S) 9.0 References

Q) 9.1 +What other FAQ's are out there?
The following is a partial list of official FAQs which may be useful for more information on PC related items. All of these FAQs are archived on news.answers, though the frequency in posting and availability are subject to the maintainers' whims.

If you are retrieving these by anonymous ftp, those items listed with Archive-name's can be found under the news.answers directory under the archive name. The others can be found in their respective hierarchy's directory under the Subject line's name. For more information on how to retrieve these items and how to find other FAQs, refer to the article "Introduction to the *.answers groups" periodically posted to news.announce.newusers.

Note: all *.answers groups have been removed from the Newsgroups lines

Summary: This list contains the various CPU's and NPX's and their features, used in the IBM PC, IBM PC/XT, IBM PC/AT, IBM PS/2 and compatbles, and the differences between them.
Archive-name: pc-hardware-faq/chiplist.
--.

Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.storage,comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.misc Subject: Enhanced IDE/Fast-ATA/ATA-2 FAQ [* of *]
From: pieterh@sci.kun.nl (Maintainer)
Summary: This FAQ addresses issues surrounding Enhanced IDE, ATA-2, ATAPI and Enhanced BIOSes. It includes practical questions, background information and lists of net resources.

Archive-name: pc-hardware-faq/enhanced-IDE
--

Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.video
Subject: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.video FAQ, Part *

*]
From: davido@Princeton.EDU (David L. Oppenheimer)
Summary: This is the comp.sys.mac.comm Frequently Asked Questions list; its intent is to provide information specific to Macintosh computer communications, including modems, networks, and the like. You are encouraged to read this FAQ before posting to the newsgroup.
Archive-name: macintosh/comm-faq/part1
--

Newsgroups: comp.unix.sys5.r4,comp.unix.pc-clone.32bit,comp.sys.intel, comp.os.linux.announce
Subject: PC-Clone UNIX Hardware Buyer's Guide
From: esr@snark.thyrsus.com (Eric S. Raymond)
Summary: Tips on how and where to buy hardware for your UNIX.
Archive-name: pc-unix/hardware

Newsgroups: comp.unix.questions,comp.unix.shell
Subject: Unix - Frequently Asked Questions (Contents) [Frequent posting]
From: tmatimar@empress.com (Ted M A Timar)
Archive-name: unix-faq/faq/contents
--

Newsgroups: comp.unix.questions,comp.unix.shell
Subject: Unix - Frequently Asked Questions (* / *) Digest [Frequent posting]
From: tmatimar@empress.com (Ted M A Timar)
Archive-name: unix-faq/faq
--

Newsgroups: comp.unix.sys5.r4,comp.unix.pc-clone.32bit,comp.unix.bsd, comp.os.linux.announce
Subject: PC-clone UNIX Software Buyer's Guide
From: esr@snark.thyrsus.com (Eric S. Raymond)
Summary: A buyer's guide to UNIX versions for PC-clone hardware Archive-name: pc-unix/software
--

Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.announce
Subject: LILO FAQ, version *
From: almesber@nessie.cs.id.ethz.ch (Werner Almesberger)
--

Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.announce
Subject: Linux FTP and BBS List #* (LONG) From: Zane H. Healy ( healyzh@holonet.net)
--

Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.announce,comp.os.linux
Subject: [comp.os.linux.announce] Guidelines for posting
From: vince@victrola.wa.com (Vince Skahan)

Comment: The following article are currently being posted (archive names, in parentheses, are in the "linux/howto" archive directory): Electronic Mail (mail); News (news); UUCP (uucp).
Archive-name: linux/howto/mail
--

Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.announce,comp.os.linux.help,comp.os.linux.admin
Subject: Linux NET-2 HOWTO
From: terryd@extro.ucc.su.oz.au (Terry Dawson)

Summary: HOWTO on configuration of TCP/IP networking and SLIP under Linux.
Archive-name: linux/howto/networking
--

Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.announce,comp.os.linux.help,comp.os.linux.admin
Subject: Linux HOWTO Index
From: mdw@sunsite.unc.edu (Matt Welsh)

Summary: Index of HOWTO documents about Linux.
Archive-name: linux/howto/index
--

Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.announce,comp.os.linux.admin
Subject: Linux Ethernet HOWTO
From: Paul Gortmaker paul@cain.mmtc.rmit.oz.au
Archive-name: linux/howto/ethernet
--

Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.announce,comp.os.linux.admin
Subject: Linux Printing HOWTO
From: gtaylor@cs.tufts.edu

