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background processing

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background processing

[′bak‚grau̇nd ′prä·ses·iŋ]
(computer science)
The execution of lower-priority programs when higher-priority programs are not being handled by a data-processing system.
Computer processing that is not interactive or visible on the display screen.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E, Copyright © 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

background processing

Processing in which the program is not visibly interacting with the user. Earlier personal computers used operating systems that ran background tasks only when foreground tasks were idle, such as between keystrokes. Today's multitasking operating systems share time between background and foreground programs. Advanced operating systems on mainframes can prioritize each job.
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References in periodicals archive
-- Background processing that renders both real-time and complex, many-layered timelines without interrupting the editor's work.
Does anyone out there know how to make the background processing choice permanent in Windows 95?
We should encourage them to engage in "background processing"--look at the problem early and then let it mull around in their subconscious while they tend to other things.
In addition to network communication with Unix Mail, the operating system's multitasking with background processing and virtual memory improve productivity.
Background processing can also be requested directly.
Because our focus has always been on performance and stability, we have created a real-time event processing system that handles as many as 1,500 events per second and scales beautifully with hardware to process as many as 5,000 events per second.” The improved background processing systems of Aanval v7 are simpler, more powerful, and more capable than ever before.
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