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Technical terms you need to know

Adapter
A device that serves as an interface between the system unit connector and another device that is attached to it. (typically another connector)

ADC
Apple Display Connector.

Bandwidth
In the digital domain, bandwidth is the data rate measured in bits per secon (Bps). For example:1000 million bits per second is 1000 Mbps or 1 Gbps.

CAT-5E
Category 5 cable, commonly known as CAT-5, is an unshielded twisted pair cable designed for high signal integrity. Supports speeds up to 1000 megabits per second.

Component
The output of a video device (such as a DTV set top box) or the input of a DTV receiver or monitor consisting of 3 primary colour signals: red, green and blue that together convey all necessary picture information.

Converter
A device that converts one standard to another.

DDC
Short form for display Data Channel: it is a VESA standard for communication between a monitor an a video adapter.

DDWG
Digiatal Display Working Group DDWG: the creators of the DVI specification.

Distribution Amplifier
A device that takes one input and amplifies and transmits the video signal to multiple outputs.

Dolby Digital
This is the digital surround sound technology used in movie theatres and upscale home theatre systems to enhance audio.

DTS
Digital Theatre Systems sound: Discrete 8.1 channel surround system similar but not the same as Dolby
Digital. Dolby Digital is the DTV standard, but DTS competes with it on DVD and in movie theatres.

Dual Link DVI
DVI (Digital Visual Interface) standard to support resolution up to 3840 x 2400.

DVI
Digital Visual Interface: a digital video standard established by the Digital Display Working Group which was designed to carry uncompressed digital video signals to a display. DVI-D is digital only, for both single link and dual link configurations. DVI-I contains both analog and digital, for single and dual link configurations. DVI-A is analog only.

EDID
Extended Display Identification Data: a VESA (Video Electronics Standards Association) standard data structure provided by the monitor or display to the source. Some of the EDID data format includes display monitor ID, model, manufacture date, serial number, max display size, max resolution, and more.

EDTV
Enhanced DefinitionTelevision: although not considered high-definition (HD), EDTV sets use progressive scan (480p or 576p) which is relatively better quality than SDTV resolution.

Extender
A device that allows extension of the original standard at a distance away.

Fiber Optic
Light transmission through optical fibers for communication or signaling.

HDCP
High-Bandwidth Digital Content Protection: created by Intel, HDCP is used with HDTV signals over DVI and
HDMI connections and on D-Theatre D-VHS recordings to prevent unauthorizedduplication of copywritten material.

HDMI
The High-definition Multi-media Interface (HDMI) is an industry supported, uncompressed, all-digital audio/video interface.

HDMI 1.3
HDMI specification version released on June 2006 that features increased single link bandwidth to 340 MHz (10.2Gbps), Deep Colour billion colour support, increased resolution, higher frame rates (up to120Hz) for smoother motion, Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio lossless audio formats, improved lip sync correction, and broader xvYCC colour space support (enables 1.8 times as many colours as existing HDTV signals).

HD-SDI
High Definition Serial Digital Interface: This standard transmits audio and video over a single coaxial cable with a data rate of 1.485 Gbit/s.

HDTV
High-Definition Television. The high-resolution subset of the DTV system. A 16:9 image with twice the horizontal and vertical resolution of our previous system, accompanied by 5.1 channels of digital audio.

IEEE 1394a
Cabling technology for transferring data to and from digital devices at high speed. Also known as IEEE 1394.

IR remote
Wireless transmission using infrared light waves.

KVM
Short for keyboard, video, and mouse.

LC
A standard type of optical fiber termination. The small form factor LC connector was originally developed by Lucent Technologies for Telco networks.

LCD
Liquid Crystal Display: a display that consists of two polarising transparent panels and a liquid crystal surface sandwiched between.

NTSC
NTSC is the acronym that stands for “National Television Systems Committee” and the name of the current analog transmission standard used in the US.

PAL
Phase Alternation Line (PAL) is the analog television display standard that is used in Europe and certain countries.

Pixel
A single illuminated point on a display.

PS/2
Aport type developed by IBM for the purpose of connecting a keyboard or mouse to a PC.

Repeater
A device to boost original signals transmitted over a long copper cable.

Resolution
The number of phosphur points or pixels the display can support. A higher resolution results in a much sharper and clearer video image.

RS-232
Recommended Standard 232: the standard for communication through PC serial ports.

Scaler
A device that takes an input signal at one resolution and scales it to another resolution without degrading the original.

SCART
A 21 pin connector that is used to connect analog audio and video equipment, commonly used in Europe.

SDTV
Standard Definition Television: SDTV sets receive a broadcast signal resolution of 480 interlaced lines (480i), which is inferior to EDTV (720p, 1080i, and 1080p).

Sink
An industry term used to describe devices which receive electrical signals and output these signals as video, audio, or both. For example: computer monitors, HDTV, audio receivers.

Source
An industry term used to describe devices where the electrical signals are being transmitted from. For example: HD-DVD/ Blu-Ray players, video game consoles, and MP3 players.

SPDIF
SPDIF is a digital interface designed to enable digital equipment to transfer digital information with minimal loss.

Splitter
A device that takes one input and splits it into mutiple outputs.

Switcher
A device that takes multiple input sources into one output display.

TOSlink
Toshiba Optical Link: commonly used to refer to optical digital cables.

USB
Universal Serial Bus: an external peripheral interface standard for communication between a computer and external peripherals over a cable using bi-serial transmission.

VESA
Video Electronic Standards Association: a consortium of manufacturers formed to establish and maintain industry wide standards for video cards and monitors.

VGA
Video Graphics Array: a standard for graphics displays, implying a resolution of 640 x 480 pixels, commonly
used to describe VESA standard resolutions.

Wireless
Any system or device that transmits signals by electromagnetic waves.