Monday, June 11, 2001		Bits & Bytes

UMA: Short for Unified Memory Architecture. A computer that has graphics chips built into the motherboard that use part of the computer’s main memory for video memory is said to have Unified Memory Architecture.

IoS: Short for Internet over Satellite. IoS technology allows a user to access the Internet via a satellite that orbits the earth. A satellite is placed at a static point above the earth’s surface. The satellite in a fixed position, also referred to as geostationary or geosynchronous, is able to maintain a reliable connection to the antennas on the earth because the satellite orbits the earth at the exact speed of the earth’s rotation.

Mutex: Short for mutual exclusion object. In computer programming, a mutex is a program object that allows multiple program threads to share the same resource, such as file access, but not simultaneously. When a program is started, a mutex is created with a unique name. After this stage, any thread that needs the resource must lock the mutex from other threads while it is using the resource. The mutex is set to unlock when the data is no longer needed or the routine is finished.