Glossary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
ActiveX
A Microsoft Technology that enables software components to
interact with one another in a networked environment, regardless
of the language(s) used to create them. Most World Wide Web (WWW)
users will experience ActiveX technology in the form of ActiveX
controls, ActiveX documents, and ActiveX scripts.
AC3
Sometimes referred to as 'Dolby Digital'. The third
generation digital audio coding scheme from Dolby Laboratories
used to encode 6 discrete audio channels (front-left,
front-center, front-right, surround-left, surround-right, and
low-frequency effects). Primarily used for movie soundtracks,
found on new generation laserdiscs, DVD titles and HDTV.
adapter
An expansion card that enables greater functionality for your
computer. The Monster Sound card is an adapter.
Alt key
One of three shift keys on a computer keyboard. The effect, or
result, of a key pressed with the Alt key held down may vary
depending on what software is running.
analog-to-digital converter
A device on the Monster Sound that converts analog
information, such as sound or voltage, into digital signals that
can be handled by a computer. These devices create a sample.
API
An Application Programming Interface is a definition of
functions or operations that a programmer can use to ease his/her
development cycle.
ASIC
Application Specific Integrated Circuit
(ay-sick). A chip designed for use on a particular circuit board,
or for a very narrow range of use. The Digital
Signal Processor chip on a Monster Sound is an ASIC.
B
BIOS
Stands for Basic Input/Output System. This is software that
provides basic read/write capabilities. Usually kept as firmware
(ROM based). The system BIOS on the mainboard of a computer is
used to boot and control the system.
Bus
A collection of unbroken signal lines across which information is
transmitted from one part of a computer system to another.
Connections to the bus are made via "taps" on the
lines.
C
coprocessor
A chip whose function is to offload the CPU and accelerate the
system by performing certain functions for the CPU.
D
DAC
Stands for Digial to Analog Converter.
This is a device the Monster Sound uses to convert a stream of
digital information to its analog equivalent. Use of this device
is how a WAV file (digital) gets converted to sound (analog).
daughterboard
A printed circuit board that adds functionality to another
board or card. Usually mounted parallel to the card it supports.
The Monster Sound supports daughterboard standard wavetable
synthesizers.
digital
Operating in discrete units or steps. A device that uses
discrete units is a digital device.
digital mixing
Digital mixing is the ability to merge multiple digital
streams into one or more streams. This ability is superior to
analog mixing, because with each new input stream an analog mixer
adds noise to the output stream. The Monster Sound does digital
mixing !
DirectSound and DirectSound 3D
Both are DirectX wave audio playback API's that allow you to
simultaneously play multiple wave files and move sound sources
within a simulated 3D space (DirectSound 3D only). They take
advantage of sound-accelerator hadware (like Monster Sound) to
improve performance and minimize CPU usage.
DirectX
Microsoft's set of standardized application programming
interfaces (APIs) for games and other multimedia applications,
including DirectDraw, Direct3D, DirectSound and others.
DOS Shell
A DOS shell is an emulation of DOS within a Windows 95
environment, which can be viewed as a DOS window (DOS Box) or
full screen.
DSP
Stands for Digital Signal Processor. The
Monster Sound DSP chip (Analog Devices 2181) processes algorithms
for various features, such as 3D positional sound and multiple
data stream playback, instead of using the host processor (Intel,
AMD, Cyrix, etc.), thus improving system speed and performance.
E
EISA
Stands for Extended Industry Standard Architecture.
It is an extension of the 16-bit ISA bus standard, allowing
devices to perform 32-bit data transfers.
F
Firmware
This is software that is permanently stored in ROM and it can be
accessed during boot time.
Format conversion
Format conversion is used to convert all input stream types to
match the output stream type. Some streams may need to be
converted from 8-bit to 16-bit.
G
hang
When a computer stops operating, usually because something went
wrong in the software. Same as bomb, crash, and lock up. Although
these terms are used interchangeably, hang and lock up are used
more often when the screen appears normal. Usually requires
rebooting the computer.
hardware
Refers to the parts of a computer system that are physical
objects.
Hertz
A measure of frequency in cycles per second. Named after Heinrich
Hertz.
HRTF
Stands for Head Related Transfer Function.
This refers to all the possible angles through which sound is
delivered. This provides the listener with realistic 3D audio,
whereby the sound appears to approach from above, behind, beside,
or far away.
I
IRQ
Stands for Interrupt Request Channel. This
is the path through which a device can receive immediate
attention of your computer's CPU. The PCI bus assigns an IRQ path
for each of your PCI devices.
ISA
Stands for Industry Standard Architecture.
This is a type of computer bus used in most PC's in the past, and
has been used to support legacy sound card designs. It allows
devices to send and receive data 16-bits at a time.
J
Joystick
Named after a similiar control device in airplanes. It is a
pointing device used in computer games.
K
KHz
Stands for Kilo Hertz.
This is a unit of frequency at 1000 cycles per second.
L
latency
The period of time it takes a piece of information to go from
sender to receiver across a medium.
legacy card
An expansion card that utilizes jumpers for setting changes.
Any card that uses older pc-standards, i.e. ISA.
Legacy Sound Board
Any ISA Sound Blaster or Sound Blaster compatible sound card.
M
Main memory
The RAM that is in the CPU's address space.
MB
Stands for Megabyte. 220
or 1,048,576 bytes. Also known as a million bytes. A unit of
memory and data storage size.
MIDI
Stands for Musical Instrument Digital Interface.
MIDI files usually have the extension .mid. They contain
sequencing information, which differentiates the how, what, when,
where, and why an instrument should be played.
Motherboard or Mainboard
A large circuit board that holds RAM, ROM, the microprocessor,
custom integrated circuits, and other components that enable a
computer to function.
Mixer
A device or concepts that receives inputs and merges them to
a single output.
N
Native DOS
This is a Disk Operating System that
functions outside of the Windows 95 environment.
O
PCI
Stands for Peripheral Component Interconnect.
It is a local bus specification that allows the connection of a
peripheral directly to the computer memory. It bypasses the
slower ISA and EISA buses, allowing devices to send and receive
data 32-bits at a time.
Q
RAM
Stands for Random Access Memory. This is the
computer's primary working memory in which program instructions
and data are stored, which are accessible to the CPU. Information
can be written to and read from RAM. The contents of RAM are lost
when the computer is turned off.
ROM
Stands for Read Only Memory. This is memory
from which information can be read but not changed. The contents
of ROM are not erased when the computer is turned off.
S
Sampling Rates
When the computer records sounds or a video, it stores the
information into a specific file. As the computer records, it
deciphers the information, it takes a sampling of the
information. The higher the sampling rate the better the quality
of recording.
T
Voice
Another term for a musical instrument sound.
VRML
Stands for Virtual Reality Modeling Language.
This is an open, extensible, industry-standard scene description
for 3D scenes, or "worlds" on the Internet.
W
Wavetable Synthesis
In wavetable synthesis, actual sound recordings are taken from
real musical instruments. The short recording samples are
then retrieved over time to produce the necessary musical
effects. This offers better sound quality with more realistic
sounding instruments.
X