Summary: HOWTO on printing under Linux
Archive-name: linux/howto/printing
--

Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.announce,comp.os.linux.help
Subject: Linux Frequently Asked Questions with Answers
From: ijackson@nyx.cs.du.edu (Ian Jackson)
Summary: Please read the whole FAQ before posting to comp.os.linux.help.
Archive-name: linux/faq
--
Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.announce,comp.os.linux.help
Subject: Linux INFO-SHEET
From: Michael K. Johnson 
Summary: Generic introduction to the Linux operating system
Archive-name: linux/info-sheet
--
Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.announce,comp.os.linux.help
Subject: Linux META-FAQ
From: Michael K. Johnson 
Summary: A listing of Linux sources of information
Archive-name: linux/meta-faq
--
Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.announce,comp.os.linux.help,
         comp.os.linux.development,comp.os.linux.admin,comp.os.linux.misc
Subject: Welcome to the comp.os.linux.* hierarchy!
From: mdw@sunsite.unc.edu (Matt Welsh)
Archive-name: linux/announce/intro
--
Newsgroups: comp.os.mach
Subject: comp.os.mach Frequently Asked Questions
From: fgray@owlnet.rice.edu (Frederick Earl Gray)
Summary: Answers to questions frequently asked on the USENET newsgroup
         comp.os.mach
Archive-name: mach-faq
--
Newsgroups: comp.unix.solaris,comp.sys.1.admin
Subject: Solaris 2 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) *
From: Casper.Dik@Holland.Sun.COM (Casper H.S. Dik)
Summary: This posting contains a list of Frequently Asked Questions (and
    answers) about Sun Microsystem's Solaris 2.x system in general.
    See also the FAQs archived as Solaris2/Porting and Solaris2/x86.
Archive-name: Solaris2/FAQ
--
Newsgroups: comp.os.minix
Subject: Changes to MINIX Information Sheet
From: overby@plains.nodak.edu (Glen Overby)
Summary: Commonly Asked Questions -- With answers!
Archive-name: minix-faq
--
Newsgroups: comp.unix.msdos
Subject: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for comp.unix.msdos
From: fnx!vpix-faq@uunet.UU.NET (VP/IX FAQ maintainance)
--
Newsgroups: comp.os.msdos.programmer
Subject: comp.os.msdos.programmer FAQ
From: Jeffrey Carlyle 
Summary: Frequently Asked Questions by DOS programmers with tested
         answers. Please read this before posting.
Archive-name: msdos-programmer-faq/faq
Comp-os-msdos-programmer-archive-name: dos-faq
--
Newsgroups: comp.os.os2.misc
Subject: OS/2 Users Frequently Asked Questions List Edition *
From: klund@athena.mit.edu (Kent H Lundberg)
Summary: This posting contains a list of common questions (and answers)
         about the IBM OS/2 Warp operating system.  It should be read by
         everyone interested in OS/2 Warp, from the newly curious to the
         long-time power user.
Archive-name: os2-faq/user/part*
--
Newsgroups: comp.os.os2.programmer.misc
Subject: FAQ: OS/2 Programming FAQ v*
From: andreas@traci.almroth.pp.se (Andreas Almroth)

          ------ Windowing System Related FAQs ------

--
Newsgroups: comp.windows.x
Subject: comp.windows.x Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) * / *
From: dbl@visual.com (David B. Lewis)
Summary: useful information about the X Window System
Archive-name: x-faq/part*
--
Newsgroups: comp.windows.x.i386unix,comp.unix.pc-clone.32bit,
         comp.unix.bsd,comp.windows.x
Subject: X on Intel-based Unix Frequently Asked Questions [FAQ]
From: steve@ecf.toronto.edu (Steve Kotsopoulos)
Summary: X options for Intel-based Unix (SYSV/386, 386BSD, Linux, Mach)
Archive-name: Intel-Unix-X-faq
--
Newsgroups: comp.os.ms-windows.apps,comp.os.ms-windows.misc,
            comp.os.ms-windows.setup,comp.os.ms-windows.nt.misc,
            comp.os.ms-windows.nt.setup,bit.listserv.win3-l
Subject: Windows FAQ: How to get it
From: tomh@metrics.com (Tom Haapanen)
Archive-name: ms-windows/windows.how-to-find-faqs
--
Newsgroups: comp.os.ms-windows.programmer.misc,
            comp.os.ms-windows.programmer.tools,
            comp.os.ms-windows.programmer.win32,bit.listserv.win3-l
Subject: Windows Programmer FAQ: How to get it
From: tomh@metrics.com (Tom Haapanen)
Archive-name: ms-windows/programmer.how-to-find-faqs
--
Newsgroups: comp.os.msdos.desqview
Subject: DESQview/QEMM Frequently Asked Questions: READ BEFORE POSTING
From: aml@world.std.com (Andrew Langmead)
Summary: FAQ list for the MS-DOS multitasker DESQview and memory manager QEMM
Archive-name: desqview-faq

