Programming — page 9 of 14

1,381 terms including subtopics (0 terms filed directly here)

Subtopics

Java 983 terms
Perl 498 terms

Programming terms

modifier See "statement modifier", "regular expression modifier", and "lvalue modifier", not necessarily in that order.
Modulation Modulation is the method by which a high-frequency digital signal is grafted onto a lower-frequency analog wave, so that digital packets are able to ride…
module The smallest self-contained, environmentally protected structure housing interconnected photovoltaic cells and providing a single dc electrical output…
modulus An integer divisor when you're interested in the remainder instead of the quotient.
monger Short for Perl Monger, a purveyor of Perl.
monitor (MAH-nih-ter) In medicine, to regularly watch and check a person or condition to see if there is any change.
mortal A temporary value scheduled to die when the current statement finishes.
MSC (Mobile Switching Center) A Mobile Switching Center (MSC) is a unit within a cellular phone network that automatically coordinates and switches calls in a given cell.
multidimensional array An array with multiple subscripts for finding a single element. Perl implements these using references--see perllol and perldsc.
multiple inheritance The ability of a class or interface to extend more than one class or interface.
multiple-boot options The hardware configurations of some computers are able to run different operating system and window manager combinations.
multiprogramming system An operating system that is able to run multiple programs concurrently.
multithreaded Describes a program that is designed to have parts of its code execute concurrently. See also thread.
mutator method A method specifically designed to allow controlled modification of a private attribute of a class.
Mutual Authentication An authentication mechanism employed by two parties for the purpose of proving each other's identity to one another.
mutual recursion Recursion that results from two methods calling each other recursively.
named pipe A "pipe" with a name embedded in the "filesystem" so that it can be accessed by two unrelated processes.
namespace A prefix applied to URIs, URNs, and XML entities to prevent naming conflicts.
naming context A set of associations between unique, atomic, people-friendly identifiers and objects.
naming environment A mechanism that allows a component to be customized without the need to access or change the component's source code.
Native A Java keyword that is used in method declarations to specify that the method is not implemented in the same Java source file, but rather in another…
native method A method written in a language other than Java, but accessible to a Java program.
nested class A class defined inside an enclosing class. See inner class.
network address The most important attribute of a socket, like your telephone's telephone number. Typically an IP address. See also "port".
NEW Nuclear Weapons Effect.
new operator The operator used to create instances {instance} of a class.
newline The \n character.
NFS Network File System, which allows you to mount a remote filesystem as if it were local.
no-arg constructor A constructor that takes no arguments. By default, all classes without an explicit constructor have a default no-arg constructor with public access.
non-modal A dialog is non-modal if its parent application is not blocked from further activity while the dialog is being shown. See modal.
non-static nested class See inner class.
normalization A conceptual database design task that involves applying data dependency to a data model to avoid data inconsistencies by prohibiting redundancy.
North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) A classification system developed jointly by the U.S., Canada, and Mexico to provide improved comparability in industrial statistics across North America.
notation A mechanism for defining a data format for a non-XML document referenced as an unparsed entity. This is a holdover from SGML.
null The null type has one value, the null reference, represented by the literal null, which is formed from ASCII characters.
null character The \u0000 character. Care should be taken not to confuse this with the null reference.
null list A "list value" with zero elements, represented in Perl by ().
null reference A value used to mean, `no object'. Used when an object reference variable is not referring to an object.
null string A "string" containing no characters, not to be confused with a string containing a "null character", which has a positive length and is "true".
number base The base used to interpret numerical characters. Decimal notation is base 10 and binary notation is base 2, for instance.
numeric context The situation in which an expression is expected by its surroundings (the code calling it) to return a number. See also "context" and "string context".
NV Short for Nevada, no part of which will ever be confused with civilization. NV also means an internal floating-point Numeric Value of the type a "scalar"…
nybble Half a "byte", equivalent to one "hexadecimal" digit, and worth four bits.
OASIS An isolated, fertile tract or green locality in a desert region, made so by the presence of water. See also Palm oasis
Obfuscation Obfuscation is a technique used to complicate code. Obfuscation makes code harder to understand when it is de-compiled, but it typically has no affect on…
object An entity such as a file, folder, shared folder, printer, or Active Directory object, described by a distinct, named set of attributes.
object construction The creation of an object, usually via the new operator. When an object is created, an appropriate constructor from its class is invoked.
object reference A reference to an object. Languages other than Java use term's such as address or pointer.
object serialization The writing of an object's contents in such a way that its state can be restored, either at a later time, or within a different process.
object-oriented design A software design method that models the characteristics of abstract or real objects using classes and objects.
