GlossaryΒΆ
- Bit
- The smallest unit of information in computing, abbreviation of the term Binary digIT.
- Blob
- Binary Large OBject, typically a large binary file stored in a database.
- Bug
- Defect in a computer program which stops it from working as intended, see also debug.
- Class
- In object-oriented programming a class is a template that can be used to create an object.
- CPU
- Central Processing Unit, part of the computer that executes machine instructions.
- Debug
- The activity of identifying and removing a bug (defect) from a computer program.
- DNS
- Domain Name Server a machine that translates URLs to IP addresses.
- DRY
- Don’t repeat yourself. Make use of a variables for frequently used values. Make use of functions for frequently used processing logic.
- Function
- A set of instructions for performing a procedure. Most commonly a function takes a set of arguments and returns a value.
- HTTP
- HyperText Transfer Protocol, commonly used for web browsing.
- Hypervisor
- A piece of software that allows you to run a virtual machine.
- List
- A common data structure representing an ordered collection of elements. Also known as an array.
- Method
- A method refers to a function that is part of a class.
- Init
- Abbreviation of the word “initialise”. Usually used to represent a one time event that that results in the creation of a new entity.
- Integer
- A whole number, i.e. a number that can be expressed without a fractional component.
- I/O
- Input/Output; often used in the context of reading and writing data to disk.
- Object
- In object-oriented programming an object is an instance of a class.
- Object-oriented programming
- Programming methodology centered around the concept of objects rather than actions and procedures.
- IP address
- Internet Protocol address.
- Pipe
- A pipe is a means to redirect the output from one command into another.
The character used to represent a pipe is the vertical bar:
|
. - RAM
- Random Access Memory, fast access volatile memory.
- Recursion
- A procedure whose implementation calls itself. Of practical use for problems where the solution depends on smaller instances of the same problem.
- Scope
- Determines which parts of a program has access to what. For example any part of a program can have access to a global variable. However, if a variable is contained within the scope of a function only code within that function can access the variable.
- Shell
- Program that allows the user to interact with the operating system’s services and programs, see also terminal.
- Standard input stream
Stream of characters ingested by a program, often abbreviated as
stdin
. A common way to send data to a program is to pipe them from the standard output stream of another program. In the below we use theecho
command to send the stringfoo bar baz
to the standard input stream of thewc
command.$ echo "foo bar baz" | wc 1 3 12
- Standard error stream
- Stream of characters, representing error output, emitted by a program.
Commonly viewed in the shell when running a command. Often abbreviated
as
stderr
. - Standard Library
- A set of functionality that comes built-in with the core programming language.
- Standard output stream
- Stream of characters emitted by a program. Commonly viewed in the shell when
running a command. The standard output stream can be redirected using a pipe.
Often abbreviated as
stdout
. - State
- All the information, to which a program has access, at a particular point in time.
- String
- A list of characters used to represent text.
- TDD
- See test-driven development
- Terminal
- Application for accessing a shell, see also shell.
- Test-driven development
Methodology used in software development that makes use of rapid iterations of development cycles. The development cycle includes three steps:
- Write a test
- Write minimal code to make the test pass
- Refactor the code if necessary
- URL
- Unique Resource Location
- Virtual machine
- An operating system running within a hypervisor rather than on the physical computer.
- VM
- See virtual machine.