Common Computer Lingo

We are part of the fast-evolving computer era and technological advances; especially in computers which are being introduced regularly. In fact, most of modern society has or encounters computers on a daily basis, despite the fact that they might only have very basic knowledge of the inner workings and lingo of computers.

Perhaps the most common computer term that is the object of some confusion is the word PC. In retrospect, PCs are the machines that are made up of hardware and software. They can be used for typing in information into text documents, viewing said documents that have been stored in the system, going online and storing and viewing pictures, audio and videos.

Personal computers started out as being these huge machines that basically take up a large amount of space, and are extremely heavy and hard to move. However, as computer technology progressed, the bulkier machines gave way to the smaller and more compact desktop versions, which as the name suggests, fits on top of your desk and uses a smaller space than its predecessor.

The thing is that PCs are not merely the desktop computers, like a lot of people seem to think. The term PC also means the other machines that serve the same purpose as the desktop PCs but are more mobile.

These more mobile versions are the smaller, yet just as efficient laptop computers and notebooks which owners can tote around. These days, computer technologists, designers and manufactures are inventing even more compact machines that have the same capacity and functions as their predecessors, if not more.

Another computer word that is causing confusion: servers. It is easy to see why this word brings a lot of confusion, since it has a lot of definitions. You have the file server, which is a computer that is attached to a network of other computers. The function of the file server is to make users of the other machines be able to access and store information, even if they are in different areas of the world.

Another common term is network servers, which are computers that are used specifically to process and deliver data to connected machines by using a local network or an internet network. Network servers are able to handle possible heavy user load because of their processing, storage and memory configurations. Common types of these are the proxy server and web server.

Another is a business server, which has been configured to handle business functions. This machine features connections to fax machines, printers, mobile support, remote connectivity, restore options and business intranet.

Did you know Lee Martin has been in the computer industry since PCS were in homes. Lee is working on servers and server rooms to find efficiencies in established networking.