See login account.

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.

The person who can use the most privileged account, root. This person must have his own personal login account for daily use, but, when routine maintenance 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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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

A name server that implements the Internet Domain Name Service (DNS) for the IRIX operating system (as well as other UNIX systems). DNS is a distributed database of information about systems on a network. It enables a system to find information about other systems on the network, such as their IP addresses and hostnames.

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.

A small, fast memory holding recently-accessed data, designed to speed up subsequent access to the same data. Most often located close (electronically) to the CPU (Central Processing Unit) in your workstation. Data and instructions are temporarily stored in the cache to reduce main memory access time

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.

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.

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

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

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

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.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

A specialized, very small, very fast portion of memory where recently accessed data is stored. It can help system performance.

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 Printer Manager.

Portions of a product that will be installed automatically if you do not customize a product installation.

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.

To permanently remove an object from an IRIS Showcase page. You can't retrieve objects you delete by choosing Paste.

The collection of windows and icons that appears on your computer screen. 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.

The screen background. By default, several icons are placed on the desktop: a folder icon representing your home directory, a dumpster icon, several application icons, 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.

The tool that maintains an accurate list of all network systems, users, and peripherals; it runs on the network master system. When you search for one of these resources on your network, your system contacts the directoryserver to find the information.

The window you see when you open a folder (directory) icon. It displays the files, folders, and applications that the directory contains.

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.

The percentage of space on your disk that contains information.

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.

A directory that contains software that can be installed using Software Manager or Inst. Typically this directory is copied from a CD into a directory on a server system so users can install software across the network from a directory rather than from a CD.

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

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

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.

To press and hold down a mouse button, then move the mouse. This drags the cursor to move icons or to highlight menu items.

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

The unique number that identifies each drive (such as hard, floppy, and CD-ROM drives) to the system. See also SCSI address.

The unique number that identifies each controller (a board that controls the flow of information from the system to a drive) to the system. See also SCSI controller.

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.

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.

A utility that lets users on a network send messages from one system to another.

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

The cable that connects your system to a network that runs TCP/IP.

The outlet on your system to which you can connect an Ethernet cable. This connection lets you communicate on a network that runs TCP/IP.

The feature release stream contains new software features in addition to the accumulated bug fixes and basic support for new hardware. Choose the feature stream if you want the maintenance stream content plus new software features.

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

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

See filesystem.

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.

For Floating Point Unit; a hardware chip inside the system that speeds up calculations that use floating point numbers.

A person's actual name, as opposed to their login name.

A collection of login names. Members of a group can make file permissions apply to all other members of a group.

The protocol that controls the flow of information between a system and a printer. A hardware handshake uses only cable wires and pins to control the flow. A software handshake (also called xon/xoff flow control) uses a combination of pins, wires, and software.

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.

Any workstation connected to the network.

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

The sequence in which network connection names (such as hostnames) are mapped to Internet addresses (IP addresses). The sequence determines the order in which various services, such as DNS, NIS, and a local database (hosts file), perform the mapping.

A file or map used to perform host resolution; contains the IP addresses and hostnames of systems on the network.

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

The area of a window that contains the drop pocket, the pathname field, the path bar, and the recycle button. You use these fixtures to move from one directory to another.

A logical grouping of the parts that make up an installable product; see also product and subsystem.

One or more software products that cannot be installed on a system at the same time. For example, a product that runs on version 3 or higher of the operating system is incompatible with version 2 of the operating system.

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

The software tool that you use to install system software, software options, and maintenance releases that come from Silicon Graphics. It is the command-line version of Software Manager.

The Software Manager and Inst report these when you select a combination of software for installation or removal that cannot be safely installed or removed. The installation tool gives you choices for resolving the conflicts to complete the installation.

Products that are currently installed on your system.

A specialized, very small, very fast portion of memory where recently executed machine instructions are stored. It can help system performance.

Intermediate releases (also called overlays) are used to fix problems or add enhancements and new hardware support. These releases maintain backward and forward binary compatibility, which means that applications built on any member of a release family should run correctly on other members of that release family. Intermediate releases are cumulative, unless otherwise specified. Therefore, each intermediate release includes the fixes and features from the previous intermediate release. This allows you to upgrade to the most current intermediate release in one step.

The number that uniquely identifies each system on the network.

A process in which network messages are received from a computer (host) on one network and relayed to a destination on a different network.

Any graphics workstation manufactured by Silicon Graphics.

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

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.

Integrate Services Digital Network (ISDN) - A set of communications standards allowing a single wire or optical fibre to carry voice, digital network services and video.

An object-oriented, platform-independent programming language developed by Sun Microsystems; used extensively on the Internet and the World Wide Web.

A simple, cross-platform, World Wide Web scripting language used by Netscape.

A standard unit for measuring the information storage capacity of disks and memory (RAM and ROM); 1024 bytes make one kilobyte (1 KB).

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.

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

The local IP Address refers to your workstation's IP address.

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.

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

To end a session on your workstation.

