Glossary
S S/MIME Standard security system used by Outlook Express and other mail programs to send e-mail securely. See MIME.
Safe Mode Windows startup mode that provides minimal Windows functions by disabling all devices except the keyboard, screen, and disk.
saved search Search criteria saved in a file with extension .fnd. You use the Start | Find | Files Or Folders command to rerun the search.
scanner Device that digitizes pictures (or anything on paper) for use by your computer.
Scheduled Tasks Windows feature that can run programs automatically at predetermined times.
Scheduled Task Wizard Wizard that helps you schedule tasks to run automatically.
scheme Group of settings, stored with a name so that you can easily switch from one group of settings to another (similar to a profile). See color scheme; pointer scheme; power scheme; sound scheme.
scrap OLE object that has been left on the desktop or in a folder.
screen saver Program that displays an image, frequently one that moves, on your desktop when you are not using the computer.
screen saver password Password needed to disable a running screen saver so you can use your computer again.
screen shot Picture of what is on the screen.
script Program written using a scripting language such as JavaScript or VBScript. See also batch file; logon script.
scroll bar Vertical or horizontal bar running along the right side or bottom of a window allowing you to scroll the information displayed in the window.
SCSI Small Computer System Interface, a standard for connecting peripherals to computers. SCSI devices include hard disks, CD-ROMs, tapes, and scanners.
SCSI controller Adapter board for connecting SCSI devices to a computer.
SCSI device number Unique number of the SCSI device connected to one SCSI controller.
Search Companion Wizard that steps you through searching for files and folders.
Search Explorer bar Feature of an Explorer windows that enables you to search for files or folders.
secondary DNS See domain name server.
sector Physical block of storage on a disk.
secure e-mail E-mail that has been encoded so that only the intended recipient can read it.
secure receipt Return receipt for a digitally signed e-mail message.
Secure Sockets Layer See SSL.
secure server Web server that supports SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) to encrypt data sent between the server and your computer. Pages loaded from a secure server have URLs beginning with https://.
selecting Indicating the items you plan to work with. How you select files and folders on the desktop or in Windows Explorer depends on your desktop style (single- or double-click).
selective startup Windows startup mode in which you choose which initialization files to process.
Send To menu Menu found on the File menu of Explorer windows (or by right-clicking a file or folder in an Explorer window) that allows you to copy or send files to preselected locations.
serial port Connector on your computer that is used for serial communication. You connect serial mice, external modems, and serial printers to a serial port.
SerialKey Accessibility option that turns on support for alternate input devices attached to the serial port.
server Program or computer that provides resources that others can use on a network. Remote Desktop enables someone at a client computer to use a server computer.
service Setting that allows you to share a computer's resources on a network. Also, a background program that is part of Windows.
Service Profile Identifier See SPID.
setup program Installation program, such as the Setup program that comes with Windows.
share name Name by which a shared drive, folder, or printer can be referred to by other users on a LAN.
shared disk or shared drive Disk that is shared with other users on a LAN. Also called a network disk. May be a hard disk, CD-ROM drive, or removable disk drive (for floppy disks or Zip disks).
shared folder Folder that has been configured to be usable by other computers on a LAN.
shared printer Printer that is shared with other users on a LAN. Also called a network printer.
shareware Programs that require you to register and pay for the program if you decide that you like it. They are frequently downloadable from the Internet.
shell account See UNIX shell account.
shortcut File with a .lnk extension, used as a placeholder in your file system. See also shortcut key; shortcut menu.
shortcut icon Icon that represents a shortcut, usually on the desktop or in Windows Explorer. Shortcut icons always include a little white curving arrow in the lower-left corner.
shortcut key Combination of the CTRL key, the ALT key, and one other key; pressing these keys at the same time runs a specified shortcut.
shortcut menu Menu that appears when you right-click an object. A shortcut menu contains commands that pertain to the object you right-clicked.
ShowSounds Accessibility feature that displays a caption when the computer makes a sound.
shutdown Exiting Windows.
signature Lines that an e-mail or newsreading program add to the end of each message you send, usually containing your e-mail address, name, and a witty tag line. For encrypted e-mail, see digital signature; signature block.
signature block Encryption-related text that is automatically added to the end of your outgoing e-mail messages.
signed file Audio or video file for which you have a digital license, usually a file you copied from an audio CD (which you presumably own).
signed mail E-mail that has been encoded using your private key to prove that you sent it.
Simple File Sharing New Windows mode in which user permissions are hidden (specifically, the Security tab in the Properties dialog boxes for files and folders).
simple folder view New, uncluttered layout for the folder tree in Windows Explorer.
single-click style Desktop mode in which clicking an icon or filename once runs the program or opens the file. To select the icon or filename without running or opening it, position the mouse pointer over it without clicking.
skin User interface, or the arrangement of buttons, menus, and other items on the windows and dialog boxes displayed by a program. Windows Media Player comes with several skins.
Skin mode Windows Media Player mode in which the program appears using a skin, or alternate user interface.
SLIP Serial Line Internet Protocol, a communications protocol for computers connected to the Internet. SLIP has been superceded by PPP.
slot See expansion slot; PC Card.
SlowKeys Accessibility setting that enables you to filter out keys that are pressed only briefly.
Small Icons view Way of representing the contents of a folder, in which each item in the folder appears as a small icon with a file or folder name below it.
SMTP Simple Mail Transfer Protocol, the method used by mail gateways on the Internet to send outgoing messages.