          ------ Miscellaneous FAQs ------

Newsgroups: comp.os.msdos.misc,comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.misc,
            comp.os.ms-windows.misc,comp.sys.ibm.pc.misc,alt.cd-rom,
            alt.sys.pc-clone.gateway2000,alt.sys.pc-clone.zeos,
            alt.sys.pc-clone.dell,comp.binaries.ibm.pc.d,
            comp.binaries.ibm.pc.wanted
Subject: PC-Clone Hardware Newsgroup Pointer
From: grohol@alpha.acast.nova.edu (John M. Grohol)
Summary: Newsgroup subject pointer for PC-clone hardware
Archive-Name: finding-groups/pc-hardware
--
Newsgroups: comp.sources.wanted,alt.sources.wanted
Subject: How to find sources
From: kent@sterling.com (Kent Landfield)
Archive-name: finding-sources
--
Newsgroups: comp.std.internat,comp.std.misc,comp.protocols.iso
Subject: Standards FAQ
From: unrza3@cd4680fs.rrze.uni-erlangen.de (Markus Kuhn)
Summary: Answers to questions such as what are ISO standards, where can I
         get standards, what are ISO/ITU/ANSI/etc., what standards are
         there relevant to computing, ...? This is a periodic posting in
         comp.protocols.iso, comp.std.misc and comp.std.internat.
Archive-name: standards-faq
--
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.announce,rec.games.misc
Subject: PC GAMES FAQ <- Guide To The Gaming World (Part * of *)
From: mmwang@mv.us.adobe.com (Michael Wang)
Summary: This FAQ has answers to common questions and other useful
      information that all new readers of the comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.*
      newsgroups should read before posting.
Archive-name: PC-games-faq/part1
--
Newsgroups: comp.virus
Subject: VIRUS-L/comp.virus Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
From: n.fitzgerald@cantva.canterbury.ac.nz (Nick FitzGerald)
Summary: This posting contains a list of Frequently Asked Questions,
         and their answers, about computer viruses.  It should be read
         by anyone who wishes to post to VIRUS-L/comp.virus.
Archive-name: computer-virus-faq
--
Newsgroups: misc.forsale.computers.workstation,
     misc.forsale.computers.other.misc,misc.forsale.computers.other.systems,
     misc.forsale.computers.other.software,misc.forsale.computers.modems,
     misc.forsale.computers.net-hardware,misc.forsale.computers.memory,
     misc.forsale.computers.monitors,misc.forsale.computers.printers,
     misc.forsale.computers.storage,misc.forsale.computers.other
Subject: Misc.FS+Biz.Mktplc ADVERTISING FAQ--INFO FOR NEW USERS
From: dank@metrics.com
Summary: This article describes appropriate ways of posting
        forsale and wanted ads on misc.forsale.* and biz.marketplace.*.
        As most posters to misc.forsale are on Usenet for the first
        time, it provides information useful to all readers--new and
        old alike.
Archive-name: misc-forsale-faq/posting-ads
--
Newsgroups: misc.forsale.computers.workstation,
      misc.forsale.computers.other.misc,misc.forsale.computers.other.systems,
      misc.forsale.computers.other.software,misc.forsale.computers.modems,
      misc.forsale.computers.net-hardware,misc.forsale.computers.memory,
      misc.forsale.computers.monitors,misc.forsale.computers.printers,
      misc.forsale.computers.storage,misc.forsale.computers.other
Subject: Misc.FS+Biz.Mktplc TRANSACTIONS FAQ--INFO FOR NEW USERS
From: dank@metrics.com (Dan King)
Summary: This article describes transactions over Usenet in detail.
     It presents the options available, recommended methods, and
     issues to protect buyers and sellers who conduct business by
     e-mail and parcel service--domestically and internationally. 
Archive-name: misc-forsale-faq/buying-selling
--
Newsgroups: comp.archives.msdos.announce,comp.archives.msdos.d
Subject: comp.archives.msdos.{announce,d} FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
From: ts@chyde.uwasa.fi (Timo Salmi)
Archive-name: msdos-archives/faq
--
Newsgroups: comp.archives.msdos.d,comp.binaries.ibm.pc.wanted,
         comp.os.msdos.apps,comp.sys.ibm.pc.misc
Subject: Useful MSDOS Programs at SIMTEL20 and Garbo (Part * of *)
From: sko@wimsey.bc.ca (Samuel Ko)
Summary: A list of recommended msdos programs available from major ftp sites
Archive-name: msdos-archives/part*
--
Newsgroups: comp.binaries.ibm.pc
Subject: v*inf*: charter, CBIP newsgroups charter (part * / *)
From: cbip@cs.uml.edu (CBIP Moderator)
Archive-name: admin/charter
--
Newsgroups: comp.lang.postscript
Subject: PostScript monthly FAQ v* *-*-* [* of *]
From: Allen Braunsdorf 
Summary: Useful facts about the PostScript graphics programming language
Archive-name: postscript/faq/part*
--
Newsgroups: comp.periphs.scsi
Subject: comp.periphs.scsi FAQ
From: garyf@wiis.wang.com (Gary Field)
Summary: This posting contains a list of Frequently Asked
             Questions (and their answers) about SCSI.  It
             should be read by anyone who wishes to post to the
             comp.periphs.scsi newsgroup.
Archive-name: scsi-faq
--
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.tcp-ip.ibmpc,comp.protocols.tcp-ip,
            alt.winsock,comp.os.ms-windows.networking.tcp-ip
Subject: comp.protocols.tcp-ip.ibmpc Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
From: internau@zilker.net (Bernard Aboba)
Summary: Frequently Asked Questions (and answers) about TCP/IP on
                   PC-compatible computers.
Archive-name: ibmpc-tcp-ip
--
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.ppp
Subject: comp.protocols.ppp part* of * of frequently wanted information
From: ignatios@cs.uni-bonn.de (Ignatios Souvatzis)
Summary: This document contains information about the Internet Point-to-Point
     Protocol, including a bibliography, a list of public domain and
     commercial software and hardware implementations, a section on
     configuration hints and a list of frequently asked questions and
     answers on them.
     It should be read by anybody interested in connecting to Internet
     via serial lines, and by anybody wanting to post to
     comp.protocols.ppp (before he/she does it!)
Archive-name: ppp-faq/part1
--
Newsgroups: alt.cd-rom,comp.multimedia
Subject: alt.cd-rom FAQ
From: rab@cdrom.com
Summary: Frequently asked questions about CD-ROMs
Archive-name: cdrom-faq




