IT Glossary - ITU Online IT Training
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IT Glossary
Key Terms To Know In The IT Industry

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Fixed IP Address

An IP address that remains the same over time, as opposed to a dynamic IP address which can change. Fixed IP addresses are often used for devices that need to be reliably accessible, such as servers.

You will find this term commonly used in Networking

Fixed Wireless

A type of broadband internet access which uses radio signals to connect two fixed locations (e.g., building to building or tower to home) without the need for phone or cable lines. It's a crucial technology in providing internet services to rural areas.

You will find this term commonly used in Networking

Fixed Wireless Access (FWA)

A method of providing internet access to users via wireless mobile network technology rather than through fixed lines or cables. FWA can be an effective broadband solution for rural or hard-to-reach areas where laying cables is not feasible.

You will find this term commonly used in Networking, Internet Service

Fixed-Function Hardware

Hardware components designed to perform a specific function or set of functions, unlike programmable hardware which can be repurposed through software.

You will find this term commonly used in Hardware, Computing

Flaky Test

In software testing, a test that inconsistently passes or fails when no changes have been made to the code, often indicating issues with the test environment or the test itself.

You will find this term commonly used in Software Development, Quality Assurance

Flash BIOS

The process of updating the firmware of a computer's BIOS (Basic Input/Output System). This can provide hardware support for new types of devices, fix bugs, or improve system stability. Flashing the BIOS is a critical operation that should be done with caution.

You will find this term commonly used in Hardware, General IT

Flash Crowd

A sudden surge in traffic to a website or network, often caused by a specific event, leading to potential overloads and service disruptions.

You will find this term commonly used in Networking, Security

Flash Flood

In IT, this term can metaphorically describe a sudden influx of data or traffic that overwhelms a system, similar to a DDoS attack or a surge in user activity that servers are unprepared to handle.

You will find this term commonly used in Networking, Security

Flash Memory

A type of non-volatile storage that can be electronically erased and reprogrammed. It is widely used for storage and transfer of data in devices like USB flash drives, SSDs, and memory cards.

You will find this term commonly used in Hardware, General IT

Flash Memory Controller

A device that manages data stored on flash memory and communicates with the rest of the system. It plays a crucial role in wear leveling, error correction, and managing read and write operations on the flash memory, ensuring data integrity and extending the lifespan of the memory device.

You will find this term commonly used in Hardware, Storage

Flash Memory Erasure

The process of removing all data from flash memory, typically involving resetting all bits to a high state (1). Flash memory must be erased before being reprogrammed because flash memory devices can only directly flip bits from 1 to 0.

You will find this term commonly used in Hardware, Data Storage

Flash Over Provisioning

A technique used in solid-state drives (SSD) where extra capacity is allocated to help manage wear leveling and improve the drive's lifespan and performance.

You will find this term commonly used in Storage, Hardware

Flash Over-The-Air (FOTA)

A technology used to update the firmware of a device wirelessly, without requiring physical access to the device.

You will find this term commonly used in Mobile Development, IoT

Flash Programming

The process of updating or modifying the firmware of flash-memory devices through a software interface.

You will find this term commonly used in Embedded Systems

Flash Storage

A type of non-volatile storage that uses flash memory to store data, even without power. It's faster and more reliable than traditional hard drives.

You will find this term commonly used in Hardware, General IT

Flash Translation Layer (FTL)

Software that manages the placement of data in flash memory. It translates between the logical addresses used by the system software and the physical addresses of the flash memory, handling wear leveling, bad block management, and garbage collection.

You will find this term commonly used in Hardware, General IT

Flash-based Storage

Storage media that use flash memory for data retention. Flash-based storage devices, such as SSDs (Solid State Drives), USB flash drives, and memory cards, offer faster access times and greater durability compared to traditional magnetic hard drives.

You will find this term commonly used in Hardware, Storage

Flash-Crowd Effect

A sudden surge in traffic to a specific website or network, often as a result of an event that prompts a large number of people to access the same digital resources simultaneously.

You will find this term commonly used in Networking, Web Development

Flat File

A simple database system that stores all data in a single file or table. It is called "flat" because it has minimal structure, typically consisting of a row for each record, with fields separated by delimiters.

You will find this term commonly used in General IT, Databases

Flat Management Network

A network design where all nodes communicate with each other without hierarchical routing, often used within data centers.

You will find this term commonly used in Networking

Flat Network

A network design approach where all devices are connected to the same network switch or hub, without hierarchical routing, making them equally accessible to one another. It simplifies configuration but can be less scalable and secure than segmented network designs.

You will find this term commonly used in Networking

Flexbox

A CSS layout model that allows for the arrangement of elements on a page such that they behave predictably when the page layout must accommodate different screen sizes and display devices.

You will find this term commonly used in Web Development

Flexibility in Design

The principle of designing systems, software, or architectures to easily accommodate changes or expansions in functionality without major overhauls.

You will find this term commonly used in Software Development, Systems Design

Flip Chip Packaging

A semiconductor packaging technique where the chip is "flipped" so that the active area is facing down towards the printed circuit board (PCB). This allows for shorter interconnects, improved performance, and reduced size.

You will find this term commonly used in Hardware, Electronics

Flip-flop

A digital electronic circuit used to store a binary state, being a basic building block of memory and sequential logic circuits. Flip-flops can hold a single bit of data and are used in various applications, including registers, counters, and memory devices.