Actual disk space that the system uses as if it were memory (RAM). (The amount of space your system allocates in the /dev/swap file depends on the size of your hard disk.) See also virtual swap space.

A logical volume is a number of areas on one or more hard disks that the system considers as one filesystem. The fact that the areas of disk space are not contiguous is hidden from the user. See also striping.

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.

A short version of your own name or your initials; 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.

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.

Printing software that lets you access a printer that's connected to a system that runs the BSD version of UNIX.

The location where all user programs and data, and all operating system programs and data reside. Also called RAM (Random-Access Memory).

The maintenance release stream contains accumulated bug fixes and basic support for new hardware. Choose the maintenance stream if you want to upgrade your system with only the fixes that are essential to maintaining stability and compatibility.

Refers to a major operating system (IRIX) release. Major releases are those containing major infrastructure work. They are generally backward compatible and are the releases in which support for older platforms and software is discontinued. Major releases occur on cycles of approximately 24 months, and they are released on all platforms that are supported at the time of the release.

A family of releases is anchored with the initial major release. For example, IRIX 6.5 is a major release; IRIX 6.5.2 and IRIX 6.5.3 are intermediate releases of the IRIX 6.5 release family.

Reference information about UNIX commands. You can view man pages by choosing “Man Pages” from the Help toolchest.

A standard unit for measuring the information storage capacity of disks and memory (RAM and ROM); 1024 kilobytes make one Megabyte (1 MB).

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

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

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

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

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.

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.

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

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

An addressing scheme that creates a logical grouping of a subset of systems on your network.

Novell, Inc.'s proprietary networking operating system for the IBM PC.

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

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.

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.

The Software Manager considers a product to be new when the product is available for installation, has never been installed on the system on which Software Manager is running, and has never been available during a previous installation session.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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

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.

The low-level software that schedules tasks, allocates storage, handles the interface to peripheral hardware and presents a default interface to the user when no application program is running.

See intermediate release.

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

A distinct region within a window. Usually you can choose to display all or some panes.

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.

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.

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.

The list of directories that leads you from the root (/) directory to a specific file or directory in the file system.

A hardware device that adds more functionality to the basic workstation, such as a tape drive.

The information attached to each directory and file that specifies which users can access it and to what degree.

A connection between two systems using PPP (Point-to-Point Protocol).

(PPP) The Point-to-Point Protocol provides the Internet standard method for transmitting IP packets over serial point-to-point links. You can use PPP to communicate with a remote computer over an ISDN or modem connection.

Software products that must be installed in order for other products to work. If product A must be installed for product B to work, product A is a prerequisite product for product B.

A user can belong to several different groups, but one group must be the person's primary group. When a user creates a new file or directory, the system automatically sets permissions on the file that determine whether other members of a group can view or change the information. By default, the system labels the file with the user's primary group. This means if the user wants members of a different group to which the user belongs to access the file, the user must explicitly change the group ownership of the file to the other group.

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.

A person whose standard login account includes administrative privileges. There can be more than one privileged user on the same system.

A product is the largest module of software that Software Manager or Inst can install. The operating system consists of several products that are required for the system to run. See also subsystem and image.

An outlet to which you attach cable connectors.

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

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

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

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 #.

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

To stop running an application.

A family of releases is anchored with the initial major operating system release. For example, IRIX 6.5 is a major release; IRIX 6.5.2 and IRIX 6.5.3 are intermediate releases of the IRIX 6.5 release family.

Major IRIX releases are those containing major infrastructure work. They are generally backward compatible and are the releases in which support for older platforms and software is discontinued. Major releases occur on cycles of approximately 24 months, and they are released on all platforms that are supported at the time of the release.

Intermediate releases (also called overlays) are used to fix problems or add enhancements and new hardware support. These releases maintain backward and forward binary compatibility, which means that applications built on any member of a release family should run correctly on other members of that release family. Intermediate releases are cumulative, unless otherwise specified. Therefore, each intermediate release includes the fixes and features from the previous intermediate release. This allows you to upgrade to the most current intermediate release in one step.

The phrase “release stream” refers to a group of products in operating system release family: each release contains a group of products called the “feature” stream, and a group of products called the “maintenance” stream. The maintenance stream contains accumulated bug fixes and basic support for new hardware. The feature stream contains the same thing, with additional new software features.

Both the maintenance and the feature stream products are on the same CDs, but once you choose a specific stream, only products in that stream will be displayed by Software Manager. Also, by default, only products from that stream will be displayed for you the next time you upgrade to an intermediate release of the same release family. See also “Choosing, Determining, and Switching Release Streams” in Chapter 2.

The remote IP Address refers to the IP address of a workstation on a network or over an ISDN or modem connection.

A hardware device or the information or media it contains that you can access across the network; they are not physically connected to your workstation.

A removable media device is a storage device, such as a tape drive or floppy disk drive, from which you can remove the medium upon which the data is actually stored.

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.

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

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.

