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Glossary of Terms

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Malware: malicious software such as virus, trojan horse, spware, adware, and the like that is intended to harm one's system
RAM: Random Access Memory (generally just called memory)
This is usually a power of 2 with the label MB (megabyte) at the end. Examples are 64MB, 256MB, 1024MB (1.0GB), and so on. This is what programs use when the computer is turned on to store program information.
Registry Editor (regedit): The Registry Editor is an advanced tool that enables you to change settings in your system registry, which contains information about how your computer runs. You should not edit your registry unless it is absolutely necessary. Generally, it is best to use Windows controls to change your system settings. If an error is made in the registry, your computer may become nonfunctional. If this happens, you can restore the registry to its previous state when you last successfully started your computer.
Spyware: A general term for a program that surreptitiously monitors your actions. While they are sometimes sinister, like a remote control program used by a hacker, software companies have been known to use spyware to gather data about customers.
\%SYSTEM ROOT%\: This is the general term for the system root. This may be different on different machines and with different operating systems. For example, most up-to-date computers have a system root of C:\Windows\System32\. This is true for Windows XP and 98. Windows 2000 uses C:\WINNT\System32\. C:\ is usually the partition or hard drive where Windows is installed.
Task Manager (taskmgr): a dialog which lists all the currently running tasks on the computer.