You will find this term commonly used in Hardware, Electronics

Floating Data

Data collected from mobile devices and other non-fixed sources that can be used for dynamic, real-time applications, such as traffic management systems.

You will find this term commonly used in AI, Data Analysis

Floating IP

An IP address that can be dynamically reassigned to any node in a network or cloud environment. This flexibility is useful for failover, high availability, and mobile IP scenarios, ensuring services remain accessible even in the event of a node failure.

You will find this term commonly used in Networking, Cloud Computing

Floating License

A software licensing approach where a limited number of licenses for a software application are shared among a larger number of users over time. When an active user closes the application, the license becomes available for another user.

You will find this term commonly used in Software Development, Management

Floating Point

A method of representing an approximation of real numbers in a way that can support a wide range of values. The term is derived from the fact that a number's decimal point can "float"; that is, it can be placed anywhere relative to the significant digits of the number.

You will find this term commonly used in Software Development, General IT

Floating Point Representation

A method of representing real numbers in a way that can support a wide range of values. The IEEE Standard for Floating-Point Arithmetic (IEEE 754) is a widely-used standard that defines the format for floating-point numbers, operations, and rounding behavior.

You will find this term commonly used in Software Development, Hardware

Floating-Point Unit (FPU)

A specialized part of a computer's CPU designed to perform operations on floating-point numbers, which are numbers with decimal points.

You will find this term commonly used in Computing, Hardware

FLOPS (Floating Point Operations Per Second)

A measure of computer performance, especially in fields of scientific calculations that make heavy use of floating-point calculations, indicative of the number of floating-point operations that can be performed by a computer in one second.

You will find this term commonly used in Hardware, General IT, AI

FLOPS Efficiency

A measure of a computer's performance in executing floating-point operations per second, relative to its maximum theoretical performance.

You will find this term commonly used in Computing, Performance Analysis

Flow Analysis

The study of data flows within a system or process, often used in software engineering and information systems to identify the movement of information between components and optimize processes for efficiency and security.

You will find this term commonly used in Software Development, Networking

Flow Control

A technique for managing the pace of data transmission between two nodes to prevent a fast sender from overwhelming a slow receiver.

You will find this term commonly used in Networking

Flow Control Mechanism

Techniques used in networking to prevent data congestion by controlling the pace of data transmission between two or more devices.

You will find this term commonly used in Networking

Flow Control Protocol

A set of rules governing how much data can be sent and how fast it can be sent over a network or communication channel. Flow control protocols prevent data overflow at the receiver by managing the data transmission rate.

You will find this term commonly used in Networking, Telecommunications

Flow Control Window

In computer networking, a technique used in TCP/IP to control the amount of data that can be sent before requiring an acknowledgment, preventing network congestion.

You will find this term commonly used in Networking

Flow Cytometry

A technology that is used to analyze the physical and chemical characteristics of particles in a fluid as it passes through at least one laser. While not IT-exclusive, its data analysis applications are significant in bioinformatics.

You will find this term commonly used in Bioinformatics

Flow Metering

The measurement of the amount of data that passes through a network interface over a given period of time.

You will find this term commonly used in Networking, System Monitoring

Flow Programming

A programming paradigm that emphasizes the application's logic as a series of transformations on data streams or "flows," making it particularly suited for data processing and parallel computing.

You will find this term commonly used in Software Development, AI

Flow-based Programming

A programming paradigm that defines applications as networks of "black box" processes, which exchange data across predefined connections by message passing. These processes can be reconnected easily to form different applications without modifying the internal logic.

You will find this term commonly used in Software Development

Flowchart

A diagram that represents a workflow or process, showing the steps as boxes of various kinds, and their order by connecting them with arrows. It's a useful tool in both designing new processes and improving existing ones.

You will find this term commonly used in General IT, Software Development

Flowchart Software

Software used to create flowcharts, which are diagrams that represent a process or algorithm. They are useful for visualizing complex processes and are widely used in business analysis, software engineering, and process documentation.

You will find this term commonly used in Software Development

Flowcharting

A method of visually representing algorithms, workflows, or processes using symbols and arrows to show the flow of control. Flowcharts are used in software development for planning, documenting, and communicating complex processes in a clear and understandable way.

You will find this term commonly used in Software Development

Fluent Interface

A method of coding that provides more readable code, often used in object-oriented languages to implement method chaining.

You will find this term commonly used in General IT, Software Development

Fluid Dynamics Simulation

The use of computational algorithms to simulate the flow of fluids. It's not strictly an IT term but is used in computational fluid dynamics software for simulations in engineering.

You will find this term commonly used in General IT, Software Development

Fluid Layout

A web design approach where layout dimensions are specified in relative units (such as percentages), which allows the design to adapt to the viewing environment, providing better accessibility and user experience across different devices.

You will find this term commonly used in Software Development

Flushing DNS

The process of clearing the DNS cache, removing all the information that your computer has stored regarding website names and their corresponding IP addresses.

You will find this term commonly used in Networking, Security

Flutter

An open-source UI software development kit created by Google. It's used to develop applications for Android, iOS, Linux, Mac, Windows, Google Fuchsia, and the web from a single codebase.

You will find this term commonly used in Software Development

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