substantial amount of code simply by dragging and
dropping controls, such as buttons and dialog boxes, and then defining their appearance and behavior.

multimedia: The use of two or more media types (motion video, audio, still images, graphics, animation, text, etc.) to communicate information.

Navigator: A popular Web browser, created by Netscape, used to view pages on the World Wide Web

NetObjects Fusion: is used to build Web sites. It allows you to create, manage, and update sites quickly and efficiently in its WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) environment. It lets you build and update your site structure with drag-and-drop simplicity. You can place page elements precisely where you want them,
without ever having to write a line of code.

Netscape: An Internet browser that lets you browse and search for information on the web. It also has its own e-mail and instant messaging capabilities.

network: a group of computers electronically connected by communications facilities; a network can have a permanent connection, such as a cable, or a
temporary connection made through telephones or other communication devices

newsgroups: One method to facilitate discussion outside of class. Students subscribe to a group and send messages to all other students in the group. The list is like a bulletin board in electronic form, so students need to check it periodically to read the new messages.

nonlinear editing: video editing methods that record the source clips on hard disk, allowing you to jump directly to any clip without having to shuttle through any
clips that came before or after.

NTSC: National Television Standards Committee - The standard broadcast signal received by TV in the United States.

OCR (Optical Character Recognition): The method used by a computer to convert scanned in pages of text into electronic text documents. With OCR, a user can scan in a page from a book; the computer will recognize the characters on the page as letters and punctuation marks, and create a file contains the same text as the scanned page. The finished file can then be opened in any word processor. By "recognizing" whole pages of text, OCR saves you from having to type text information into the computer by hand.

OmniPage Professional: Software used in conjunction with a scanner. Using OmniPage, pictures or documents can be "scanned in" to the computer (turned into digital files), edited, and placed in one of the right formats to be posted on a Web page.

operating system: a program, OS, that lets the computer control its own operation; this program's major task is to handle the transfer of data and programs to
and from the computer disks

os: operating system, a program that lets the computer control its own operation; this program's major task is to handle the transfer of data and programs to and from the computer disks.

PageMaker: A page layout and publishing design software made by Adobe.

PageMill: One of the first WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) web authoring software. Very simple and easy to use.

PAL: Phase Alternation Line - The standard broadcast signal received by TV in many European countries. (see NTSC for American standards)

.pdf (portable document format): A file format created by Adobe, initially to provide a standard form for storing and editing printed publishable documents. Because documents in .pdf format can easily be seen and printed by users on a variety of computer and platform types, they are very common on the World Wide Web. To view files of this type, download the Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free from Adobe's Web site.

Photo CD: A product developed by Eastman Kodak that places photos on a compact disc and allows users to view them on a their television or computer.

PhotoShop: An expensive and powerful software program from Adobe which is used to manipulate images. Pictures can be dramatically changed using PhotoShop: colors changed, images sharpened, parts of the picture removed or moved.

pict: the standard file format used to pass images back and forth between Macintosh applications and the main format used by the Clipboard;
PICT files consist of collections of the Macintosh QuickDraw routines needed to create the image.

PictureWorx: Creates seamless 360 degree images that can be panned on the Web.

Pine: A Unix based program for managing electronic mail developed by the University of Washington.

pixels: A measurement of the smallest "dot" that can be displayed a computer screen.

pkzip: A program that compresses files so that they will take up less storge space in a disk. Many files are stored "zipped" or "compressed" on servers, to decrease the time you spend downloading them. After they are on your computer, you need to "unzip" them to be able to run them (using pkunzip, WinZip, or other programs) . Some compressed files will uncompress automatically after you download them.

plug-in: A program launched by your browser which allows you use special kinds of files. These applications commonly let you see and hear video and audio files, as well as view specialized text files or virtual reality models. These programs are called plug-ins because they supplement the capabilities of your browser, and only run when they are needed to display files. Shockwave, CosmoPlayer, and RealAudio are examples of plug-ins.

ports: a connector usually found on the backside of the computer.

PowerPoint: A program in the Microsoft Office suite which allows users to create presentations, and handouts. By creating PowerPoint "slides," users can add color, images, sounds, and movies to their text presentations.

Premiere: A simple and powerful video editing tool. Outputs video to tape, CD or the Web.

Presto OCR: Scans printed text documents from a flatbed scanner and converts it into digital text that can be edited.

processor: central processing unit which is the brain of the computer; it contains a microprocessor that controls the computer.

QuickTime movies: A software format, developed by Apple Computer, that allows you to show "movies" or other moving pictures (TV, animations, etc.) on your computer. Quicktime Movies are commonly available on the Web, and can be viewed using Apple's MoviePlayer plug-in.

RAM: Random Access Memory - The part of a computer's memory used to write data to and read from a disk. When you work on a computer, the information
displayed on the monitor screen is stored in RAM.

