virtual
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Related to virtual: virtual machine, Virtual pc
virtual
1. Physics being, relating to, or involving a virtual image
2. of or relating to a computer technique by which a person, wearing a headset or mask, has the experience of being in an environment created by the computer, and of interacting with and causing changes in it
3. Physics designating or relating to a particle exchanged between other particles that are interacting by a field of force
Collins Discovery Encyclopedia, 1st edition © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
Virtual
Pertaining to conceptual rather than physical.
Illustrated Dictionary of Architecture Copyright © 2012, 2002, 1998 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved
virtual
(jargon, architecture)(Via the technical term virtual memory, probably from the term "virtual image" in optics)
1. Common alternative to logical; often used to refer to the
artificial objects (like addressable virtual memory larger
than physical memory) created by a computer system to help the
system control access to shared resources.
2. Simulated; performing the functions of something that isn't really there. An imaginative child's doll may be a virtual playmate.
Opposite of real or physical.
2. Simulated; performing the functions of something that isn't really there. An imaginative child's doll may be a virtual playmate.
Opposite of real or physical.
This article is provided by FOLDOC - Free Online Dictionary of Computing (foldoc.org)
virtual
Today the term virtual has become synonymous with "online." However, virtual was originally coined as a feature or state that is simulated in some manner; for example, a "virtual world" is all computer-generated imagery. Virtual describes a condition without boundaries or constraints.It Started with Virtual Memory
The first virtual concept was "virtual memory," in which the contents of RAM are saved to storage and swapped back and forth as needed. Common on every modern computer, virtual memory simulates an unlimited amount of RAM (see virtual memory).
The Virtualized Datacenter
A "virtual machine" is a computer within a computer. The enabler of cloud computing datacenters, each virtual machine contains an operating system that communicates with a control program and not the hardware directly. The hardware is simulated in the control program (see virtual machine). See cloud computing.
Synonyms: Online,Digital and Internet
The word is a complete substitute for "online," "digital" and "Internet." Virtual also means "not physical," for example, "The company's product will be virtual for another year."
MAJOR VIRTUAL TERMS virtual memory virtual machine virtual assistant virtual machine monitor desktop virtualization application virtualization network virtualization OS virtualization server virtualization storage virtualization virtual appliance Java Virtual Machine virtual private cloud VPN (virtual private network) OTHER VIRTUAL TERMS virtual 8086 Mode virtual access point virtual autopsy virtual circuit virtual community virtual companion virtual company virtual connection virtual copy virtual currency virtual data room virtual database virtual datacenter (see datacenter container) virtual desktop services virtual device virtual device driver (see VxD) Virtual Device Interface (see VDI) virtual directory virtual disk virtual DOS machine virtual drive virtual environment Virtual Execution System (see VES) virtual folder virtual function virtual funds virtual greeting card (see e-card) virtual hard drive (see RAM disk) virtual headphones virtual host virtual hypertext virtual image virtual instrument virtual IP address virtual ISP virtual keyboard virtual kidnapping virtual LAN virtual learning virtual library Virtual Machine Manager virtual marketplace virtual mentoring virtual monitor virtual network virtual network computing (see VNC) virtual newscaster Virtual PC Virtual PC for Mac virtual peripheral virtual phone number virtual printer virtual printer port virtual processor virtual radio station virtual reality virtual root virtual routing virtual screen virtual serial port virtual server virtual shopping virtual storage virtual store virtual supercomputer virtual surround sound (see 3D audio) virtual switch virtual tape virtual tape library virtual tape system virtual terminal virtual toolkit virtual traffic lights virtual training virtual voicemail virtual workgroup virtual world virtualization virtualize AMD Virtualization (see AMD-V) VirtualWiFi full virtualization hardware virtualization I/O virtualization paravirtualization hardware virtual memory augmented virtuality (see augmented reality) computer automatic virtual environment (see CAVE) Global Virtual Private Network (see GVPN) Intel Virtualization Technology (see VT) K Virtual Machine (see KVM) Microsoft Virtual Machine Microsoft Virtual Server permanent virtual circuit (see PVC) switched virtual circuit (see SVC)
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