Glossary
We feel it's important to learn the language of Open Source Software. By understanding the terms you'll be able to take advantage of information you find elsewhere.
While we've done our best to simplify concepts presented, you may find that you'll need more information. For that, you will find a link to the most relevant answers following our shortened version. We also recommend a visit to Wikipedia or an internet search engine to explore topics.
A
Arch - Short for architecture and relates to the type of computer being used. More information at Wikipedia under Computer Architecture
B
Boot Loader - A computer program which assists in loading the proper Operating System especially when there is more than one OS installed on a particular computer. More information at Wikipedia under Second Stage Boot Loader
Bug - A problem within software code that can cause malfunctions when being used. Bugs can vary in severity and in some cases will effect only a small number of machine hardware and/or software configurations.
Bug Tracking - A system by which software developers resolve software malfunctions. Tracking involves fact finding to determine the circumstances causing the bugs so that they can be properly repaired.
C
Command Line - A text based interaction with an operating system or software application. More information at Wikipedia under Command line interface
D
Desktop Environment - The main grapical user interface for an Operating system. More information at Wikipedia under Desktop environment
Distro - Short for Distribution. Often used to describe the various versions of Linux Operating Systems. More information at Wikipedia under Linux Distribution
Dual Boot - The ability to install multiple Operating Systems on a single computer while choosing which OS to run when the computer is turned on. More Information at Wikipedia under Dual Boot
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GPL - Short for General Public License and is released by the Free Software Foundation. More Information at the Free Software Foundation website under Licensing
GUI - Short for Graphical User Interface. It allows a user to interact with visually represented data in the form of pictures by way of a pointing device. More Information at Wikipedia under Graphical user interface
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OOo - OpenOffice.org, a complete office suite. More information at the PSF OpenOffice page
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Partition - A segment of the hard disk drive that allows a single drive to act as many. For example, a single hard drive could be partitioned to include space for 2 or more independent Operating Systems. More information at Wikipedia under Disk Partitioning
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Release Notes - This is an update of changes that have occurred since the last release of the software.
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Swap Space - This is a partition on the hard drive that behaves like RAM. More information at Wikipedia under Virtual Memory
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