Glossary
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## Glossary

4Dwm

  The name of the default Window Manager. See also Window Manager.

account

  See login account.

active window

  The only window that recognizes input (activity) from the keyboard and mouse; only one window is active at a time. The active window is the one whose window border is highlighted.

Administrator

  The person who can use the most privileged account, root. This person must have their own personal login account for daily use, but, when routine maintenence needs to be performed or there are serious system problems to correct, the person logs in to the root account to change system information using the graphical tools or using the IRIX shell.

  The Administrator has all the capabilities of a privileged user, plus the capability to change information in the root account (such as the password) and to log in to an IRIX shell as root.

ASCII text

  An ASCII file contains text only. When you save a file as ASCII text, you save only the characters, not the size, the font, the style, the color, or the format.

autologin

  To be automatically logged in to the system each time it is powered up.

automount

  An NFS utility that lets you share directories with other systems as if the directory resided on your own disk. When automount is turned on, you can drag a directory icon from the Shared Resources area of another system's System Manager window onto your own desktop.

back up

  To copy a certain set of files and directories from your hard disk to a tape or other storage media.

backup tape

  A tape that contains a copy of a set of files and directories that are on your hard disk. A full backup tape contains a copy of all files and directories, including IRIX, that are on your hard disk.

baud rate

  The speed (calculated as bits per second) at which the system sends information to a serial device, such as a modem or a terminal.

borderless window

  A window with no title bar or borders.

business card

  When you double-click a person's icon in the desktop, you see a business card that displays public information about the person. The information on the business card is drawn from the person's User Information window in the Users and Groups tool.

business card information

  Business card information appears in the top portion of a person's User Information window in the Users and Groups tool; it includes a picture of the person and contact information about the person. Usually this information is the same for every account that belongs to a particular person.

button

  On a mouse, a button is a switch that you press with a finger. In a window on your screen, a button is a labeled rectangle that you click using the cursor and mouse.

CD-ROM disk (CD)

  A flat metallic-coated plastic disk that contains information that you can view and copy onto your own hard disk; you cannot change or add to its information. CD-ROM is short for `compact-disk: read-only memory`.

centralized network

  A network where a central server controls services and information; the server is maintained by one or more individuals called network administrators. On a centralized network that uses NIS, this server is called the NIS master, and all other systems on the network are called NIS clients. See also network administrator, NIS, NIS client, NIS domain, and NIS master.

choose

  To press the left mouse button to bring up a menu, move the cursor to highlight the command that you want to run, then release the button.

click

  To hold the mouse still, then press and immediately release a mouse button.

command line option

  Options that let you specify how you want to run an IRIX command. See the man page of a command for a list of the available command line options.

configuration file

  A system file that you change to customize the way your system behaves. Such files are sometimes referred to as customization files.

confidence test

  A test that you run to make sure a particular device (such as the keyboard, mouse, or a drive) is set up and working properly.

console

  The window that appears as a stowed icon each time you log in; IRIX reports status and error messages to this window.

CPU

  The CPU (Central Processing Unit) is the chip that proccesses data. Depending on the type and version of a CPU, the system will run at different speeds.

current working directory

  The directory within the file system in which you are currently located when you are working in a shell window.

cursor

  The small red arrow on the screen that echoes the movements of the mouse. It changes shape depending on its location on the screen.

daisy-chain

  A series of SCSI devices that are connected to each other, with one device connected to the SCSI port on a system and the final device terminated.

DAT

  Digital Audio Tape; a magnetic tape from which you can read and to which you can copy audio and digital information.

default printer

  The printer to which the system directs a print request if you do not specify a printer when you make the request. You set the default printer using the Print Manager.

defaults

  A set of behaviors that Silicon Graphics specifies on every system. You can later change these specifications, which range from how your screen looks to what type of drive you want to use to install new software. For example, when you run IRIS Showcase, the Master gizmo opens by default. You can change the default settings using the Preferences gizmo.

desk

  The screen background and the collection of windows that appears on top of it. You can create multiple desks and switch between them. When you switch from one desk to another, the screen changes, almost as if you had several different monitors.

desktop

  The word desktop often refers to the screen background, but it can also refer to the entire IRIX Interactive Desktop environment, which includes all the graphical interfaces that make up your basic software environment. The desktop is similar to an actual office desk. For example, on your desk, you might have a phone, a container of pens and pencils, and a number of folders or notebooks. Other tools and files are stashed away in desk drawers.