SMTP server See outgoing mail server.
snap-in Configuration program that you can add to the Microsoft Management Console. Or, a program that you can add on to the Netscape Navigator Web browser to give it additional capabilities.
snapshot See volume shadow copy or restore point.
sound board Adapter board that lets you connect speakers or headphones (and possibly a microphone) to your computer.
Sound Recorder Sound editor program that comes with Windows.
sound scheme Set of associations between Windows events and the sounds that Windows plays when that event occurs. A sound scheme also associates sounds with desktop elements.
SoundSentry Accessibility feature that displays a visual warning when the computer makes a sound.
spanned volume Volume in which many disks look like a single, large volume.
S/PDIF Digital audio port (Sony/Philips Digital Interface jack).
special characters Characters that do not appear on the standard U.S. 101-key keyboard, such as fractions and accented letters.
SPID (Service Profile Identifier) For an ISDN line, the phone number plus a few extra digits that identify the type of ISDN switch.
splash screen Screen Windows displays during startup, before you see the desktop. Many programs display splash screens while they are loading, before their windows appear.
spooling Multitasking system that allows a program to send information to a printer while performing other tasks.
SSL Secure Sockets Layer, the method that Web browsers use to provide secure encrypted communication.
Standard Buttons toolbar Toolbar that can appear in Explorer windows and displays standard buttons for switching folders, cut-and-paste, displaying properties, and controlling which view appears in the window.
Standby Mode Also called Suspend Mode. When power is off to most of the components of your computer (usually a laptop), but the state of the computer, including running programs, is preserved.
star topology LAN topology in which each computer connects to a central hub.
Start button Button labeled Start that usually appears at the left end of the taskbar. When clicked, the Start button displays the Start menu.
Start command DOS program that switches to Windows to open a program or file.
Start menu Menu displayed by clicking the Start button on the taskbar. It contains commands and additional menus listing most of the programs that you can run on your computer.
Start Menu folders Usually C:\Documents And Settings\All Users\Start Menu and C:\Documents And Settings\username\Start Menu, the folders that control what appears on the Start menu, Programs menu, and their submenus.
start page Web page that the browser loads when you open the browser without asking for a specific page. Also referred to as home page.
Startup folders Folder that contains programs that Windows runs automatically when you start Windows. Usually in C:\Documents And Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs and C:\Documents And Settings\username\Start Menu\Programs (assuming that Windows is installed on C:).
startup menu Menu that appears if you press F8 while Windows is loading.
startup mode Mode in which you can run Windows if you are having trouble starting Windows in the normal manner.
static IP addressing Manually assigned IP that doesn't often change.
stationery HTML-based e-mail formats that you can use when composing e-mail to send to recipients whose e-mail programs can display HTML messages.
status bar Section of a window that displays information about the program. The status bar is usually a gray bar running along the bottom of the window.
StickyKeys Accessibility option that lets you avoid pressing multiple keys by making keys such as CTRL, SHIFT, and ALT stay in effect after they have been released.
stop bits How many extra bits of information are included after each byte sent through a serial port (usually one).
Storyboard Windows Movie Maker view that shows a series of video clips and still pictures in the order in which they appear in a movie.
streaming audio Audio (sound) data stored in a format that allows the beginning of the file to be played, even before later parts of the file are read.
streaming video Video (movie) data stored in a format that allows the beginning of the file to be played, even before later parts of the file are read.
string Series of text characters, including letters, numbers, spaces, and punctuation.
striped volume Volume in which the data is stored on two or more disks in alternating stripes, so that retrieval speed isn't limited to the speed of one disk.
subfolder Folder contained in another folder.
submenu Menu displayed by a command from another menu.
SUBST DOS command that comes with Windows, used to assign a drive letter to a folder. Not recommended.
supervisor password Password needed to make changes to Content Advisor settings.
Suspend Mode See Standby Mode.
Super VGA (SVGA) Type of display adapter with lower resolution than XGA or SXGA.
swap file File to which Windows copies data in virtual memory.
switch When typed on a command line, additional information provided to the program you are running, turning on or off features of the program. As a component of a LAN, hub with built-in circuitry to speed up transmission of packets to their destinations.
switching programs Choosing another window as the active window. Pressing ALT-TAB switches windows.
SXGA Type of display with higher resolution than an XGA monitor.
Synchronization Manager Program that copies offline files to and from network drives.
synchronize When using offline files, copying all the changed and new files from one computer to the other.
System.ini Windows 3.1 initialization file still used by some 16-bit applications.
system board Printed circuit board that carries the CPU and memory inside your computer.
system clock Digital clock that can appear on the notification are part of the taskbar.
System Configuration Utility Windows utility for editing Windows and DOS initialization files.
system file File or folder whose System attribute is selected, indicating that the file or folder stores part of the actual Windows operating system.
System Information program Program that displays information about your computer hardware.
System menu Menu displayed by clicking the System Menu button, pressing ALT-SPACEBAR, or right-clicking the title bar of the window.
System Menu button Tiny icon in the upper-left corner of each window, at the left end of the window's title bar. Click this button to display the System menu.
System Monitor Windows utility that displays and logs information about the way your system is operating.
system partition Partition that stores the files needed to start up the computer (Ntldr, Boot.ini, and Ntdetect.com). Once the computer has loaded these files, it reads the boot partition to start the operating system (such as Windows XP).
system resources Memory used by Windows applications.
System Restore Restores your Windows and application program files back to a preset time.
systemroot Windows variable that contains the pathname to the Windows system folder (the folder in which the Windows program files are stored).
system tray or systray See notification area.
systems program Program that performs a computer-oriented task, such as a printer driver program or a hard disk housekeeping program.
