Computer terminals definition of Computer terminals in the Free Online Encyclopedia.

computer terminal, a device that enables a computer computer, device capable of performing a series of arithmetic or logical operations. A computer is distinguished from a calculating machine, such as an electronic calculator , by being able to store a computer program (so that it can repeat its operations and make
..... Click the link for more information. to receive or deliver data. Computer terminals vary greatly depending on the format of the data they handle. For example, a simple early terminal comprised a typewriter keyboard for input and a typewriter printing element for alphanumeric alphanumeric (ăl'fən
..... Click the link for more information. output. A more recent variation includes the keyboard for input and a televisionlike screen to display the output. The screen can be a cathode-ray tube cathode-ray tube, special-purpose electron tube in which electrons are accelerated by high-voltage anodes, formed into a beam by focusing electrodes, and projected toward a phosphorescent screen that forms one face of the tube.
..... Click the link for more information. or a gas plasma panel, the latter involving an ionized gas (sandwiched between glass layers) that glows to form dots which, in turn, connect to form lines. Such displays can present a variety of output, ranging from simple alphanumerics to complex graphic images used as design tools by architects and engineers. Portable terminals frequently use liquid crystal liquid crystal, liquid whose component particles, atoms or molecules, tend to arrange themselves with a degree of order far exceeding that found in ordinary liquids and approaching that of solid crystals.
..... Click the link for more information. displays because of their low power requirements. The terminals of pen-based computers pen-based computer, computer that uses pattern-recognition software to enable it to accept handwriting as a form of input. A stylus, which may contain special electronic circuitry, is used to write on the computer display or on a separate tablet.
..... Click the link for more information. use a stylus to input handwriting on the screen. Touch-sensitive terminals accept input made by touching a pressure-sensitive panel in front of a menu displayed on the screen. Other familiar types of terminals include store checkout systems that deliver detailed printed receipts and use laser laser [acronym for light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation], device for the creation, amplification, and transmission of a narrow, intense beam of coherent light .
..... Click the link for more information. scanners to read the bar codes bar code, computer coding system that uses a printed pattern of lines or bars to identify products, mail and packages, customer accounts, and the like. Bar codes are read by optically scanning the printed pattern and using a computer program to decode the pattern.
..... Click the link for more information. on packages, and automatic teller machines in banks.

Bibliography

See L. Tijerina, Video Display Terminal Workstation Ergonomics (1984).

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Bibliography

computer terminal
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