27-letter words containing a, u, n, c, i, e
- inter-process communication — (programming, operating system) (IPC) Exchange of data between one process and another, either within the same computer or over a network. It implies a protocol that guarantees a response to a request. Examples are Unix sockets, RISC OS's messages, OS/2's Named Pipes, Microsoft Windows' DDE, Novell's SPX and Macintosh's IAC. Although IPC is performed automatically by programs, an analogous function can be performed interactively when users cut and paste data from one process to another using a clipboard.
- internal-combustion engines — an engine of one or more working cylinders in which the process of combustion takes place within the cylinders.
- internet architecture board — (IAB) The technical body that oversees the development of the Internet suite of protocols. It has two task forces: the Internet Engineering Task Force and the Internet Research Task Force. "IAB" previously stood for Internet Activities Board.
- internet foundation classes — (language, library, programming, standard) (IFC) A library of classes used in the creation of Java applets with GUIs. Created by Netscape, the Internet Foundation Classes provide GUI elements, as well as classes for Applications Services, Security, Messaging, and Distributed Objects. The IFC code, which is exclusively Java, is layered on top of the Java Abstract Windowing Toolkit (AWT), thus preserving platform independence. The AWT and IFC collectively form the Java Foundation Classes, which provide a standardised framework for developing powerful Java applications.
- language acquisition device — a hypothesized innate mental faculty present in infants that enables them to construct and internalize the grammar of their native language on the basis of the limited and fragmentary language input to which they are exposed. Abbreviation: LAD.
- link state routing protocol — (networking, communications) A routing protocol such as OSPF which permits routers to exchange information with one another about the reachability of other networks and the cost or metric to reach the other networks. The cost/metric is based on number of hops, link speeds, traffic congestion, and other factors as determined by the network designer. Link state routers use Dijkstra's algorithm to calculate shortest (lowest cost) paths, and normally update other routers with whom they are connected only when their own routing tables change. Link state routing is an improvement over distance-vector routing protocols such as RIP which normally use only a single metric (such as hop count) and which exchange all of their table information with all other routers on a regular schedule. Link state routing normally requires more processing but less transmission overhead.
- linux documentation project — (project) (LDP) A team of volunteers developing documentation for the Linux operating system. The LDP aims to handle all of the issues of Linux documentation, ranging from on-line documentation to printed manuals, covering topics such as installing, using, and running Linux. The LDP has no central organisation; anyone can join in.
- make someone's acquaintance — When you make someone's acquaintance, you meet them for the first time and get to know them a little.
- master of the queen's music — (in Britain when the sovereign is female) a court post dating from the reign of Charles I. It is an honorary title and normally held by an established English composer
- military-industrial complex — a network of a nation's military force together with all of the industries that support it.
- mongolian people's republic — a republic in E central Asia, in N Mongolia. About 600,000 sq. mi. (1,500,000 sq. km). Capital: Ulan Bator.
- monoalphabetic substitution — a system of substitution that uses only one cipher alphabet in a cryptogram so that each plaintext letter is always represented by the same cipher.
- multiple document interface — (programming) (MDI) The ability of an application program to show windows giving views of more than one document at a time. The opposite is Single Document Interface (SDI).
- national insurance benefits — benefits provided as a result of payments to national insurance, such a state pension, sick pay, etc
- national science foundation — an independent agency of the executive branch, created in 1950, that promotes and supports research and education in the sciences. Abbreviation: NSF.
- natural language processing — (artificial intelligence) (NLP) Computer understanding, analysis, manipulation, and/or generation of natural language. This can refer to anything from fairly simple string-manipulation tasks like stemming, or building concordances of natural language texts, to higher-level AI-like tasks like processing user queries in natural language.
- network application support — (networking) (NAS) DEC's approach to applications integration across a distributed multivendor environment.
- neurolinguistic programming — a therapy designed to alter behaviour by reprogramming unconscious patterns of thought
- nude descending a staircase — a painting (1912) by Marcel Duchamp.
- open scripting architecture — (OSA) A CIL approach to the coexistence of multiple scripting systems.
- oscillating universe theory — the theory that the universe is oscillating between periods of expansion and collapse
- peripheral technology group — (company) A national and international distributor of IBM PC-to-Unix and Internet connectivity products. They cater for resellers, dealers and VARs and are one of the top Seagate and Micropolis distributors in the US. Address: Eden Prairie, MN, USA (a suburb of Minneapolis). Eden Prairie ("Silicon Prairie") is the home of Digi International, Ontrack, Open Systems, LaserMaster, Best Buy, and others.
- personal accident insurance — accident which covers personal accidents
- polyalphabetic substitution — a system of substitution that mixes together a number of cipher alphabets in a cryptogram so that each plaintext letter is represented by a cipher that repeatedly changes.
