Technosaurus
CNET.co.uk's guide to all the must-know terms and evolving technologies
- DAC (digital-to-analogue converter)
- A circuit that turns the digital 1s and 0s representing a sound to an analogue waveform > More
- DDR
- See DDR SDRAM > More
- DDR SDRAM (double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory)
- A type of SDRAM that is twice as fast as the original > More
- DLP (Digital Light Processing)
- Data projection technology used for projecting images from a computer onto a much larger screen > More
- DPOF (Digital Print Order Format)
- Specification that provides a simple mechanism for requesting prints from digital cameras > More
- DTS (Digital Theatre Sound)
- Digital surround-sound format used in both home audio and in cinemas > More
- DVD (digital versatile disc)
- High-capacity optical discs > More
- DVD+R (DVD+recordable)
- A rewritable DVD standard > More
- DVD+RW (DVD+rewritable)
- Rewritable DVD standard > More
- DVD-R (DVD-recordable)
- DVD that can be written to only once > More
- DVD-RAM
- DVD standard for recording and rewriting data used for computer storage > More
- DVD-ROM
- Akin to CD-ROM but can record and hold more data > More
- DVD-RW (DVD-rewritable)
- > More
- DVI (Digital Visual Interface)
- Universal standard for connecting flat-panel monitors -- also used for data projectors, plasma displays and digital TVs > More
- DivX
- Compressed video format based that enables a feature-length movie to fit on a CD-ROM > More
- Dolby Digital
- Proprietary technology used for creating and reproducing digital surround sound > More
- Dolby Pro Logic
- Analogue version of surround sound for home video > More
- defragmentation
- Files can become fragmented in a hard disk, causing the drive to slow down as it reassembles pieces when an application wants to load a file > More
- depth of field
- Range of distances from camera at which objects appear in focus > More
- device driver
- A program that enables peripheral devices to communicate with an operating system > More
- digital signal processing
- In-car digital sound > More
- dongle
- An external connector that dangles on a cable > More
- dot pitch
- In CRTs, the distance from one pixel to the next-nearest one > More
- downconvert
- In DTV, the conversion from a higher-resolution input signal number to a lower one > More
- dpi (dots per inch)
- Measure of the resolution of images produced by a printers or scanners or of the maximum resolution output a device can produce > More
- dropout
- Brief pause in the playback or of a sound file or in the receipt of streaming audio > More
- dual-band
- Radios that can send and recieve signals form two frequencies and in wireless networking, both the 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands > More
- dye-sublimation printer
- Type of colour printer that produces a continuous-tone image of near-photographic quality -- also called thermal dye transfer > More
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