===============
Ralph Valentino (ralf@fs09.webo.dg.com) (ralf@wpi.edu)
Senior Hardware Engineer, AViiON System Development
Data General Corporation, Westboro, MA USA

Q) 9.2 What do the industry acronyms stand for?
[From ralf@wpi.wpi.edu (Ralph Valentino)]

This is a list of 280+ acronyms which commonly come up in discussion of hardware. It does not contain abbreviations or names that don't stand for anything, nor does it attempt to explain exactly what the technology does, where it can be found, nor even how to use it in a sentence. So, is it completely useless? Well, sometimes just knowing what an acronym stands for is enough to tell you what people are talking about or where to go to get more information about it.

If anyone has any additions, comments, or corrections, please forward them to me directly. Keep in mind that I have tried to avoid software topics except where they overlap with hardware ones, so don't bother telling me what BASIC stands for as it is outside the scope of this list.

AC   Alternating Current
AE   Applications Engineer
AFS  Andrew File System
AI   Artificial Intelligence
ALU  Arithmetic-Logic Unit
AM   Amplitude Modulated
AMD  Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.
AMI  American Megatrends Inc.
ANSI American National Standards Institute
ASCII     American Standard Code for Information Interchange
ASIC Application Specific Integrated Circuit
ASPI Advanced SCSI Programming Interface
AT   Advanced Technology
ATA  AT bus Attachment
ATDM Asynchronous Time Division Multiplexing
ATM  Asynchronous Transfer Mode
AUI  Attached Unit Interface
BBS  Bulletin Board System
BCC  Block Check Character
BCD  Binary Coded Decimal
BE   Back End
BiCMOS    Bipolar Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor
BIOS Basic Input / Output System
BNC  Bayonet Nut Connector
BPS/bps   Bytes/bits Per Second
BSC  Binary Synchronous Communications
BSD  Berkeley Standard Distribution
BTU  British Thermal Units
CAD  Computer Aided Design
CAM  Computer Aided Manufacturing
CAM  Content Addressable Memory
CAM  Common Access Method (Committee)
CAS  Column Address Strobe
CBX  Common Branch eXtender
CCD  Charge Coupled Device
CCITT     Consultative Committee of International Telephony and Telegraphy
CD   Carrier Detect
CDDI Copper Distributed Data Interface
CDROM     Compact Disk Read Only Memory
CGA  Color Graphics Adaptor
CHS  Cylinder Head Sector
CISC Complex Instruction-Set Computer
CLA  Carry Lookahead Adder
CMOS Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor
CP/M Control Program / Monitor
CPI  Clocks Per Instruction
CQFP Ceramic Quad-FlatPack
CPU  Central Processing  Unit
CR   Carriage Return
CRC  Cyclical redundancy check
CRQ  Command Response Queue
CRT  Cathode Ray Tube
CS   Chip Select
CSMA Carrier Sense Multiple-Access
CSMA/CD   Carrier Sense Multiple-Access with Collision Detect
CSR  Command Status Register
CTS  Clear To Send
DAT  Digital Audio Tape
DC   Direct Current
DCD  Data Carrier Detect
DCE  Data Circuit-terminating Equipment
DD   Double Density
DEC  Digital Equipment Corporation
DES  Data Encryption Standard
DID  Direct Inward Dial
DIN  Deutsche Industrie Norm
DIP  Dual-In-line Package
DIS  Draft International Standard
DMA  Direct Memory Access
DOS  Disk Operating System
DPE  Data Parity Error
DPSK Differential Phase Shift Keying
DRAM Dynamic Random Access Memory
DS   Double Sided
DSP  Digital Signal Processor
DSR  Data Set Ready
DTC  Data Terminal Controller
DTE  Data Terminating Equipment
DTMF Dual-Tone MultiFrequency
DTR  Data Terminal Ready
EBCDIC    Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code
ECC  Error Correction Code
ECL  Emitter-Coupled Logic
ECO  Engineering Change Order
ECU  EISA Configuration Utility
EEPROM    Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory
EGA  Enhanced Graphics Adaptor
EIA  Electronic Industries Association
EISA Enhanced Industry Standard Architecture
EMI  Electro-Magnetic Interference
EMF  Electro-Magnetic Force
EMS  Expanded Memory Specification
EOF  End Of File
EOL  End Of Line
EOS  Electrical Overstress
EPROM     Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory
ESD  Electro-Static Discharge
ESDI Enhanced Small Devices Interface
FAT  File Allocation Table
FCC  Federal Communications Commission
FDD  Fixed Disk Drive (or Floppy Disk Drive)
FDDI Fiber Distributed Data Interface
FDM  Frequency Division Multiplexing
FDX  Full-Duplex Transmission
FE   Front End
FEP  Front End Processor
FF   Form Feed
FIFO First-In First-Out
FILO First-In Last-Out (same as LIFO)
FM   Frequency Modulation
FPGA Field Programmable Gate Array
FPU  Floating Point Unit
FRU  Field-Replaceable Unit
FSF  Free Software Foundation
FSK  Frequency Shifty Keying
FTP  File Transfer Program
GAS  Gallium Arsenide
GFLOPS    Billions (10^9) of FLOating Point Operations Per Second ("GigaFlops")
GNU  Gnu's Not Unix
GUI  Graphical User Interface
HD   High Density
HDD  Hard Disk Drive
HDX  Half-Duplex Transmission
HFS  Hierarchical File System
HPFS High Performance File System
HS   Helical Scan
I/O  Input / Output
IBM  International Business Machines Corp.
IC   Integrated Circuit
IDC  Insulation Displacement Connector
IDE  Integrated Device Electronics
IEEE Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers
IMP  Interface Message Processor
