descriptor

descriptor

[di′skrip·tər]

(computer science)

A word or phrase used to identify a document in a computer-based information storage and retrieval system.

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E, Copyright © 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

descriptor

(operating system)

An integer, string or other small data value which refers to one of several objects allocated to a program by the operating system, usually the kernel. A common example is a Unix file descriptor which is a small integer that identifies an I/O channel. Another example is a reference to an area of memory (e.g. shared memory).

Compare capability.

This article is provided by FOLDOC - Free Online Dictionary of Computing (foldoc.org)

descriptor

(1) A word or phrase that identifies a document in an indexed information retrieval system.

(2) A category name used to identify data.

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