Memory Definitions
BIOS
Pronounced "bye-ose," an acronym for basic input/output system. The BIOS is built-in software that determines what a computer can do without accessing programs from a disk. On PCs, the BIOS contains all the code required to control the keyboard, display screen, disk drives, serial communications, and a number of miscellaneous functions.
The BIOS is typically placed in a ROM chip that comes with the computer
(it is often called a ROM BIOS). This ensures that the BIOS will always be available
and will not be damaged by disk failures. It also makes it possible for a…