IPC  InterProcess Communication
IRQ  Interrupt ReQuest
ISA  Industry Standard Architecture
ISDN Integrated Services Digital Network
ISO  International Standards Organization
JFS  Journaled File System
kVA  KiloVolt-Amps
LAN  Local Area Network
LAPM Link Access Procedure M
LBA  Linear Block Array
LCD  Liquid Crystal Display
LED  Light Emitting Diode
LF   Line Feed
LIM  Lotus/Intel/Microsoft Expanded Memory Manager Specification
LRU  Least-Recently Used
LSB/lsb   Least Significant Byte/bit
LSI  Large Scale Integration
LUN  Logical Unit Number
MAN  Metropolitan Area Network
MB/Mb     Mega Bytes/bits
MBR  Master Boot Record
MCA  Micro Channel Architecture
MCGA Multi-Color Graphics Array
MCM  Multi-Chip Module
MFLOPS    Millions of FLOating Point Operations per Second ("MegaFlops")
MFM  Modified Frequency Modulated
MHz  MegaHertz
MICR Magnetic Ink Character Recognition
MIDI Musical Instrument Digital Interface
MIMD Multiple-Instruction Multiple-Data
MIPS Millions of Instructions per Second
MISD Multiple-Instruction Single Data
MMU  Memory Management Unit
MNP  Microcom Network Protocol
MODEM     MOdulator / DEModulator
MOPS Millions of Operations Per Second
MOS  Metal-Oxide Semiconductor
MP   MultiProcessor
MPP  Massively Parallel Processor
MSB/msb   Most Significant Byte/bit
MSDOS     Microsoft Disk Operating System
MSI  Medium Scale Integration
MTBF Mean Time Between Failure
N/C  No-Connect
NBS  National Bureau of Standards
NEMA National Electrical Manufacturers Association
NFS  Network File System
NFU  Not-Frequently Used
NMI  Non-Maskable Interrupt
NMOS Negatively doped Metal-Oxide Semiconductor
NOP  No OPeration
NRU  Not-Recently Used
NSF  National Science Foundation
NVRAM     NonVolatile Random Access Memory
OCR  Optical Character Recognition
ODI  Open Datalink Interface
OEM  Original Equipment Manufacturer
OS   Operating System
OSF  Open Software Foundation
OSI  Open Systems Interconnect
PAL/PLA   Programmable Array Logic (Logic Array)
PB   Push Button
PBX  Private Branch eXtender
PC   Personal Computer, Program Counter
PCB  Printed Circuit Board
PCI  Peripheral Component Interconnect
PCM  Pulse Code Modulation
PCMCIA    Personal Computer Memory Card International Association
PE   Processor Element
PFF  Page Fault Frequency
PGA  Pin Grid Array
PIC  Programmable Interrupt Controller
PIO  Programmed Input/Output
PLCC Plastic Leaded Chip Carrier
PLL  Phase Locked Loop
PM   Preventive Maintenance
PMOS Positively doped Metal-Oxide Semiconductor
POST Power On Self Test
PPP  Point-to-Point Protocol
PQFP Plastic Quad-FlatPack
PROM Programmable Read-Only Memory
PSTN Public Switched Telephone Network
PTE  Page Table Entry
QAM  Quadrature Amplitude Modulation
QFP  Quad-FlatPack
QIC  Quarter Inch Cartridge
RAID Redundant Arrays of Inexpensive Disks
RAM  Random Access Memory
RAMDAC    Random Access Memory Digital to Analog Converter
RAS  Row Address Strobe
RCA  Radio Corporation of America
RCC  Routing Control Center
RFC  Request For Comments
RFI  Radio Frequency Interference
RI   Ring Indicator
RISC Reduced Instruction-Set Computer
RLL  Run Length Limited
RMM  Read Mostly Memory (same as EPROM)
RMS  Root Mean Squared
RMW  Read Modify Write
ROM  Read-Only Memory
RPC  Remote Procedure Call
RPM  Rotations Per Minute
RTC  Real Time Clock
RTS  Request To Send
SAM  Sequential Access Memory
SASI Shugart Associates Standard Interface
SCSI Small Computer Systems Interface
SD   Single Density
SDLC Synchronous Data Link Control
SDLC Synchronous Data Link Control
SE   Systems Engineer
SIMD Single-Instruction Multiple-Data
SIMM Single Inline Memory Module
SIPP Single Inline Pinned Package
SISD Single-Instruction Single-Data
SLIP Serial Line Internet Protocol
SMD  Surface Mount Device
SMT  Surface Mount Technology
SNA  System Network Architecture
SNR  Signal to Noise Ratio
SO/SOL    Small OutLine
SOIC Small Outline Integrated Circuit
SPOOL     Simultaneous Peripheral Operation On Line
SPT  Sectors Per Track
SPU  Single Processor Unit
SQE  Signal Quality Error
SRAM Static Random Access Memory
SS   Single Sided
STDM Synchronous Time Division Multiplexing
STN  Super Twisted Nematic
STU  Streaming Tape Unit
SVGA Super Video Graphics Array
TCM  Trellis Code Modulation
TCP/IP    Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol
TDM  Time Division Multiplexing
TI   Texas Instruments
TIA  Telecomm. Industry Assocation
TLB  Translation-Lookaside Buffer
TPI  Tracks Per Inch
TSR  Terminate and Stay Resident
TTL  Transistor-Transistor Logic
TUV  Technischer Ueberwachuags Verein
UART Universal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter
UDP  User Datagram Protocol
UMB  Upper Memory Block
UPS  Uninterruptible Power Supply
USL  Unix System Labs
UTP  Unshielded Twisted Pair
UUCP Unix to Unix Copy Program
VCR  Video Cassette Recorder
VESA Video Enhanced Standards Association
VGA  Video Graphics Array
VLB  VESA Local Bus
VLIW Very Long Instruction Word
VLSI Very Large Scale Integration
VM   Virtual Memory
VME  Versa Module Eurocard
VRAM Video Random Access Memory
VTR  Video Tape Recorder
WAN  Wide Area Network
WATS Wide Area Telephone Service
WD   Western Digital
WORM Write-Once Read-Many
WS   Wait State
XGA  eXtended Graphics Array
XMS  Extended Memory Specification
XOR  Exclusive-Or
XT   eXtended Technology
ZIF  Zero Insertion Force