- product liability insurance — Product liability insurance is insurance for a producer or supplier of goods against injury to third parties or loss of or damage to their property that is caused by a fault in the goods.
- protestant episcopal church — Episcopal Church in America.
- public broadcasting service — a network of independent, noncommercial television stations that operate with public and government funding instead of with revenues from advertising. Abbreviation: PBS.
- public service broadcasting — publicly-funded broadcasting
- publius-licinius-valerianus — (Publius Licinius Valerianus) died a.d. c260, Roman emperor 253–60.
- respiratory syncytial virus — a myxovirus causing infections of the nose and throat, esp in young children. It is thought to be involved in some cot deaths
- rough endoplasmic reticulum — a network of tubular membranes within the cytoplasm of the cell, occurring either with a smooth surface (smooth endoplasmic reticulum) or studded with ribosomes (rough endoplasmic reticulum) involved in the transport of materials.
- rufus daniel isaacs reading — Rufus Daniel Isaacs, 1st Marquis of, 1860–1935, Lord Chief Justice of England 1913–21; viceroy of India 1921–26.
- sea-launched cruise missile — a cruise missile launched by surface ships or submarines against land or sea targets and equipped with nuclear or conventional warheads, with a range of 2210 miles (3556 km). Abbreviation: SLCM, S.L.C.M.
- senile macular degeneration — a type of macular degeneration that is one of the leading causes of blindness in the elderly and in which tiny blood vessels grow into the macula of the retina, obscuring vision. Abbreviation: SMD.
- stanford research institute — Former name of SRI International.
- synchronous optical network — (networking) (SONET) A broadband networking standard based on point-to-point optical fibre networks. SONET will provide a high-bandwidth "pipe" to support ATM-based services. The SONET standard will establish a digital hierarchical network with a consistent worldwide transport scheme. SONET has been designed to take advantage of fibre, in contrast to the plain old telephone system which was designed for copper wires. SONET carries circuit-switched data in frames at speeds in multiples of 51.84 megabits per second (Mbps) up to 48 * 51.84 Mbps = 2.488 gigabits per second. Since SONET uses multiple channels to transmit data, each SONET frame can be considered to be a two-dimensional table of bytes that is 9 rows high and 90 columns deep. For every OC-n level, SONET can transmit n number of frames at a given time. Groups of frames are called superframes. SONET is the American version of SDH.
- tandem application language — Transaction Application Language
- to fight a rearguard action — if someone is fighting a rearguard action or mounting a rearguard action, they are trying very hard to prevent something from happening, even though it is probably too late for them to succeed
- to stop dead in your tracks — If someone or something stops you in your tracks, or if you stop dead in your tracks, you suddenly stop moving because you are very surprised, impressed, or frightened.
- united service organization — a private, non-profit organization that provides morale and recreational services to members of the US military, with programmes in 140 centres worldwide
- united states naval academy — an institution founded in 1845 at Annapolis, Maryland, for the training of U.S. naval officers.
- universal computer protocol — (communications, protocol) An earlier form of External Machine Interface (EMI).
- universal naming convention — (networking) (UNC) The type of file system path used in Microsoft Windows networking to completely specify a directory on a file server. The basic format is: \\servername\sharename where "servername" is the hostname or IP address of a network file server, and "sharename" is the name of a shared directory on the server. This is related to the conventional MS-DOS "C:\windows" style of directory name. E.g. \\server1\dave might be set up to point to C:\users\homedirs\dave on a server called "server1". It is possible to execute a program using this convention without having to specifically link a drive, by running: \\server\share\directory\program.exe The undocumented DOS command, TRUENAME can be used to find out the UNC name of a file or directory on a network drive. Even Microsoft don't know whether UNC stands for "Universal Naming Convention" or "Uniform Naming Convention", both appear on their website, sometimes withing the same document, but with a preference for "Universal".
- university grants committee — an advisory committee of the British government, which advised on the distribution of grant funding amongst British universities. It was in existence from 1919 until 1989. Its functions have now largely been taken over by the higher education funding councils (HEFCE (England), SHEFC (Scotland), HEFCW (Wales), and the Department for Employment and Learning in Northern Ireland)
- virtual machine environment — (operating system) (VME) ICL's mainframe operating system.
- weapons of mass destruction — nuclear, biological and chemical arms
- xml user-interface language — (language) (XUL) An XML-based language created for the Mozilla browser for development of cross-platform user interfaces. XUL supports input controls such as textboxes and checkboxes, toolbars, menus, dialogs, trees, keyboard shortcuts, and more.
- you can't have it both ways — If someone says that you can't have it both ways, they are telling you that you have to choose between two things and cannot do or have them both.