  By default, a number of items appear on the background, including: the Toolchest, a folder icon representing your home directory, a dumpster icon, and an icon for each peripheral you have installed. You can place other icons on the desktop so that you can access them more easily.

directory

  On the desktop, directories are represented by folder icons. When you open a directory, it displays the files, folders, and applications that the directory contains. Directory windows are called Icon Views.

disk directory

  A directory that represents an entire disk or a partition of a disk. When you open a disk directory, you view the contents of the disk.

disk use

  The percentage of space on your disk that contains information.

distributed network

  A network where there is no automated central control of services or information. Each system's administrator must work with the network administrator to keep each system's network information up to date.

domain

  A group of hosts on a network whose hostnames have the same suffix. See also NIS domain.

domain name

  The common suffix found in all hostnames that are in the same domain on a network. See also NIS domain.

double-click

  To hold the mouse still, then press and release it twice, very rapidly. When you double-click an icon it opens into a window; when you double-click the Window menu button, the window closes.

drag

  To press and hold down a mouse button, then move the mouse.

drive

  A hardware device that lets you access information on various forms of media, such as hard, floppy, and CD-ROM disks, and magnetic tapes.

drop pocket

  A drop pocket is the small blue square into which you can drop icons. You can drag a folder icon and place it into the drop pocket on a Directory View window. The window displays the contents of that folder.

  You can also drag a file or application icon and place it in the drop pocket on a Directory View window. The window displays the contents of the directory in which that icon is stored.

  As a final example, you can drag an IRIS Showcase icon and drop it into a drop pocket on the Search tool to specify the type of files you want to find—in this case, IRIS Showcase files.

dumpster

  A temporary holding place for icons that you remove using the "Remove" command. To retrieve files from the dumpster, double-click the dumpster icon; to empty the dumpster, choose "Empty Dumpster" from the Desktop toolchest.

electronic mail address

  Your login name plus location information so you can receive electronic mail. The address is usually assigned by the network administrator.

field

  An area in a window in which you can type text.

file

  A container in which you store information such as text, programs, or images you create using an application.

file hierarchy

  See file system.

file system

  A hierarchy of directories and files. Directories contain other directories and files; files cannot contain directories. The root (/) directory is at the top of the hierarchy. See also pathname.

form

  A window that contains buttons that you must click and/or editable fields that you must fill in.

global desk

  The desk to place windows on if you want them to automatically appear on all of your desks.

group

  A collection of login names. Members of a group can make file permissions apply to all other members of a group. You create and modify groups using the Users and Groups tool.

guide

  In the Desktop documentation, the word "guide" usually refers to an Interactive Guide (like a "wizard"), which is a program that steps you through a task.

home directory

  A directory in which you create and store your work. Usually, the home directory is named `/usr/people/<loginname`>, where loginname is the name of your login account. A folder icon for your home directory appears on the desktop by default.

host

  Any system connected to the same local network.

hostname

  The name that uniquely identifies each host (system) on the local network.

icon

  A small picture that represents a stowed or closed file, directory, application, or IRIX process.

Icon View

  The window you see when you open a folder (also called a directory) icon. It displays the files, folders, and applications that the directory contains. See Figure 1-1 for a picture of an Icon View. You can also type an http or FTP site name into an Icon View to see the contents of a Web or FTP site (see “Accessing Files Using FTP in an Icon View Window” in Chapter 10“Accessing Files Using FTP in an Icon View Window” in Chapter 10 and “Accessing Files on the Web Using an Icon View Window” in Chapter 10).

input focus

  Only one window at a time recognizes mouse movement and typing. The window that does is said to have the input focus.

inst

  The software tool that you use to install system software, software options, and maintenance releases that come from Silicon Graphics.