Q) 9.3 Where can I get the ISA/EISA/VLB/PCI/etc specs?

PCMCIA
1030 East Duane Avenue, Suite G
Sunnyvale CA 94086
Tel 408-720-0107
Fax 408-720-9416

They are in my mind necessary if you want to write programs that use Socket
Services or Card Services, but maybe not necessary for designing hardware.
A bit pricey they are.

[From: cls@truffula.sj.ca.us (Cameron Spitzer):

_EISA Specification_
BCPR Services Inc.
POB 11137
Spring TX 77391
(713)251-4832

This book *specifies* the Extended ISA.  The expansion slot and
motherboard IO deviced are described.  Also, a file format is defined
for describing the configuration of an EISA-compatible Adapter.

[From: comins@tecrus.enet.dec.com]

Questions concerning PCI specifications or membership can be sent to:

PCI Special Interest Group
P.O. Box 14070
Portland, OR 97214
503-797-4207
503-234-6762

Non-members of the PCI SIG may request a PCI Local Bus Specification for
$25 + shipping costs by calling:
1-800-433-5177

[From: herbst@techunix.technion.ac.il (Herbst OMR)]

Quarter-Inch Cartridge Drive Standards, Inc.
311 East Carrillo Street
Santa Barbara, California 93101
Telephone (805) 963-3853
Fax       (805) 962-1541

Video Electronics Standards Association
2150 North First St.
Suite 440
San Jose, CA  95131-2020
Telephone: (408) 435-0333

Q) 9.4 What books are available for the PC architecture?

Edward Solari
_ISA & EISA_ Theory and Operation
Annabooks, San Diego CA USA
ISBN 0-929392-15-9

This is an excellent book on the EISA and ISA architectures.
Everything you need to know to make your own card, from timing to ECU
config files.

Tom Shanley
_EISA System Architecture_
MindShare, Inc, Richardson, TX USA
ISBN 1-881609-03-0

This book is good for an overview of the EISA and, in part, ISA
systems.  It doesn't go into enough detail to design boards from, but,
as a quote from the sleeve says "The co-ops in the group have found
them to be especially useful."

Tom Shanley
_PCI System Architecture_
MindShare, Inc, Richardson, TX USA
ISBN 1-881609-06-5

[From: cls@truffula.sj.ca.us (Cameron Spitzer):

Edward Solari
_AT Bus Design_
Annabooks, San Diego CA USA
ISBN 0-929392-08-6

This book describes the expansion slot which appeared in IBM's
Personal Computer AT.  This bus is now known as the Industry Standard
Architecture Bus, or just ISA.  It gives enough functional and timing
detail for the hardware designer to ensure a new Adapter's
compatibility.  It does not discuss any of the defacto-standard
Adapters, peripherals, or BIOS features, and gives only an overview of
the memory and IO layout.  The timing details are for the nominal 8
MHz bus clock.  Recent practice of drastically increasing this clock
rate is not discussed.

