| OASIS |
Stands for "Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards." To someone backpacking through the... |
| OCR |
Stands for "Optical Character Recognition." This technology is what allows you to scan that paper you lost on your... |
| ODBC |
Stands for "Open Database Connectivity." With all the different types of databases available, such as Microsoft... |
| OEM |
Stands for "Original Equipment Manufacturer." This refers to a company that produces hardware to be marketed under... |
| Offline |
When a computer or other device is not turned on or connected to other devices, it is said to be "offline." This is... |
| OLAP |
Stands for "Online Analytical Processing." OLAP allows users to analyze database information from multiple database... |
| OLE |
Stands for "Object Linking and Embedding." It can be pronounced as "O-L-E," or "Oh-lay!" if you are feeling Spanish... |
| Online |
In general, when a machine is "online," it is turned on and connected to other devices. For example, when a network... |
| OOP |
Stands for "Object-Oriented Programming." OOP (not Oops!) refers to a programming methodology based on objects... |
| Opacity |
Opacity (pronounced "o-PASS-ity") refers to the opaqueness of an object. In computing, opacity is often used in... |
| Open Firmware |
Open Firmware is a type of firmware that some computer systems use when they boot up. It controls the processor and... |
| Open Source |
When a software program is open source, it means the program's source code is freely available to the public. Unlike... |
| OpenGL |
OpenGL, or the Open Graphics Library, is a 3D graphics language developed by Silicon Graphics. Before OpenGL was... |
| Operating System |
Also known as an "OS," this is the software that communicates with computer hardware on the most basic level. Without... |
| Optical Drive |
In the real world, "optical" refers to vision, or the ability to see. In the computer world, however, "optical" refers... |
| Optical Media |
Media, in the computer world, refers to various types of data storage. For example, hard drives, CDs, DVDs, and USB... |
| OS X |
Mac OS X, pronounced "Mac Oh-Es Ten," is the current version of the operating system used on Apple Macintosh computers... |
| OSD |
OSD is short for "On Screen Display." An OSD is an onscreen menu included with most monitors that allows users to make... |
| OSPF |
Stands for "Open Shortest Path First." OSPF is a method of finding the shortest path from one router to another in a... |
| Outbox |
An outbox is where outgoing e-mail messages are temporarily stored. While you are composing a message, most mail... |
| Output |
Data generated by a computer is referred to as output. This includes data produced at a software level, such as the... |
| Output Device |
Any device that outputs information from a computer is called, not surprisingly, an output device. Since most... |
| Overclocking |
For some people, fast is never fast enough. In the world of computers, a fast processor can be made even faster by... |
| Overwrite |
In computing, overwriting refers to replacing old data with new data. There are two primary types of overwriting... |