IP address

  The number that uniquely identifies each system on the network.

IRIS

  Any graphics workstation manufactured by Silicon Graphics, Inc.

IRIX

  The Silicon Graphics version of the UNIX operating system. See also system software.

IRIX processes

  Tasks that IRIX carries out to keep the system running correctly or to complete an explicit command. Each process has a unique process ID number.

Kb (Kilobyte)

  A standard unit for measuring the information storage capacity of disks and memory (RAM and ROM); 1024 bytes make one Kilobyte.

launch icon

  An arrow-shaped icon that appears in the right margin of the IRIS InSight viewer and the Help viewer. Double-click this icon to run an application.

link

  A pointer to a file or directory that exists in a different location in the file system. When you make a link to a file, you are not creating another instance of the file; you are creating another location from which you can access the original file.

local workstation, drive, disk, file system, or printer

  The physical workstation whose keyboard and mouse you are using, all hardware that is connected to that workstation, and all software that resides on that hardware or its removable media.

log in

  To give the system your login name so you can start a session on the IRIS workstation.

log out

  To end a session on the IRIS.

login account

  A collection of information about a person who can log in to the system. The information includes the person's full name, login name, contact information, and the name of a home directory in which the person can store directories and files. Also called user account.

login name

  The name you use to identify yourself to the system. You type it to log in to the system, and the system uses it to label files that belong to you. If your system is on a network, the network administrator usually must approve of the name to make sure it is unique. Also called user name.

login screen

  The window that you see after powering on the system, before you can access files and directories. The window contains one icon for each login account on the system.

Mb (Megabyte)

  A standard unit for measuring the information storage capacity of disks and memory (RAM and ROM); 1024 kilobytes make one megabyte.

menu

  A list of operations or commands that the IRIS can carry out on various objects on the screen.

menu button

  A button that reveals a pop-up menu. Place the cursor over the button; then press the left mouse button.

minimize

  Minimizing a window is a handy way to keep multiple applications running without having a lot of windows open, or just to move a window temporarily out of the way so you can access another window. Access the menu for minimizing a window by clicking the upper left corner of a window. It temporarily turns a window into a small square icon so that it uses very little screen space. It's like instantly packing an application into a tiny box and putting it out of the way, but it doesn't close down the application. The current state of the application remains unchanged while the application window is minimized. To restore a minimized window to its original size, click on it.

mount point

  The directory on your workstation from which you access information that is stored on a local or remote disk resource.

mount

  To make a file system that is stored on a local or remote disk resource accessible from a specific directory on your workstation.

mouse

  A hardware device that you use to communicate with windows and icons. You move the mouse to move the cursor on the screen, and you press its buttons to initiate operations. An optical mouse must always be on the mouse pad for the IRIS to interpret its movements; a mechanical mouse works on any clean, flat surface.

mouse pad

  For an optical mouse, this is the rectangular, metallic surface that reads the movements of the mouse. For a mechanical mouse, this is a clean, soft rectangular surface that makes the mouse's trackball roll efficiently.

multi-tasking system

  A system that can run several processes (such as running applications, printing files, and updating files) simultaneously.

multiuser system

  A system that several users can work on simultaneously and maintain private files.

NFS

  A networking software option that lets you access files and directories that reside on the disks of other workstations as if they resided on a local disk in your own workstation. NFS stands for Network File System.

network

  A group of computers and other devices (such as printers) that can all communicate with each other electronically to transfer and share information.

Network Access account

  A person who has a Network Access account on a system can log in to the system only when the network and the optional NIS software are running properly. The information in a Network Access account is entered by the network administrator on the NIS master system. Privileged Users on other systems on the network cannot change any business card information about a Network Access account.

network administrator

  The network administrator is the person who maintains a network of systems. If the network runs the optional NIS software, the network administrator maintains the master database of login account information.

Network File System

  A networking software option. It lets you access files and directories that reside on the disks of other workstations as if they resided on a local disk in your own workstation.