object-oriented language Programming languages such as C++ and Java that allow the solution to a problem to be expressed in terms of objects which belong to classes.
octal Number representation in base 8. In base 8, only the digits 0 to 7 are used. Digit positions represent successive powers of 8.
octal character constant A character constant in the form \ddd, where each d is an octal digit. This may be used for characters with a Unicode value in the range 0-255.
offset You offset an options or futures position by taking a second position in a contract with identical terms, buying if you sold initially or selling if you…
OMG Operational Maneuver Group.
one-liner An entire computer program crammed into one line of text.
one-way messaging A method of transmitting messages without having to block until a response is received.
open source software Programs for which the source code is freely available and freely redistributable, with no commercial strings attached.
operand An operand is an argument of an operator. Expressions involve combinations of operators and operands.
operating system Software which directs the overall activity of a computer (e.g. MS-DOS , Windows , Linux , etcetera).
operator A prokaryotic regulatory element that interacts with a repressor to control the transcription of adjacent structural genes.
operator overloading A kind of "overloading" that you can do on built-in operators to make them work on objects as if the objects were ordinary scalar values, but with the…
operator precedence See precedence rules
optional package An optional package is a set of Java ME APIs providing services in a specific area, such as database access or multimedia.
optional packages The set or sets of APIs in a Java platform edition which are available with and may be supported in a compatible implementation.
options Contracts which give the holder the right to buy (call options) or sell (put option) a fixed amount of a certain stock at a specified price within a…
ORB An often translucent, circular anomaly (or “ball of light”) seen in photography -- and sometimes with the naked eye -- that may be, depending on your…
OS principal A principal native to the operating system on which the J2EE platform is executing.
OTA (Over The Air) Over The Air (OTA) refers to any wireless networking technology.
OTS Off-the-Shelf.
out of scope A variable is in scope as long as the program's flow of control is within the variable's defining block. Otherwise, it is out of scope.
out-of-bounds value A redundant value used to indicate that a different action from the norm is required at some point.
overloading Using one identifier to refer to multiple items in the same scope. In the Java programming language, you can overload methods but not variables or…
overriding Providing a different implementation of a method in a subclass of the class that originally defined the method.
overriding for breadth A form of method overriding in which the sub class version of a method implements its own behavior within the context of the attributes and behavior of…
overriding for chaining A form of method overriding in which the sub class version of a method checks to see whether it can respond to the message on its own and only calls the…
overriding for restriction A form of method overriding in which the sub class version of a method calls the super class version first of all and then uses or manipulates the result…
Owner The only security principal who has an inherent right to allow or deny permission to access an object.
package A group of files that modify Windows features. Package types include service packs, security updates, language packs, and hotfixes.
package access See package.
package declaration A declaration used to name a package. This must be the first item in a source file, preceding any import statements. For instance, package java.lang;
PAD Short for "scratchpad".
parallel programming A style of programming in which statements are not necessarily executed in an ordered sequence but in parallel.
parameter A value or measurement that varies with circumstances, and is used as a reference to quantify a situation or a process.
parameter entity An entity that consists of DTD specifications, as distinct from a general entity.
parent class See "base class".
parse tree See "syntax tree".
parsed entity A general entity that contains XML and therefore is parsed when inserted into the XML document, as opposed to an unparsed entity.
parser A module that reads in XML data from an input source and breaks it into chunks so that your program knows when it is working with a tag, an attribute, or…
parsing Usually applied to the action of a compiler in analyzing a program source file for syntax errors.
Passivation A chemical reaction that eliminates the detrimental effect of electrically reactive atoms on a photovoltaic cell's surface.
patch A downloadable update that fixes bugs, improves stability and introduces new features to a program.
path The hierarchical description of where a directory, folder, or file is located on a computer or network.
pathname The path to a file or directory located on a disk. Pathnames are always specific to the computer operating system.
pattern Can describe where active fish are holding, or what techniques are working to catch fish, especially larger fish.
Pattern Matching A generic term that describes any process that compares one files content with another files content.
PCS (Personal Communications Service) Personal Communications Service (PCS) is a suite of second-generation, digitally modulated mobile-communications interfaces that includes TDMA, CDMA, and…
PDAP (Personal Digital Assistant Profile) The Personal Digital Assistant Profile (PDAP) is a Java ME profile specification designed for small platforms such as PalmOS devices.
PDC (Personal Digital Cellular) Personal Digital Cellular (PDC) is a Japanese standard for wireless communications.
PDCP (Parallel and Distributed Computing Practices) Parallel and Distributed Computing Practices (PDCP) are often used to describe computer systems that are spread over many devices on a network (wired or…