RCA connector: the common connector used for most back-panel audio connections and for some types of video; it uses relatively low-cost push-on male and
female connectors consisting of an inner connector within a concentric ring about 8 mm in diameter that forms the outer connector; also commonly called a "phono connector" because of its frequent use on phonographs

RealPlayer: A plug-in application developed by Real Networks, that allows a user to hear audio and video saved in various file formats. Realplayer also plays streaming media, that is, audio or video that is being broadcast live over the internet. Clicking on some hyperlinks will cause your browser to activate RealPlayer.

RealPresenter: A plug-in application from Real Networks that allows users to record audio files and present them on the World Wide Web.

red book: 1) the common name for the book that lists the standards for Compact Disc audio as specified by Sony and Phillips, the developers of this format; 2) on a mixed mode disc, audio tracks formatted according to this standard.

recycle bin: a temporary storage place for deleted files

refresh rate: the number of times per second that a video display system redraws the image on screen; rates below about 75 images per second can cause flicker, depending on the image size, lighting and image content.

render: to draw an image as it would appear in final form rather than as a schematic or blueprint.

RGB: 1) as applied to video systems, short for red, green, and blue, three color signals that can between them create a complete video image; most computer graphics systems use this tri-color approach; early models of the IBM PC uses TTL RGB, which allows the color signals to take on only a few discrete values; most computers now use analog RGB, which allows the color signals to take on a continuous range of values; 2) as a color model, a method of representing all colors as the combination of red, green, and blue light that would create color; 3) a
characterization of video systems that work with picture information carried on three signal (red, green, blue) lines rather than combined in a single line (composite color).

rich text: 1) text that has additional embedded information regarding formatting or structuring; for example, text with italics or a document with an outline format; 2) specifically Rich Text Format (RTF), a format developed by Microsoft to exchange text with styles and formatting using only normal alphanumeric symbols.

right-mouse button: a button located on the top surface of a mouse which is used to access and move information or to open a shortcut menu that contains many
useful commands; there are two buttons on the mouse; the right button is the secondary button.

rom: Read Only Memory, memory that retains its contents when the power supply is turned off; often referred to as hardwired, internal memory, it
cannot be altered or changed.

sample size: The number of bits used to store the recorded sound's amplitudes. It is also referred as Resolution. The sample size is measured in bits and governs the
difference in volume between the softest sound and the loudest sound that can be recorded and played back. The sample size of standard audio Cds is 16 bits, and the sample size for standard broadcast radio is 8 bits. 16-bit audio allows 65,536 loudness levels, whereas, 8-bit audio allows 256 loudness levels. Combined with sample rate, it provides a measure of how closely a sound that is recorded and played back will match the original sound source.

sampled sound: sound that has been captured in digital form from an acoustic or electrical waveform rather than synthesized (created) by a computer system.

sampling rate: A measure of how often sound is converted from an analog waveform to numbers. The sampling rate is measured in samples per second and governs the highest and lowest frequencies of sound that can be recorded and reproduced. Standard audio Cds use a sampling rate of 44kHz. The 44.1 kHz sampling rate captures 44,100 (amplitude samples) picture of sound per second. Combined with sample size, sampling rate provides a measure of how closely a sound that is recorded and played back will match the original sound source.

scan: The process of turning pages from notebooks, typed documents, and photographs into digital images. After images have been digitized, they can be placed on World Wide Web pages. A scanner (machine) and scanning software software are required.

screen saver: selections and configurations for various patterns that constantly change so that a condition called "screen burn in" does not occur.

scrolling: to move through the text or graphics (up, down, left, or right), in order to see parts of a document or window that don't fit on the screen.

SCSI: Small Computer System Interface - An industry standard connection for hardware devices.

serial: a port on the computer that transmits one bit of information at a time.

server: A computer which is designed to be accessed by many other computers. Servers can be attached to local area networks (in an office setting, for instance) and/or be hooked up to the internet. With the proper software and connections, servers can control the distribution of email, store World Wide Web documents, and provide access to files that are shared by many users.

single speed: A CD-ROM drive that accesses data at a speed of 150kB per second. This is the speed at which standard audio Cds can be read. Single speed is the standard speed for CD-ROM drives.

SoundForge: A digital audio recording and enhancing software.

streaming media: Any type of media (radio, television, virtual reality presentation, etc.) which can be view using a plug-in (RealNetworks's RealPlayer, or Microsoft's NetCast for example). The streaming media is usually broadcast live, and can be from anywhere in the world. By using this feature, you will be able to enable view foreign broadcasts or listen to a radio station from across the United States.

