Stacey's Tech Terms

XX TECHNO QUESTION OF THE WEEK

June 26, 1996

Stacey Johnson

I consider this to be a working through of some very basic technical terms that are used frequently yet not necessarily explained. In the spirit of Studio XX's and The XX Files' mantra, "no question is too stupid for XX," here are:

RAM -- What gets things cooking! This acronym stands for Random Access Memory, and is a fancy way of describing what essentially is your computer's hard drive memory. The capacities for your personal computer memory available range from 1 kilobyte (which is very small, and, as these things go, outdated), up to 16 megabytes, and beyond into the world of gigabytes. Most new computers are sold with a standard of either 4 or 8 megabytes RAM. Why is RAM important? Ordinarily I wouldn't say so, but size seems to matter in the computer world and affects not only the quantity of information that can be stored on the computer's hard disk (text won't necessarily take up a lot of space but loading a variety of software programs and cd-rom packages will), but it also affects the speed at which your computer processes information, "boots up," and so on. Memory can be upgraded without changing your entire computer, and basically amounts to changing a chip...something computer salespeople have told me I can even do on my own, in the comforts of my home. If upgrading is something you might want to consider for the future--that is, maybe you're considering the purchase of a new computer and are not quite sure what your needs will be--make sure to find out how much the particular model you have chosen can be upgraded depending on its initial design.

Modem. Sure we know what a modem does...it allows us to send email and log on to the world wide web. But how does it work? The modem is what allows your computer to talk to another computer by acting as an electronic go-between in the connection of telephone and computer. A modem converts a computer's digital impulse into an analog tone that can be transmitted over a telephone line and vice versa. Modem speed is measured in bits per second--so the more bits you got, ergo the faster the modem, and the faster one can send and receive information. You might be wondering if speed is inevitable and if it's important? Yes and no. Just for the purposes of sending email notes the differences are negligible; however, if one is interested in sending and receiving graphics for example, then modem speed does become an issue. Again, decide what your needs are (and not those dictated by the market, for example) and go from there. Last I checked, the standard modem speed for sale with new computer packages was a 14 400 speed modem. Mine at home is a 9600 and isn't quick enough for world wide web access.

Moving right along...

Multimedia, or hypermedia, its synonym, describes the communication of information in more than one form and includes the use of text, audio, graphics/images, and full motion video. Now, for a communique to be multimedia-oriented it doesn't have to include all of the above, meaning a combination of sound, graphics, and text can qualify as multimedia without full motion video. The most familiar example of multimedia in action is the world wide web.

Finally...here's some internet lingo to leave with you as well as a pointer on strategic internet communication:

Flame. To "flame" somebody, as the saying goes, is to express one's displeasure on-line. This is basically the internet equivalent of shaking one's head and/or finger in disapproval at somebody, but can also go to extremes of outright lambasting, or as the authors of NET.SPEAK THE INTERNET DICTIONARY put it, "flaming is email fisticuffs." Flaming can be an important subversive tactic, especially when used to "nip in the bud" people who, for example, lurk on electronic mailing lists and make inflammatory comments about its contents...it's been known to happen. I subscribe to lists in which I have been inundated by advertising copy and people's unabashed get-rich-quick schemes. Thanks no, but I'm just a bit nervous about providing my credit card number and expiry date on-line. Most often people find the names of lists and randomly, without permission of the listserv manager, send out promotional material. I too have "flamed" in this context by sending the message back to its sender with a simple "no thanks" message attached. One person is a message, 50 or 100 people sending the same message is enough to sufficiently interrupt, if not clog, the overbearing sender's email.