1. {application program}.

	2. {function application}.

<operating system> {Sun Microsystems, Inc.}'s version of the
	{Unix} {operating system}.  As well as the core operating
	system, Solaris inludes networking software, the {Java Virtual
	Machine}, the {CDE}/Desktop that includes an {X11}-based
	{windowing environment} and {graphical user interface}.

	Sun claim that Solaris is not just an operating system but an
	"operating environment".

	Solaris 1.x was a retroactive (marketing?) name for {SunOS}
	4.1.x (where x>=1).

	Solaris 2.x (which is the first version most people call
	"Solaris") includes SunOS5.x, which is an SVR4-derived Unix,
	{OpenWindows} 3.x, and {tooltalk}.

	Version 2.7 ("Solaris 7") was around in 1999-03-02.  Version
	2.8 was released in June 2000.  Current version: 9, as of
	2002-07-15.

	{Home (http://www.sun.com/solaris/)}.

	(2002-07-15)

<programming> One of a sequence of copies of a program, each
	incorporating new modifications.  Each version is usually
	identified by a number, commonly of the form X.Y where X is
	the major version number and Y is the release number.
	Typically an increment in X (with Y reset to zero) signifies a
	substantial increase in the function of the program or a
	partial or total re-implementation, whereas Y increases each
	time the progam is changed in any way and re-released.

	Version numbers are useful so that the user can know if the
	program has changed ({bugs} have been fixed or new functions
	added) since he obtained his copy and the programmer can tell
	if a bug report relates to the current version.  It is thus
	always important to state the version when reporting bugs.
	Statements about compatibility between different software
	components should always say which versions they apply to.

	See {change management}.

	(1997-12-07)

(TOP) An {applications layer} {network} {application} and
	{protocol stack} for {office automation} developed by {Boeing}
	following the {OSI model}.  This {protocol} is very similar to
	{MAP} except at the lowest levels, where it uses {Ethernet}
	({IEEE} {802.3}) rather than {Token Bus} ({IEEE} {802.4}).

<operating system> A character string which tells a program to
	perform a specific action.  Most commands take {arguments}
	which either modify the action performed or supply it with
	input.  Commands may be typed by the user or read from a file
	by a {command interpreter}.  It is also common to refer to
	menu items as commands.

	(1997-06-21)

<storage> These days, usually used synonymously with {Random
	Access Memory} or {Read-Only Memory}, but in the general sense
	it can be any device that can hold {data} in
	{machine-readable} format.

	(1996-05-25)

<programming> The name given in {Smalltalk} and other
	{object-oriented languages} to a procedure or routine
	associated with one or more {classes}.  An {object} of a
	certain class knows how to perform actions, e.g. printing
	itself or creating a new instance of itself, rather than the
	function (e.g. printing) knowing how to handle different types
	of object.

	Different classes may define methods with the same name
	(i.e. methods may be {polymorphic}).  The term "method" is used
	both for a named operation, e.g. "PRINT" and also for the code
	which a specific class provides to perform tha
	t operation.

	Most methods operate on objects that are instances of a
	certain class.  Some object-oriented languages call these
	"object methods" to distinguish then from "{class methods}".

	In {Smalltalk}, a method is defined by giving its name,
	documentation, temporary local variables and a sequence of
	expressions separated by "."s.

	(2000-03-22)

<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)

<programming> With a qualifier, one of a class of
	resource-management bugs that occur when resources are not
	freed properly after operations on them are finished, so they
	effectively disappear (leak out).  This leads to eventual
	exhaustion as new allocation requests come in.

	One might refer to, say, a "window handle leak" in a {window
	system}.

	See {memory leak}, {fd leak}.

	[{Jargon File}]

	(1995-04-18)

<language, architecture> (JVM) A specification for software
	which interprets {Java} programs that have been compiled into
	{byte-codes}, and usually stored in a ".class" file.  The JVM
	{instruction set} is {stack}-oriented, with variable
	instruction length.  Unlike some other instruction sets, the
	JVM's supports {object-oriented} programming directly by
	including instructions for object {method} invocation (similar
	to {subroutine} call in other instruction sets).

	The JVM itself is written in {C} and so can be {ported} to run
	on most {platforms}.  It needs {thread} support and {I/O} (for
	{dynamic class loading}).  The Java byte-code is independent
	of the platform.

	There are also some hardware implementations of the JVM.

	{Specification
	(http://www.javasoft.com/docs/books/vmspec/html/VMSpecTOC.doc.html)}.

	{Sun's Java chip
	(http://news.com/News/Item/0,4,9328,00.html)}.

	[Documentation?  Versions?]

	(2000-01-03)

<programming> (Or "released version", "baseline") A version of
	a piece of software which has been made public (as opposed to
	a version that is in development, or otherwise unreleased).

	A release is either a {major release}, a {revision}, or a
	{bugfix}.

	Pre-release versions may be called {alpha test}, or {beta
	test} versions.

	See {change management}.

	(1996-08-04)

1. <programming> An area of memory used for {dynamic memory
	allocation} where blocks of memory are allocated and freed in
	an arbitrary order and the pattern of allocation and size of
	blocks is not known until {run time}.  Typically, a program
	has one heap which it may use for several different purposes.

	Heap is required by languages in which functions can return
	arbitrary data structures or functions with {free variables}
	(see {closure}).  In {C} functions {malloc} and {free} provide
	access to the heap.

	Contrast {stack}.  See also {dangling pointer}.

	2. <programming> A data structure with its elements partially
	ordered (sorted) such that finding either the minimum or the
	maximum (but not both) of the elements is computationally
	inexpensive (independent of the number of elements), while
	both adding a new item and finding each subsequent
	smallest/largest element can be done in O(log n) time, where n
	is the number of elements.

	Formally, a heap is a {binary tree} with a key in each {node},
	such that all the {leaves} of the tree are on two adjacent
	levels; all leaves on the lowest level occur to the left and
	all levels, except possibly the lowest, are filled; and the
	key in the {root} is at least as large as the keys in its
	children (if any), and the left and right subtrees (if they
	exist) are again heaps.

	Note that the last condition assumes that the goal is finding
	the minimum quickly.

	Heaps are often implemented as one-dimensional {arrays}.
	Still assuming that the goal is finding the minimum quickly
	the {invariant} is

	   heap[i] <= heap[2*i] and heap[i] <= heap[2*i+1] for all i,

	where heap[i] denotes the i-th element, heap[1] being the
	first.  Heaps can be used to implement {priority queues} or in
	{sort} algorithms.

	(1996-02-26)

<character> The space character, {ASCII} 32.

	See {octal forty}.

<file system> An element of data storage in a {file system}.

	The history of computing is rich in varied kinds of files and
	{file systems}, whether ornate (e.g., {Macintosh file system}
	for a well-known case) or deficient (e.g., many simple
	pre-1980s file systems don't allow {directories}).

	However, the prototypical file has these characteristics:

	* It is a single sequence of bytes (but consider {Macintosh}
	{resource forks}).

	* It has a finite length, unlike, e.g. a {Unix} {device}.

	* It is stored in a {non-volatile storage} medium (but see
	{ramdrive}).

	* It exists (nominally) in a {directory}.

	* It has a name that it can be referred to by in file
	operations, possibly in combination with its {path}.

	Additionally, a file system may associate other information
	with a file, such as {permission} bits or other {file
	attributes}; timestamps for file creation, last revision, and
	last access; revision numbers (a` la VMS), and other kinds of
	{magic}.

	Compare: {document}.

	(1997-04-08)