alias

alias

(1) An alternate name used for identification, such as for naming a field or a file. See CNAME record.

(2) In the Mac, an alias is an icon that points to a program or data file. Aliases can be placed on the desktop or stored in other folders, and double clicking the alias is the same as double clicking the original file's icon. However, deleting an alias does not remove the original file. In Windows, an alias is called a "shortcut."

(3) In Unix/Linux, an alias is a command that points to another command. It is typically used to abbreviate complex commands that are used repeatedly. Unless saved, aliases last only for the current session.

(4) A phony signal created under certain conditions when digitizing voice.

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alias [′ā·lē·əs]

(computer science)

An alternative entry point in a computer subroutine at which its execution may begin, if so instructed by another routine.

An alternative name for a file or device.

(statistics)

Either of two effects in a factorial experiment which cannot be differentiated from each other on the basis of the experiment.

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1.		ALIAS - ALgorIthmic ASsembly language
2.	(operating system)	alias - A name, usually short and easy to remember and type, that is translated into another name or string, usually long and difficult to remember or type. Most command interpreters (e.g. Unix's csh) allow the user to define aliases for commands, e.g. "alias l ls -al". These are loaded into memory when the interpreter starts and are expanded without needing to refer to any file.
3.	(networking)	alias - One of several alternative hostnames with the same Internet address. E.g. in the Unix hosts database (/etc/hosts or NIS map) the first field on a line is the Internet address, the next is the official hostname (the "canonical name" or "CNAME"), and any others are aliases. Hostname aliases often indicate that the host with that alias provides a particular network service such as archie, finger, FTP, or World-Wide Web. The assignment of services to computers can then be changed simply by moving an alias (e.g. www.doc.ic.ac.uk) from one Internet address to another, without the clients needing to be aware of the change.
4.	(file system)	alias - The name used by Apple computer, Inc. for symbolic links when they added them to the System 7 operating system in 1991.