NIS

  A networking software option that lets you control network information and services from a central server called the NIS master. NIS stands for Network Information Service. See also centralized network, NIS client, NIS domain, and NIS master.

NIS client

  Any system on a centralized network that runs NIS other than the NIS master. The NIS client receives services and information from the NIS master.

NIS domain name

  The unique name of a network (or sub-network) that runs NIS.

NIS master

  The server that stores the complete database of information about all the hosts (systems) and users on a centralized NIS network. The NIS master periodically updates host information on all other systems on the network (NIS clients); its user information is always available to every host. The network administrator is responsible for setting up, maintaining, and troubleshooting the NIS master.

notifier

  A form that appears when the system requires you to confirm an operation that you just requested, or when an error occurs.

open

  To double-click an icon, or to select an icon, then choose “Open” from a menu in order to display a window that contains the information that the icon represents.

open in place

  When double-clicking a directory folder icon in a Icon View window, it opens in the current Icon View window rather than in a new window. The "open in place" behavior occurs only when it has been selected by choosing Desktop > Customize > Icon Views from the Toolchest, or Options > Default Layout... in the Icon View window, or when you hold down the `Alt` key while double-clicking.

owner

  The user who created a particular file or directory and can specify which other users of the system can access the file.

parent directory

  A relative term that refers to a directory that contains another directory. If directory A contains directory B, then A is the parent directory of B.

password

  A combination of letters and/or numbers that only you know; it is an optional element of your login account. If you specify a password for your account, you must type it after you type your login name before the system lets you access files and directories.

path

  A list of directories the system searches when trying to find a file or run a program. You can add directories to and delete directories from your path. For instructions, see "Adding Directories to Your Path."

path finder

  The area of a window that contains the drop pocket, the pathname field, the path bar, and the recycle button (these features are shown in Figure 1-1). You use these fixtures to move from one directory to another.

pathname

  The list of directories that leads you to a specific file or directory in the file system. For example: `/usr/people/jane/test.results` is a pathname. Note that directories contain other directories and files. The `root` (/) directory is the original directory, in which all other directories reside.

peripheral

  A hardware device that adds more functionality to the basic workstation, such as a tape drive. See also external devices and internal drives.

permission

  The information attached to each directory and file that specifies which users can access it and to what degree. See also “Understanding and Changing Permissions” in Chapter 9.

permissions mask

  A system setting that specifies the default permissions that the system assigns to newly created files and directories. The owners of those files and directories can later change the permissions.

Printer Manager

  A tool that you use to set up printer software and monitor jobs that you send to the printer. You access it through either the System toolchest or the System Manager.

Privileged User

  A person whose standard login account includes administrative privileges. When a Privileged User logs in, he can change his personal work area, and can use the graphical administration tools to change or customize the entire system (for example, add a disk, create a login account, or install system software). There can be more than one Privileged User on the same system.

pop

  Windows on the screen can overlap each other. You can pop a window so it appears on top of other windows.

port

  An outlet to which you attach cable connectors.

power cable

  The cable that connects the workstation to a grounded electrical outlet.

power down

  To turn off the power switches on the workstation chassis and the monitor.

power up

  To turn on the power switches on the workstation chassis and the monitor.

PROM monitor

  The interface that you use to communicate with the system after it is powered up, but before it is booted up and running IRIX.

prompt

  A character or word that the system displays in an IRIX shell that indicates that the system is ready to accept commands. The default prompt for regular user accounts is `%`; the default prompt for the root account is `#`.

queue

  A list of print jobs waiting to be printed on a particular printer.

quit

  To stop running an application.

reference

  On the IRIX Interactive Desktop, the word reference refers to a reference icon, which is an icon that is pointer to a file or directory that exists in a different location in the file system. When you make a reference icon for a file, you are not creating another instance of the file; you are creating another location from which you can access the original file. Reference icons are distinguished by an italicized icon label.

