Windows Vista & XP Glossary: H
hard drive: A disk drive on your PC that can store the greatest amount of information and access it in the quickest manner; therefore, it’s the main source of permanent storage.
hardware: The physical part of a computer — anything you can touch and see, such as the computer console, monitor, keyboard, and mouse.
Hardware Troubleshooter: A Windows Help and Support Center tool that runs users through the most common causes of hardware errors in a question-and-answer format.
Hardware Update Wizard: A Windows tool that can search for and add hardware to the system.
headset: Headphones that include a built-in microphone for online communications and game playing.
hexadecimal: A numbering system based on 16 digits that is often used for graphics.
hibernate: A computer function by which it saves all the computer’s memory (everything the system is doing), then turns the computer off.
hive: A type of Registry entry that contains a number of other Registry entries.
hot key: A keyboard shortcut that opens an application or performs a specific task.
hub: A simple, inexpensive piece of hardware that merely connects a computer network.
Hyper-Threading: A feature of certain Pentium processors that makes one physical CPU appear as two logical CPUs, overlapping two instruction streams in order to achieve a gain in performance.