Computer Basics: Vocabulary

App, Application, A software tool used to complete a specific task

or Program such as create a letter, browse the Internet, and
calculate a math problem.

Browser An application/program used to access and view

websites.

Central Stands for "Central Processing Unit." The CPU is

Processing Unit the primary component of a computer that
(CPU) processes instructions. It runs the operating
system and applications, constantly receiving
input from the user or active software programs.
It processes the data and produces output, which
may stored by an application or displayed on the
screen.
Clicking Pressing and releasing the left (primary) mouse
button. Can also be called left-clicking.

Cloud Where we store and access data and programs

over the Internet instead of your computer's hard
drive.

Cursor A highlighted or bright (sometimes blinking) line

or other mark that shows where information is
being input; that is, where the next letter or
character will appear.

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Default "Factory setting" for any given option in a

software program or operating system.

Defragmentation Defragmentation is the process of consolidating

fragmented files on the user's hard drive. The
process of defragmentation moves the data
blocks on the hard drive around to bring all the
parts of a file together.

Desktop The "home screen" on your computer--what you

see when you first log on.

Double-click Quickly press and release the primary (left)

mouse button twice.

Downloading To download data or software means to transfer

it to your computer or phone from another device
or from the internet.

Drag and Drop Points the mouse at an icon or folder, presses

the button and without releasing the button,
moves the icon or folder to another place on the
computer where the button is released.

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Email Private messages, called electronic mail, that are

sent and received over a computer network.

Email Address Your “digital address” or where people can send

you mail on the internet.

External Hard An external hard drive is a storage device located

drive outside of a computer that is connected through
a USB cable or wireless connection. An external
hard drive is usually used to store media that a
user needs to be portable, for backups, and
when the internal drive of the computer is already
at its full memory capacity. These devices have a
high storage capacity compared to flash drives
and are mostly used for backing up numerous
computer files or serving as a network drive to
store shared content.
File Explorer Directory that includes all Files and Folders
File A piece of computer information-document,
spreadsheet, music, video, etc.
Folder Just like a file folder in a filing cabinet, a file is
where documents (letters, spreadsheets, etc.)
are kept.

Font The size and style of letters.

sample font, SAMPLE FONT,
sample font, Sample Font, sample
font
Formatting Changing the way that text, graphics, tables and
other elements looks on the page.

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Hard drive Located inside your computer; location where

you store data including the operating system.

Hardware The physical equipment of the computer system

that you can see and touch.

Highlight Click and drag across a word or sentence to

highlight it. When it is highlighted you can make
changes to it.

Hover (Mouse Position the mouse pointer over top of an icon

Over) without clicking the icon.

Icon A small picture used to represent a file or

program.

Input and Input Whenever you enter data into your computer, it is
Devices referred to as input. This can be text typed in a
word processing document, keywords entered in
a search engine's search box, or data entered
into a spreadsheet. Input can be something as
simple as moving the mouse or clicking the
mouse button or it can be as complex as
scanning a document or downloading photos
from a digital camera. Input devices perform
these tasks, sending information and instructions
to the computer.

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Internet A network of computer networks.

Link Short for “hyperlink”--object or string of text that

allows you to "jump" to a new location.
Usually blue.

Maximize When you maximize a window on your computer

screen, it becomes larger. In Windows,
maximizing a window makes it take up the entire
screen. In Mac OS X, a maximized window
typically only takes up as much space as it
needs.

Menu A list of operations available to the user of a

program. Menus can be accessed a variety of
ways, including both left and right click.

Minimize When you minimize a window, you hide it from

view. This is commonly done to unclutter the
display or to view other open windows without
closing the current window. In Windows,
minimizing a window will create a button for it in
the taskbar. In Mac OS X, an icon for the
minimized window is added to the right size of
the dock.
Modem The hardware that allows computer to connect to
the internet.

Motherboard The motherboard is a computer’s central

communications backbone connectivity point,
through which all components and external
peripherals connect.

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Network A collection of computers that are connected.

Operating Most important software on the computer;

system controls the hardware and makes it possible to
run other types of software.

Output and Data generated by a computer is referred to as

Output Devices output. This includes data produced at a software
level, such as the result of a calculation, or at a
physical level, such as a printed document.
Output devices perform these tasks by sending
information or instructions to a user or device.

Password A secret word or phrase used to access

information stored on a computer or computer
network.

Pointers the symbols that appear on the computer screen

that indicate your movement of the mouse.

Power Button Activates or Deactivates a particular device.

(on/off)

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RAM Random access memory (RAM) is a type of data

storage used in computers that is generally
located on the motherboard. This type of memory
is volatile and all information that was stored in
RAM is lost when the computer is turned off.
Volatile memory is temporary memory.

Right-click To press and release the right button on the

mouse. Usually pulls up shortcut menu options
for the program upon which you've clicked.

Router A device that plugs into a cable or phone line and

broadcasts the digital signal wirelessly. This
device is what make WiFi possible.

Scroll Control which portion of the document is visible

in the window; available either horizontally or
vertically or both. There are multiple ways (all
depending on your device) to perform this
function.
Scroll Bar A vertical bar on the right side of a window or a
horizontal bar at the bottom of a window that is
used to move the window contents up and down
or left and right.

Scroll Wheel The center wheel/button on a mouse that

performs a range of special page movement
functions.

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Search engine A tool for finding information on the

and Private Internet. Examples are Google and Yahoo. A
Search Engine private search engine is a search engine that
doesn’t track its users, and delivers search
results with added layers of protection.
Select To point to an object and then press and release
the primary (left) mouse button. There are
multiple ways (all depending on your device) to
perform this function.
Software The instructions that tell the computer what to do;
the programs of the computer system.

Tabs In a program, such as an Internet browser, a tab

is one of several small, labeled, clickable, areas
at the top of a window. Tabs allow you to switch
between separate documents or web pages. Can
be used within programs or browsers.

Taskbar (Dock on The taskbar is an element of an operating system

Mac) located at the bottom of the screen in windows
(called a Dock in Mac). It allows you to locate
and launch programs through Start and the Start
menu, or view any program that is currently
open.
Uploading To transfer (data or programs) from a peripheral
computer or device to a central computer or
website.

USB Universal serial bus, a standardized technology

for attaching peripheral devices to a computer.

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Webpage A document that lives on the World-Wide Web.

Website A location connected to the Internet that www.lvpl.org

maintains one or more pages on the World Wide www.townoflaveta-co.gov
Web. www.amazon.com
Wi-Fi Technology that allows computers and other
devices to communicate over a wireless signal.

Window A “box” that appears on top of the desktop. It is

the portal or way in which you interact with an
app.

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