[From: Shaun Burnett (burnesa@cat.com)]

Scott Mueller
_Upgrading and Repairing PCs, 2nd ed._
QUE
ISBN 0-88022-856-3

I've found the following book to be an excellent reference on the PC.
It discusses the IBM PC family and various peripherals.  The book is
written so that the novice user will find this book of use.  Those
that deal with PCs on a lower level will appreciate the numerous
tables that contains information on such topics as serial port
pin-outs, bus connection labels, and I/O ports addresses.

Q) 9.5 What books are available on network programming?

[From: p00736@psilink.com (Frederick J. Ingham)]

In response to several queries, the following books are excellent resources 
on network programming:

Roetzheim, William H., A C Programmers's Guide to the IBM Token Ring, 
Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 1991

Nance, Barry, Network Programming in C, QUE Corporation, Carmel, IN, 1990. 
(covers Netware NCP, IPX/SPX, and NetBIOS)

Schwaderer, W. David, C Programmer's Guide to NetBIOS, IPX, and SPX, SAMS 
Publishing, Carmel, IN, 1992.

Davis, Ralph, Windows Network Programming 'How to survive in a World of 
Windows, DOS, and Networks', Addison Wesley, Reading, Massachusetts, 1993.
(covers NetBIOS, IPX/SPX, VINES Sockets, TCP/IP, Windows Sockets, Several NOS 
APIs, Mailslots, Named Pipes, etc.)

Comer, Douglas E., Internetworking with TCP/IP, Client - Server Programming 
and Applications, Vol III, Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 1993.

IBM, Local Area Network, Technical Reference, Document SC30-3383-03, IBM 
Corporation, 1990.
(covers the IBM Token Ring Direct Interface, DLC, and NetBIOS programming)

IBM, Operating System/2, Local Area Network Server, Application Programmer's 
Reference, Document S04G-1046-00, IBM Corporation, 1991.
(covers the IBM LAN Server API and Microsoft LAN Manager API)

Microsoft, LAN Manager Programmer's Reference, Microsoft Press, One Microsoft 
Way, Redmond, Washington, 1990.
(covers the Microsoft LAN Manager API)

Microsoft, Intel, Microsoft Networks/OpenNET, File Sharing Protocol, v2.0, 
1988.
Microsoft, Microsoft Networks, SMB File Sharing Protocol Extensions v2.0, 
1988.
Microsoft, Microsoft Networks, SMB File Sharing Protocol Extensions v3.0, 
1989.
(all of the above cover the Server Message Block protocol used by Microsoft 
LAN Manager and IBM LAN Server.  they are available via ftp from 
ftp.microsoft.com)

Q) 9.6 Which companies have ftp sites?
[From: rfowler@access.digex.net (Ronald Fowler)]

Officially Supported FTP Sites

HARDWARE/ SOFTWARE FTP SERVERS

Q) 9.7 Which companies have WWW sites?
[From: rfowler@access.digex.net (Ronald Fowler)]

Officially Supported World-Wide-Web Sites

HARDWARE/ SOFTWARE WORLD-WIDE-WEB SERVERS

NOTES

- Berkeley Systems, Inc. - I do not know if this is supported by Berkeley or not...if so, it's not very well kept.
- Gateway 2000 Users Group - this user group is officially supported and recognized by Gateway 2000, as well as other companies like IBM.
- Hercules Computer Technology - the WWW and FTP sites above are officially supported by Hercules; however, they will have their own web/ftp server up and running in early February. They will be www.hercules.com and ftp.hercules.com
- ID Software - this server is up, though I don't believe they've actually written any documents yet.
- Micron - I was told by Micron that their server would be up in late Jan./ early Feb. - The Sony server is up and running, though they haven't added support for their monitors yet....or for any other of their electronics' products. - Thomas-Conrad Corporation - I haven't been able to connect to this site in over two weeks...I don't know what's up. - Toshiba America - I don't believe this is officially supported but it does include some pretty good info on their notebooks/laptops - Wyse Technology - they have a few HTML "home page" documents on a other servers but I was asked to use their new server (above); it will go online between the 15th and 18th of January.
- U.S. Robotics Corporation - I don't believe this is officially supported but it does give some good info on their products.
- Xircom - I don't know if this is a supported site in the works or not...I'll let you be the judge

Q) 9.8 What's the phone number for...
[From: zeos@zeos.com]

This list of industry phone numbers is provided as a service to the net community. It is not meant to be complete by any means, but if you have any suggestions for additions, or if you find any errors which should be corrected, please feel free to email me at support@zeos.com. This list will be reposted periodically with the appropriate updates. To obtain the latest list which is updated approximately once per month, send and email message to phone@zeos.com, and the list will automatically be sent to your account.

Thank you to all who have sent me corrections/additions.

