Users Guide
142 Glossary
variable
A component of a managed object. A temperature
probe, for example, has a variable to describe its
capabilities, its health or status, and certain indexes
that you can use to help you in locating the right
temperature probe.
VCCI
Abbreviation for Voluntary Control Council
for Interference.
VDC
Abbreviation for volt(s) direct current.
VESA
Acronym for Video Electronics Standards Association.
VGA
Abbreviation for video graphics array. VGA and SVGA
are video standards for video adapters with greater
resolution and color display capabilities than previous
standards. To display a program at a specific resolution,
you must install the appropriate video drivers and your
monitor must support the resolution. Similarly, the
number of colors that a program can display depends
on the capabilities of the monitor, the video driver, and
the amount of video memory installed for the
video adapter.
VGA feature connector
On some systems with a built-in VGA video adapter, a
VGA feature connector allows you to add an
enhancement adapter, such as a video accelerator, to
your system. A VGA feature connector can also be
called a VGA pass-through connector.
video adapter
The logical circuitry that provides—in combination with
the monitor—your system's video capabilities. A video
adapter may support more or fewer features than a specific
monitor offers. Typically, a video adapter comes with
video drivers for displaying popular application programs
and operating systems in a variety of video modes.
On some systems, a video adapter is integrated into the
system board. Also available are many video adapter
cards that plug into an expansion-card connector.
Video adapters often include memory separate from
RAM on the system board. The amount of video
memory, along with the adapter's video drivers, may
affect the number of colors that can be simultaneously
displayed. Video adapters can also include their own
coprocessor for faster graphics rendering.
video driver
A program that allows graphics-mode application
programs and operating systems to display at a chosen
resolution with the desired number of colors. A
software package may include some "generic" video
drivers. Any additional video drivers may need to match
the video adapter installed in the system.
video memory
Most VGA and SVGA video adapters include memory
chips in addition to your system's RAM. The amount
of video memory installed primarily influences the
number of colors that a program can display (with the
appropriate video drivers and monitor capabilities).
video mode
Video adapters normally support multiple text and
graphics display modes. Character-based software
displays in text modes that can be defined as
x
columns
by
y
rows of characters. Graphics-based software
displays in graphics modes that can be defined as
x
horizontal by
y
vertical pixels by
z
colors.
video resolution
Video resolution—800 x 600, for example—is expressed
as the number of pixels across by the number of pixels
up and down. To display a program at a specific graphics
resolution, you must install the appropriate video
drivers and your monitor must support the resolution.