Important Computer Technical Terms

Computers are everywhere, and they’re not leaving any time soon. We deal with computers every day in myriad ways, and they affect almost every aspect of our lives. Computers sort our mail, make sure our packages get delivered, and keep the traffic flowing throughout the world. With computers touching our lives in so many ways, it’s essential to have a good idea of what people are talking about when they discuss them.

This guide looks at the world of computer terminology and lets you in on terms that will help you understand the larger realm of computers and digital technology. You’ll learn about email and Internet terms that you can regularly use to conduct business and personal correspondence and computer terms that deal with system hardware and software. 

Knowing how to speak computer is a crucial skill for the modern age, and you need to stay current to stay competitive. After you finish reading our guide, you’ll be ready to start throwing around computer terms with the best of ‘em.

System and Hardware Technical Terms

At the most basic level, computers are electric-powered yes-no machines. All of the miraculous things that modern computers can do build on that foundation. To get a good understanding of what goes into building and running a computer in all its multi-part glory, you need to know the basic hardware and system terms. Knowing how to discuss what might be wrong with your system is the first step to getting it working properly again.

Data storage is a big part of computing, and you’ll hear lots of terms that deal with that. Memory refers to the amount of Random Access Memory (RAM) in your system, which your computer uses for quick storage and retrieval. 

Meanwhile, Disk and Disk Space refer to your system’s Hard Drive, which provides long-term storage for large programs. 

And to Reboot your system is to interrupt the system power for a moment through either software or hardware to force the system to restart completely. 

Internet and Email Technical Terms

Much of your interaction with computers involves communication and Internet activity. Internet commerce is a massive slice of the modern business approach, and that’s only possible because of computers. The same goes for email, which wouldn’t exist without computers and the World Wide Web. To make sure you keep your mail moving and web pages loading, you need to know the most common computer terms dealing with those technologies.

The most common Internet-based computer term you’ll hear is likely Internet itself, which refers to the myriad connected networks that stretch across the globe and allow us to transmit information almost instantaneously. 

Web Browser is a close second in popularity and is used to reference one of many applications that access the Internet and display web pages. 

Spam has become increasingly popular as email technology has matured and refers to marketing emails meant to attract your notice.

And there you go, friends and neighbors. The first step to getting skilled at computer work is knowing what people are talking about when they discuss computers. We’ve covered the most popular computer technical terms and defined them so that you can speak about your computer and its activities with expertise and confidence.