Computing Dictionary
input/output definition
programming, operating system (I/O) Communication between a computer and its users, its storage devices, other computers (via a
network) or the outside world. The devices the computer uses to do this are called "
peripherals". What actually counts as I/O depends on what level of detail you are considering, e.g. communication between processors would not be considered I/O when considering a
multiprocessor as a single system.
Important aspects of I/O are
throughput,
latency, and whether the communications is
synchronous or
asynchronous (using some kind of
buffer).
(2003-12-04)