Currently posted to: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.misc (inside FAQ) and in biz.zeos.general

Last modification date: December 4, 1995

*=Updated/corrected/added since last modification

(#)

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**** ALL Microsoft OTHER PRODUCTS ................ 206-454-2030

MICROSOFT STARTUP AND INSTALLATION SUPPORT

Microsoft LAN Manager Startup (first 30 days only). 206-635-7020
Microsoft MS-DOS 5.0 (first 90 days only) ......... 206-646-5104
Microsoft QuickBASIC Startup ...................... 206-646-5101
Microsoft SQL Server Startup (first 30 days only).. 206-637-7095
Microsoft Visual Basic Startup .................... 206-646-5105
Microsoft Windows Entertainment Pack .............. 206-637-9308
Microsoft Windows Software Development Kit (SDK)... 206-635-3329

FAST TIPS SERVICES
Microsoft Fast Tips General ....................... 800-936-4100
Microsoft Excel for Macintosh ..................... 206-635-7081
Microsoft Excel for Windows ....................... 206-635-7071
Microsoft MS-DOS 5.0 .............................. 206-646-5103
Microsoft Project for Windows ..................... 206-635-7156
Microsoft Visual Basic ............................ 206-646-5107
Microsoft Windows ................................. 206-635-7245
Microsoft Word for Macintosh ...................... 206-635-7201
Microsoft Word for MS-DOS ......................... 206-635-7211
Microsoft Word for Windows ........................ 206-635-7231

INCREMENTAL FEE-BASED SUPPORT
Microsoft OnCall for Basic $2/min.................. 900-896-9999
Microsoft OnCall for Basic $20/call ............... 206-646-5106
Microsoft OnCall for MS-DOS $2/min................. 900-896-9000
Microsoft OnCall for MS-DOS $20/call .............. 206-646-5108
Microsoft OnCall for Visual Basic $2/min........... 900-896-9876
Microsoft OnCall for Visual Basic $20/call ........ 206-646-5106
Microsoft Network Support $175/call ............... 206-635-7022

Microsystems Software...... BBS ................... 508-875-8009 2400bps
Microtech.................. BBS ................... 203-469-6430 2400bps
MicroTek................... BBS ................... 310-538-4032 14400bps
Microtest.................. BBS ................... 602-996-4009 2400bps
Mitsubishi Inc. ........... T/S ................... 800-344-6352
Mitsubishi Inc............. Tech Support .......... 213-515-3993
Mitsumi ................... BBS ................... 415-691-4469
Mitsumi .................. Sales ................. 516-752-7730
Mitsumi .................. Tech Support .......... 408-970-9699
Mitsumi .................. Tech Support .......... 408-970-9730
Motorola................... BBS ................... 800-843-3451
Motorola................... BBS ................... 512-891-3733
Motorola................... BBS ................... 512-891-3733
Mountain Computer, Inc .... BBS ................... 408-438-2665
Mountain Computer, Inc .... General ............... 800-458-0300
Mountain Computer, Inc .... Tech Support .......... 408-438-7897
Mouse Systems (MSC)........ BBS ................... 510-683-0617 14400bps
Mouse Systems ............. Tech Support .......... 510-656-1117
Multi-Tech Systems......... BBS ................... 612-785-9875 14400bps
Mustang Software........... BBS ................... 805-395-0650 16800bps
Mustang Software .......... MSI HQ BBS ............ 805-873-2400
Mustang Software .......... T/S ................... 805-873-2550
Mustang Software .......... OFFICE ................ 805-873-2500
Mustang Software .......... FAX ................... 805-873-2599
Mustang Software .......... SALES ................. 800-999-9619
Mutant Group............... BBS ................... 405-372-6621 16800bps
Mylex ..................... ....................... 800-776-9539
Mylex ..................... BBS ................... 510-793-3491
Mylex ..................... Technical Support ..... 510-796-6100

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S) 10.0 Acknowledgments
Thanks to the following people for their contributions to the faq:

Carsten Grammes ( cagr@rz.uni-sb.de)
Mike Long ( mike.long@analog.com)
Cameron L. Spitzer ( cls@truffula.sj.ca.us)
John M. Grohol ( grohol@cps.acast.nova.edu)
Jeff Abramson ( jabram@ichips.intel.com)
Ronald Geens ( rgeens@wins.uia.ac.be)
Paul Leslie Strople ( strople@ug.cs.dal.ca)
David Reeve Sward ( sward+@CMU.EDU)
zeos@zeos.com
Steve Rusk ( zz96sr@sdacs.ucsd.edu)
Arnoud Martens ( arnoud@ijssel.hacktic.nl)
Steve Walters ( swwalters@fl51mail.space.honeywell.com)
comins@tecrus.enet.dec.com
Frederick J. Ingham ( p00736@psilink.com)
Shaun Burnet ( burnesa@cat.com)
John Anthony Ruchak ( jruchak@mtmis1.mis.semi.harris.com)
Herbst OMR ( herbst@techunix.technion.ac.il)
Wayne Schlitt
Lee Fisher ( leefi@microsoft.com)
Joeseph H Allen ( jhallen@world.std.com)
pieterh@sci.kun.nl
Ron Bean ( uwvax!astroatc!nicmad!madnix!zaphod)
Will Spencer ( will@gnu.ai.mit.edu)
Declan Hughes ( hughes@cat.rpi.edu)
Ronald Fowler ( rfowler@access.digex.net)
and the many others who helped bring the FAQ to where it is today.

===============
Ralph Valentino ( ralf@fs09.webo.dg.com) ( ralf@wpi.edu)
Senior Hardware Engineer, AViiON System Development
Data General Corporation, Westboro, MA USA

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