firm·ware

[furm-wair]
noun Computers.
a microprogram stored in ROM, designed to implement a function that had previously been provided in software.

Origin:
1965–70; firm1 + (soft)ware

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
firmware (ˈfɜːmˌwɛə) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
n
computing a fixed form of software programmed into a read-only memory

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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00:10
Firmware is always a great word to know.
So is lollapalooza. Does it mean:
an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle.
an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance.
Etymonline
Word Origin & History

firmware
1968, from firm (adj.) + ending from software.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Slang Dictionary

firmware

/ferm'weir/ n. Embedded software contained in EPROM or flash memory. It isn't quite hardware, but at least doesn't have to be loaded from a disk like regular software. Hacker usage differs from straight techspeak in that hackers don't normally apply it to stuff that you can't possibly get at, such as the program that runs a pocket calculator. Instead, it implies that the firmware could be changed, even if doing so would mean opening a box and plugging in a new chip. A computer's BIOS is the classic example, although nowadays there is firmware in disk controllers, modems, video cards and even CD-ROM drives.
FOLDOC
Computing Dictionary

Firmware definition


Software stored in read-only memory (ROM) or programmable ROM (PROM). Easier to change than hardware but harder than software stored on disk. Firmware is often responsible for the behaviour of a system when it is first switched on. A typical example would be a "monitor" program in a microcomputer which loads the full operating system from disk or from a network and then passes control to it.

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © Denis Howe 2010 http://foldoc.org
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Example sentences
Even better, there will be scores of robots wanted by the police for having not
  paid the bill for their firmware.
Firmware is embedded software that controls hardware.
The firmware upgrade is currently a factory only service.
Updating the carrier settings usually involves flashing the firmware, which
  takes a matter of seconds.
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