Digital 1: Basic Computer Terms

⇧

Shift Key

⇪

Caps Lock Key

⌃

Control Key

⌘

Command Key

⌘ ⇧ N

Creates New Folder

⌘ ⇧S

Save As saves under a new name

⌘ ⌥ W

Closes All windows

⌘ C

Copy

⌘ D

Duplicates File selected on desktop

⌘ F

File search

⌘ M

Minimizes Window to Dock

⌘ N

Creates New File

⌘ O

Opens a File

⌘ Q

Quits program; frees up RAM

⌘ S

Saves a File

⌘ W

Closes Top window

⌘⇧~

Switch to most recently used window

⌘⇧4

Selects area for Screen Shot

⌘⇧Delete

Empties the Trash

⌘A

Select All

⌘C

Copy

⌘D on the desktop with a highlighted file

Duplicate the file

⌘Delete

Moves file to Trash

⌘F

Find on hard disk

⌘H

Hide window of front application

⌘I

Get Information, shows size of a file

⌘I in a text box

Spell check in InDesign

⌘N

Open New File

⌘R

Show/Hide Ruler

⌘V

Paste

⌘X

Cut

⌘Z

Undo last command

⌥

Option Key

⌥-

Long dash in dates

⌥⌘⇧V

Paste and match formatting

⌥8

Bullet

2 types of monitors

LCD & CRT

3 Types of Displays

CRT, LCD and Retina

A

Open Arrow Tool (work inside a box) Direct Selection Tool

Access Time

Performance speed of a hard drive or other device

Activate a highlighted button

Return or Enter

Active Programs

Have dot under them in Dock; currently in RAM

Airport

Apple's name for its WiFi

Application

A program in which you do your work

Applications Folder

Where all Applications are stored

Bit

Smallest piece of memory storage=0 or 1

Boot

To start up a computer

Browse Buttons

Allow you to go forward or back

Bug

Program error causing a program to behave in an unexpected way

Byte

8 bit = one letter

Cache

Part of RAM used for processing more efficiently

CD

650 MB

CD holds

650MB

Click on name of folder

To change the title

Clock Rate (MHz)

Processing speed of computer measured in millions of cycles per second (i.e., 200 MHz).

Clipboard

Where copied items are stored

Close Button Red

Closes the file

Close Button Yellow

Minimizes window to the dock

Column View

List View with small icons & hierarchy

Compression

Reduces saved file size by elimination of redundancies

Control Click Rulers

Change the Ruler units

Cover View

Large icon at top, small icons in row

CPU

Central Processing Unit. Processor is "brain" of computer

Crash

System malfunction when computer freezes & must be restarted.

CRT

Cathode Ray Tube

Cursor

Arrow shaped pointer, controlled by the mouse

Data

(the plural of datum) information processed by a computer

Dialog Box

On-screen message box when computer needs more information before completing a command.

Digitize

To convert linear, or analogue, data into digital data that can be used by the computer

Dock

Bar with frequently accessed programs

Document vs. Application

A file vs. a program

Disk

Spinning magnetic or optically etched material platter on which data can be stored

Disk Drive

Component that writes the data to and from a disk to motherboard

Disk window

Window displaying the contents or directory of a disk

Document

File you create, as opposed to the application which created it.

DOS

Disk Operating System - used in IBM PCs.

DPI

Dots Per Inch - a gauge of visual clarity on the printed page or on the computer screen.

Download

to transfer data from one computer to another. (If you are on the receiving end, you are downloading. If you are on the sending end, you are uploading).

Drag

To move the mouse while its button is being depressed.

Driver

File on a computer that tells it how to communicate with an add-on piece of equipment (like a printer)

Drag Area

On either side of Title Bar

Drag Bar

Next to title bar

Driver

File on a computer to communicate with an add-on piece of equipment (like a printer).

DVD

4.4 GB

DVD holds

4.4 GB

Ethernet

Faster than Wireless

Expansion Slot

Connector inside computer allowing to plugin a circuit board that provides new/enhanced features.

FLOPS

Floating Point Operations Per Second

File

the generic word for an application, document, control panel or other computer data.

Floppy

3.5-inch square rigid disk which holds data. (Earlier 5.25 and 8" disks were flexible).

Folders

Container to organize documents and images

Font

Typeface that contains characters of alphabet and other letterforms

Font Sites

FontSquirrel, DaFont, 1001Fonts

Force Quit

⌘ ⇧ ⌥ Esc

Fragmentation

Breaking up of a file into separate locations on a disk.

Freeze

System error, which causes the cursor to lock in place

Gigabyte

1000 (1024) Megabytes

Gigaflops, Teraflops, Petraflops

How chip speed is measured

Green Button

Maximizes window to fit screen; esc turns it off

GUI

Graphic User Interface (mouse based)