1. <hardware> {monitor}.

	2. <language> A vector of pointers to {activation records}.
	The Nth element points to the activation record containing
	variables declared at {lexical depth} N.  This allows faster
	access to variables from outer {scopes} than the alternative
	of linked activation records (but most variable accesses are
	either local or global or occasionally to the immediately
	enclosing scope).  Displays were used in some {ALGOL}
	implementations.

	(1996-02-22)

1. <database, information science> A user's (or {agent}'s)
	request for information, generally as a formal request to a
	{database} or {search engine}.

	{SQL} is the most common {database query language}.

	2. <character> {question mark}.

	(1997-04-09)

<theory, programming> (Or "data type") A set of values from
	which a {variable}, {constant}, {function}, or other
	{expression} may take its value.  A type is a classification
	of data that tells the {compiler} or {interpreter} how the
	programmer intends to use it.  For example, the process and
	result of adding two variables differs greatly according to
	whether they are integers, floating point numbers, or strings.

	Types supported by most programming languages include
	{integers} (usually limited to some range so they will fit in
	one {word} of storage), {Booleans}, {floating point numbers},
	and characters.  {Strings} are also common, and are
	represented as {lists} of characters in some languages.

	If s and t are types, then so is s -> t, the type of
	{functions} from s to t; that is, give them a term of type s,
	functions of type s -> t will return a term of type t.

	Some types are {primitive} - built-in to the language, with no
	visible internal structure - e.g. Boolean; others are
	composite - constructed from one or more other types (of
	either kind) - e.g. {lists}, {arrays}, {structures}, {unions}.
	{Object-oriented programming} extends this with {classes}
	which encapsulate both the structure of a type and the
	operations that can be performed on it.

	Some languages provide {strong typing}, others allow {implicit
	type conversion} and/or {explicit type conversion}.

	(2003-12-22)

<World-Wide Web> A {Java} program which can be distributed as
	an attachment in a {World-Wide Web} document and executed by a
	Java-enabled {web browser} such as Sun's {HotJava},
	{Netscape Navigator} version 2.0, or {Internet Explorer}.

	Navigator severely restricts the applet's file system and
	network access in order to prevent accidental or deliberate
	security violations.  Full Java applications, which run
	outside of the browser, do not have these restrictions.

	Web browsers can also be extended with {plug-ins} though these
	differ from applets in that they usually require manual
	installation and are {platform}-specific.  Various other
	languages can now be embedded within {HTML} documents, the
	most common being {JavaScript}.

	Despite Java's aim to be a "write once, run anywhere"
	language, the difficulty of accomodating the variety of
	browsers in use on the Internet has led many to abandon
	client-side processing in favour of {server}-side Java
	programs for which the term {servlet} was coined.

	Merriam Webster "Collegiate Edition" gives a 1990 definition:
	a short application program especially for performing a simple
	specific task.

	(2002-07-12)

<data> A named value or relationship that exists for some or
	all {instances} of some {entity} and is directly associated
	with that instance.

	Examples include the {href} attribute of an {HTML} {anchor}
	element, the columns of a database table considered as
	attributes of each row, and the {members} ({properties} and
	{methods} of an {object} in {OOP}.  This contrasts with the
	contents of some kind of container (e.g. an array), which are
	typically not named.  The contents of an {associative array},
	though they might be considered to be named by their key
	values, are not normally thought of as attributes.

	(2001-02-04)

<software> Instructions for a computer in some programming
	language, often {machine language}.  The word "code" is often
	used to distinguish instructions from {data} (e.g. "The code
	is marked 'read-only'") whereas "{software}" is used in
	contrast with "{hardware}" and may consist of more than just
	code.

	(2000-04-08)

<data, data processing, jargon> /day't*/ (Or "raw data")
	Numbers, {characters}, {images}, or other method of recording,
	in a form which can be assessed by a human or (especially)
	input into a {computer}, stored and {processed} there, or
	transmitted on some {digital channel}.  Computers nearly
	always represent data in {binary}.

	Data on its own has no meaning, only when interpreted by some
	kind of {data processing system} does it take on meaning and
	become {information}.

	People or computers can find patterns in data to perceive
	information, and information can be used to enhance
	{knowledge}.  Since knowledge is prerequisite to wisdom, we
	always want more data and information.  But, as modern
	societies verge on {information overload}, we especially need
	better ways to find patterns.

	1234567.89 is data.

	"Your bank balance has jumped 8087% to $1234567.89" is
	information.

	"Nobody owes me that much money" is knowledge.

	"I'd better talk to the bank before I spend it, because of
	what has happened to other people" is wisdom.

	(1999-04-30)