remote

  The word `remote`, used in reference to a workstation ("host"), drive, disk, file system, or printer, refers to something that you can access across a network; something that is not physically connected to your workstation, except by a network.

reset button

  A physical button on the workstation that you press to cut off, then immediately restore power to the workstation. You should never press this button while IRIX is running, unless all attempts to shut down the system using software fail. See also shut down.

restore (files)

  To copy files that once resided on your hard disk from another disk or a tape back onto your hard disk.

root account

  The standard IRIX login account reserved for use by the system administrator. This account's home directory is the root (/) directory of the filesystem; the user of the root account has full access to the entire filesystem (that is, can change and delete any file or directory). The user of this account is sometimes referred to as the superuser.

root (/) directory

  The directory at the top of the file system hierarchy.

SCSI address

  A number that uniquely identifies a SCSI device to a system. No two SCSI devices that are physically connected to the same workstation can have the same SCSI address.

SCSI cable

  A cable that connects a SCSI device to a SCSI port on a workstation.

SCSI device

  A hardware device that uses the Small Computer System Interface (SCSI) protocol to communicate with the system. Hard disk, floppy disk, CD-ROM, and tape drives are all SCSI devices.

select

  To position the cursor over an icon then click the (left) mouse button. Once an icon is selected, it is the object of whatever operation you select from a menu.

serial device

  Any hardware device that requires a serial cable connection to communicate with the workstation.

serial port

  An outlet on the workstation to which you connect external serial devices.

server

  A system that other systems on the network access to use its disk space, software, or services.

shared

  The word shared can refer to either a directory, media device, or printer, and means that the item is made available for users from other systems on your network to use over the network. For example, if Jan has marked a directory shared, and John has a system on the same network, he can open that directory on his own system. Similarly, if she has marked her CD-ROM drive shared, he could use her CD-ROM drive from his own system.

shelf

  The shelf is an Options feature of Icon Views, a place for you to put icons that you need to use frequently while working in a particular directory. For example, if the directory contains many files, you might want to place the files you use most frequently on the shelf. Or, if the directory contains many color Showcase slides, you might want to place the icon for a color printer onto the shelf.

shell

  A window into which you type IRIX commands. To open a shell from the Toolchest, choose Desktop > Open Unix Shell.

shell script

  A program that issues and interprets a sequence of IRIX commands.

shuffle

  To change the order in which windows are stacked on the screen.

shut down

  To safely close all files, log out, and bring the workstation to a state where you can safely power it down. You choose “Shut Down System” from the System toolchest menu to do this.

software option

  Any software product that you buy from Silicon Graphics, other than the standard system software that comes on your system disk.

superuser

  An alternate name for the user of the root login account. See also system administrator.

system

  All the hardware and software that makes up the computer.

system disk

  The physical disk that contains the standard IRIX operating system software—the software that makes your workstation run.

system software

  The standard IRIX operating system software and Silicon Graphics tools that come on the system disk and on the tape or CD-ROM that you use in the event of a system crash.

TCP/IP

  The standard networking software that is included in the system software.

UNIX

  A multiuser, multi-tasking operating system from AT&T upon which the Silicon Graphics IRIX operating system is based.

user account

  A collection of information about a person who can log in to the system. The information includes the person's full name, login name, contact information, and the name of a home directory in which the person can store directories and files. Also called login account.

User

  Any person who has a standard account on the system. When a user logs in, she can only alter the data in her own user account—her own "room" on the system.

unmount

  To make a file system that is accessible from a specific directory on your system unavailable.

user ID

  A number that uniquely identifies a user to the system.

WebJumper

  WebJumper is a tool that lets you create icons that “jump” you to your favorite Web sites.

wildcard

  A character, usually an asterisk (*), that you use alone to specify all files and directories that are available, or with a few other letters to specify a group of files and directories that have a common element in their names. For example, to specify all files and directories that begin with the letters “ch,” you would type: `ch*`

window

  A portion of the screen that you can manipulate that contains text or graphics.

window manager

  The system program that draws and controls windows. It lets you create and manipulate windows—move them, resize them, and close them.

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