The directory at the top of the file system hierarchy.

Also referred to as a link. A group of addresses on a network that define a path from one station (the source address) to another station (the destination address). Each address within a route provides the next step along that route. Each address for an intermediate station is where the packet stops (is picked up) and is transferred to another local area network. A complete route from source to destination may consist of one or numerous addresses.

The process of discovering and assigning a route from a sending computer (the source address) to an intended receiving computer (the destination address). The routing method used for any particular packet/datagram can be either source routing or transparent routing. The exact manner in which routing is done differs from protocol to protocol.

The Software Manager considers a product to be “same” when the product is available for installation, and is the same version as a product that is currently installed on the system on which Software Manager is running.

An acronym that stands for Small Computer System Interface protocol. SCSI is a standard protocol for transferring information from a computer to another device.

A number from one to seven that uniquely identifies a SCSI device to a system. No two SCSI devices that are physically connected to the same SCSI controller on a system can have the same SCSI address.

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

An internal board that sends data to and from SCSI devices. You can have more than one SCSI controller.

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

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.

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

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

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

For secure systems, a file where encrypted passwords are stored, making it more difficult for unauthorized users to break into the system.

The shelf is 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.

A window into which you type IRIX commands.

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

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

Standard system software that lets you connect to a network using a serial cable and a modem rather than using an Ethernet cable. Once you're connected, you can use the network as if you were connected by an Ethernet cable. SLIP stands for Serial Line Internet Protocol.

The list of available and/or installed software that the Software Manager provides when you click the Customize Installation or Manage Installed Software button, and when you have chosen to display the Software Inventory pane using the Panes menu.

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

An account that you can log in to whether or not the system is connected to the network or NIS is running. The account information is stored on the local system rather than on the NIS master system.

A system that is not connected to a network.

A logical disk volume comprising multiple disk drives, in which segments of data that are logically in sequence (“stripes”) are physically located on each drive in turn. As many processes as there are drives in the volume can read concurrently at the maximum rate.

The method of minimizing disk access time when creating logical volumes. On a striped volume, the workstation lays out the filesystem in stripes and allocates information alternately between the stripes. The principle at work is that the seek time for the disks is shorter because successive read and write operations will take place on different stripes and a different head will be used for each read or write operation. See logical volume.

A logical subset of all systems on a network. Typically, all systems on a subnet are physically close to each other, for example, are all located in the same building.

A portion of a software product. Each product consists of several subsystems; some are required and some are optional. See also product and image.

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

When a workstation is running many programs at once, it might run short of available memory. When this happens, sections of program that are not immediately being executed are written out to a special area of the disk, where they can be easily retrieved. That area of disk is known as “swap space” and the action of moving pages of program in and out is known as “swapping” or “paging.” See also logical swap space and virtual swap space.

All the hardware and software that makes up the computer.

A collection of tasks and responsibilities carried out by a system's Administrator to set up the system and keep it in good running order.

The person responsible for setting up, maintaining, and troubleshooting an IRIS system. The system administrator uses the root login account to perform most administrative tasks. See superuser.

The disk that contains the IRIX operating system software and Silicon Graphics tools.

Directories and peripherals that physically reside on your system.

The standard IRIX operating system software and Silicon Graphics tools that come on the system disk and on the tape or CD-ROM.

The toolchest in the upper left portion of the screen from which you can access all system administration tools.

The standard networking software that's included in the system software.

A display and keyboard, or a printer and keyboard, for entering programs and data to a computer and for receiving output from a computer

A multiuser, multi-tasking operating system from AT&T upon which Silicon Graphics Inc.'s IRIX operating system is based.

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

The Software Manager considers a product to be an upgrade when the product is available for installation, and is a newer version of a product that is currently installed on the system on which Software Manager is running.

Any person who has a standard login account on the system. When a User logs in, he can change only his personal work area. A User can run the graphical administration tools, but the features of the tools that change system information are not available.

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.

A number that uniquely identifies a user to the system.

Standard system software that lets you connect to a network using a serial cable and a modem rather than using an Ethernet cable. Once you're connected, you can log into a single system through one window; your system essentially behaves like a dumb terminal.

A file that the system considers to be a certain size (e.g., 40 MB) but actually occupies no disk space. This is useful because many programs request much more swap space than they really need in order to run, and tie up the real swap space unnecessarily. When you add virtual swap space, the system lets you start applications even when they request more swap space than is actually available. In most cases this is fine, because there is enough real swap space for them to run. See also logical swap space.

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*

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

The small box in the upper left corner of a window that contains a horizontal bar. You double-click this box to close a window.

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

The physical hardware that contains the CPU and graphics boards, a system disk, and a power supply. You connect it to a monitor, keyboard, and mouse to configure a working system. It is also sometimes referred to as the chassis.

A standard for device-independent windowing operations on bitmap display devices, developed originally at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). X is based on a client-server model in which, unlike other client-server models, the server is the computer or terminal with the screen, keyboard, and mouse, and the clients are application programs.