F

FDDI

The Fiber Distributed Data Interface, a 100 Mbps token ring network utilizing optical fiber.

fiber optics

A data transmission medium consisting of fine glass fibers. Light-emitting diodes introduce light into one end of the fiber, and it bounces off the inside of the surface of the fiber until it reaches the other end, where a detector converts the light back into an electrical signal. There are also varieties of fiber, called graded index fibers, in which the light is bent back toward the center when it gets near the surface of the fiber, rather than actually bouncing off the inside of the surface.

file

An ordered collection of data, usually stored on a disk or tape and associated with or created by a particular person.

file server

A computer system equipped with disks or tapes and a program that permits network users to create and store files on the disks or tapes. The persons creating the files can allow other network users to read the files, to read and write in the files, or to have no access at all.

filter

An electronic circuit that allows signals within a given frequency range to pass through the circuit without loss, while suppressing signals outside that range.

firmware

Programs kept in semipermanent storage, such as various types of read-only memory; such programs ware and software . Firmware can be altered, but with difficulty. Contrast with hardware and software .

flag

A program-readable indicator signifying that data are available, that...

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