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Mail :
Refer to E-Mail
Maillist :
(or Mailing List) A (usually automated) system that allows
people to send e-mail to one address, whereupon their
message is copied and sent to all of the other subscribers to
the Maillist. In this way, people who have many different
kinds of e-mail access can participate in discussions
together.
Mass storage unit :
Support allowing for reading, writing and handling data files.
Most usually, mass storage units are hard disk, diskette and
cartridge units.
Mathematical coprocessor :
Optional complementary processor added to the central computer
in order to speed up arithmetic operations. Used on Intel old
generation processors (integrated in the central processor
from the Pentium model).
MAPI :
Messaging Applications Programming Interface. The Microsoft
application programming interface that enable programs to send
messages over a Microsoft Mail network.
Mb or Mbit :
Megabit. The common abbreviation for megabit: a megabit is one
million bits.
Mbps :
Transmission rate, meaning one million bits per second.
MB or Mbyte :
Megabyte. The common abbreviation for megabyte; a megabyte is
one million bytes
Merge :
To assemble, in one sequential file, records coming from at
least two files, without changing the records sequence.
Meta Tag :
A specific kind of HTML tag that contains information
not normally displayed to the user. Meta tags contain
information about the page itself, hence the name ("meta"
means "about this subject")
Typical uses of Meta tags are to include information for
search engines to help them better categorize a page.
You can see the Meta tags in a page if you view the pages'
source code.
Metro :
PC distributor in Europe.
MHz :
Frequency measure unit. A unit equal to 1 million hertz (one
million cycles per second). This unit is frequently used to
measure the CPU clock speed. In 1995, CPU speed is generally
between 25 and 100 MHz.
MHS :
-
Message Handling System. E-mail system based on the X.400
messages protocol.
-
Message Handling Service. Novell software to link dissimilar
E-mail systems.
MIB :
Management Information Base. In the Simple Network Management
Protocol, a collection of objects that are logical
representations of network devices and their internal
components.
Microcode :
The microinstructions, especially of a microprocessor, that
govern the details of operations. For example, the hardware of
3081 fetches and executes 108-bit microinstructions wholly
different from the instruction set of System/370. Yet IBM
supplies a micro program that causes the 3081 to act like a
System/370. The instructions in such a program are referred to
as microcode. The execution of each System/370 instructions
puts the hardware into a subroutine of microinstructions that
execute the function defined for that instruction. Micro coded
functions can improve performance but add a layer of
complexity. For example, microcode errors appear to software
as being hardware failures.
Microprocessor :
Central processor in micro-computers, composed of only one
integrated circuit.
Microprogram :
Software routine stored in ROM, thus remaining unaltered in
case of power off.
Microsoft :
Software world leader. The main products are Windows and
MS-Office which is composed of WORD, EXCEL, PowerPoint and
MAIL.
Middleware :
The set of software facilities that an application program may
use to receive services from the platform. IBM's systems
Application Architecture and Digital Equipment Corp.'s Network
Applications Support are examples of middleware-based
architectures. Middleware includes database management
systems, library and search services, mail systems and
compound document services. Middleware typically has
application programming interface available to applications.
Minolta :
Japanese electronic manufacturer.
MIPS :
Million Instructions Per second. An approximate figure to
denote a computer's raw processing power. It is often
misleading, since it does not necessarily provide a good
throughput figure of merit.
Mirror disk :
Technology allowing to replicate data on two different hard
disks, thus allowing continuous operation in case of failure
on one disk.
Mirror :
Generally speaking, "to mirror" is to maintain an exact copy
of something. Probably the most common use of the term on the
Internet refers to "mirror sites" which are web sites,
or FTP sites that maintain copies of material
originated at another location, usually in order to provide
more widespread access to the resource. For example, one site
might create a library of software, and 5 other sites might
maintain mirrors of that library.
Modem :
A conversion device installed in pairs, at each end of an
analog communications line. The word is a contraction of
modulate and demodulate. The transmitting-end modem modulates
digital signals received locally from a computer or terminal
(sending analog signals over the line). The receiving-end
modem demodulates the incoming signal, converting it back to
its original (i.e., digital) format and passes it to the
destination business machine.
Monitor :
Computer hardware used for displaying digital output.
Motif :
Graphical user interface specified by the Open Software
Foundation and built on the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology's X-Windows.
MIME :
(Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions) Originally a standard
for defining the types of files attached to standard Internet
mail messages. The MIME standard has come to be used in many
situations where one computer programs needs to communicate
with another program about what kind of file is being sent.
For example, HTML files have a MIME-type of text/html,
JPEG files are image/jpeg, etc.
MPEG :
Motion Pictures Experts Group. An emerging standard for
compression of full motion images driven by the same committee
as the Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) standard.
ms :
Milli-second. Unit of time equal to one thousandth of a
second.
MS-DOS :
An operation system written by Microsoft for personal
computers, and the basis for IBM's PC-DOS. There are only
trivial differences between the two operating systems. MS-DOS
can be used by IBM PC-compatible machines.
MNP :
Microcom Networking Protocol. These protocols were developed
for error recovery and data compression (in order to speed up
the transmission). They are now in the public domain.
Monochrome :
Display unit allowing only one color, most frequently white,
orange or green.
MOO :
(Mud, Object Oriented) One of several kinds of multi-user
role-playing environments.
Mosaic :
The first WWW browser that was available for the
Macintosh, Windows, and UNIX all with the same interface.
Mosaic really started the popularity of the Web. The
source-code to Mosaic was licensed by several companies and
used to create many other web browsers.
Mosaic was developed at the National Center for Supercomputing
Applications (NCSA), at the University of Illinois in
Urbana-Champaign, in Illinois, USA. The first version was
released in late 1993.
Mouse :
Input unit allowing the user to point on displayed elements,
in order to select them. Most mice dispose of two buttons.
This unit has been invented in the famous PARC.
MTBF :
Mean time between failures.
MTTR :
Mean Time To Repair. The average time required to repair a
failure. Automated fault isolation techniques, including
automatic fault bypassing, have reduced this measurement of
system recovery time.
MUD :
(Multi-User Dungeon or Dimension) A (usually text-based)
multi-user simulation environment. Some are purely for fun and
flirting, others are used for serious software development, or
education purposes and all that lies in between. A significant
feature of most MUDs is that users can create things that stay
after they leave and which other users can interact within
their absence, thus allowing a world to be built gradually and
collectively.
Multimedia :
Used essentially to define applications and technologies that
manipulate text, data, images and voice full motion video
objects. Typically associated with PCs, but increasingly
associated with networked-based applications.
Multiplexer :
Mux. A device that combines inputs from two or more terminals,
computer ports, or other multiplexers, and transmits the
combined data stream data over a single high-speed channel. At
the receiving end, the high-speed channel is de-multiplexed,
either by another multiplexer or by software.
Multi-tasking :
Capacity of a system allowing to execute simultaneously
several programs in the same computer.
MUSE :
(Multi-User Simulated Environment) One kind of MUD - usually
with little or no violence. |