StuffIt Expander: A program for the Macintosh used to decompress files after downloading. Many files are stored on servers in a compressed format, making them take up less disk space, and reducing the time it takes for you to download them. StuffIt Expander (published by Aladdin Systems), decompresses these files, and makes them usable by your computer. On a PC, this process is called "unzipping" files.

subdirectory: A division in the way that a computer organizes information. The drawer of a file cabinet is analogous to a directory; it is a space where one keeps folders. In this analogy, each of these folders would be a subdirectory. Subdirectories contain many different files (and sometimes other subdirectories); for instance, if you had a directory on you computer called "teaching documents," it might contain subdirectories like "lecture notes," "class lists," or "handouts." Within the subdirectory, "lecture notes," you might have files for each day of class that contain your detailed notes. Directories contain subdirectories, and subdirectories contain files.

S-Video: A type of video signal that transfers light and color separately, using multiple wires. S-video delivers a higher quality picture than formats such as NTSC which encodes the data. (also see Composite video)

synthesizer: An electronic musical device that generates sound.

taskbar: a bar on the screen that has the Start button on it; when you open the programs, buttons appear on the taskbar which are use to quickly
switch between windows on the screen.

thumbnail: A tiny copy (about the size of a thumbnail) of a larger image. Generally, thumbnails appear on Web pages to give users a general idea of what the image looks like before they choose to spend time waiting for the larger version to download. Clicking on a thumbnail image generally causes the larger image to load automatically.

title bar: a wide horizontal band across the top of a window which includes, among other things, the name of the file, or folder.

transfer rate: The time required for data to be transferred from the hard drive (or CD-ROM drive) to the computer's CPU.

tween: in animation and graphics, to automatically create an interpolated image between two set images; tweening speeds up the creation of animated
sequences by letting the user define only the keyframe images and letting the computer fill in the ones in between.

uhf: 1) short for "ultra-high frequency", the radio frequency from 300 to 3,000 MHZ; 2) also used more specifically to indicate the TV broadcast
band located in this range; in the United States, UHF channels 14 through 83 occupy the range from 470 MHZ to 890 MHZ.

Unix: A very popular operating system on the Internet. Unix is a system favored by computer programmers, and is characterized by arcane, unintuitive commands. Mastering Unix requires some study.

unzip: A method for uncompressing files on a PC after downloading them from the Internet. Many files are stored on servers in a compressed format, making them take up less disk space, and reducing the time it takes for you to download them. You must decompresses these files to make them usable by your computer. WinZip and pkunzip are popular free software programs that will uncompress files.

upload: The process of transferring a file from a personal computer to a server. It makes the file available to others.

URL (Uniform Resource Locator): The "address" for documents on the World Wide Web. Addresses that begin with "http://" or "ftp://" usually indicate that they are URLs.

vector graphic: images and drawings made up of lines and other geometric elements rather than out of individual dots.

Video capture board: An expansion board you put inside a PC that allows you to capture a single frame from an NTSC source and save it on your hard disk.

Video for Windows: A software program that lets users play video on their PC without additional hardware.

video ram (vram): 1) memory chips or systems engineered for use with video displays, particularly those built with dual data ports to allow the video information
to be read out without interfering with and reading and writing of data through the primary port; 2) a section of main memory used to store
data for display.

VistaScan: A scanning software that allows consumers to scan documents and photos just as easily as they would use a copy machine.

VR Toolbox: Creates seamless 360 degree images that can be panned on the Web.

.WAV: The file format for waveform audio.

white balance: the adjustment of a camera or other video source so that a white object will produce the correct signal for white; most consumer video
cameras have automatic white balance circuits.

WinZip: A program, published by WinZip, used to uncompress files after downloading them on a PC running Microsoft Windows. Many files are stored on servers in a compressed format, making them take up less disk space, and reducing the time it takes for you to download them. WinZip decompresses these files, and makes them usable by your computer.

Word: A program in the Microsoft in the Office Suite. Although Word is a word processing program, more recent versions (Word 97 and higher) can also publish word files as HTML documents, so that they can be used on the World Wide Web.

word processing: the use of a computers to create, edit, save, and print documents comprised of text, such as letters, reports, and contracts.

WYSIWG ("What You See is What You Get"): A type of text editor that allows you to edit a document and see it as it will appear in its final version. Most word processors are WYSIWIG, because they show you on the screen what a document will look like when you print it. Most HTML editors also fall into this category, because they allow you to edit a World Wide Web document and see it as it would look on a Web browser.

XML: A language still under development for use on the World Wide Web. XML promises more versatility and power than HTML, but not many applications support the use of XML yet. Instead of using tags to describe how a document should look, it uses tags to describe the content of the document.

Zip disks: These are disks to use in "Zip drives" which hold more data than standard 3 1/2 inch floppy disks. Zip drives are commonly used to back up hard drives and large documents.