B52
The working project name of the A500 in 1986.
backdrop
A window placed on a screen such that it is always furthest in the back and cannot be repositioned.
background
A full screen image placed such that all other images appear in front of it.
background noise
Any stray electrical interferences that appear randomly in images or modem transmissions. Noise is often found on analog transmissions and not digital, due to error correction techniques.
backspace
A key of the keyboard used to delete the character directly to the left of the cursor. The BACKSPACE key is located above the RETURN key, and is denoted by an arrow pointing to the left.
backwards compatible
Software or hardware that is designed to work with previous releases or designs.
bad sector
A sector that is damaged or unable to be used. This may be caused due to lack of formatting or damage to the disk surface.
balanced tree
A tree that has the same height for every leaf of the tree, such as an AVL tree or a Splay tree. Balanced trees are often programmed to balance themselves as a new node is added or investigated. These trees are designed to decrease search times and increase performance.
bang
The exclamation character '!', used in C to represent the NOT operator.
bang path
An email address that specifies every computer that an email message will travel through.
BASIC
A language designed for beginners. While not as flexible as languages such as C or assembly, BASIC allows programs to be written very quickly with a smaller likelihood of compiling errors.
BAUD
The rate at which the serial port sends data, often through a modem.
BBS
Bulliten Board System, used by computers to run networks over telephones.
bell
An audible tone produced when an error occurs. May also be produced by pressing CTRL-G in an input stream, if supported.
bevel
A technique used in 3D object modeling which places a rounded off edge or a cut angle at the edges of a 3D object or font.
Bézier curve
A curved line drawn using a desktop publishing program or a 3D modeling program, designed to draw curves using mathematical formulas.
binary
A number system using only 0 and 1.
binary file
A file that contains information that is not easily readable by humans.
binary operation
A function or mathematical operation performed on two variables.
binary tree
A tree whose nodes have either 0, 1, or 2 children.
BIT
The smallest unit of measure of storage space for RAM, ROM, disk drives, or similar devices. A BIT contains either a 0 or 1, denoting ON/OFF or TRUE/FALSE.
BIX
Byte Information Exchange, a pay computer network where Commodore's official Amiga support is.
block
An area of space on a device.
blur
The process of altering an image to remove sharp edges by modifying its surrounding pixels. This causes the image to appear out of focus.
BOB
A blitter object, a small graphical area which can be moved around the screen. Any screen area that a BOB covers is stored in memory and preserved, such that whenever the BOB is moved the underlying screen area is restored. BOBs can be any size and any amount of colors.
Boing!
An Amiga demo designed to run on the A1000 in 1985. The Boing! ball is a red and white checkerboarded sphere that bounces around the screen and casts a shadow.
bones
A technique used in 3D object modeling which places a skeleton within an object, such that certain parts of the object are repositioned when the bone is moved or rotated.
boolean math
The use of FALSE and TRUE in programming, with 0 assigned to FALSE and 1 assigned to TRUE, usable in any operation with only two available outcomes.
boolean modeling
The ability to remove any intersecting pieces of two or more objects by cutting and pasting them with other objects or primitives.
BOOPSI
Basic Object Oriented Programming for Intuition.
boot block
The area of a disk that defines whether the disk is capable of loading itself automatically.
boot menu

A list of devices which can be selected before booting the system.
bounding box

A temporary image drawn onscreen to reflect the area for which the application is operating on. On the Workbench, a ruber-band like bounding box is used to select icons. In desktop publishing, bounding boxes have handles which allow them to resize images. In 3D modeling, they are used to define areas of influence or to set maximum size parameters.
bounding column
A bounding box that extends infintely in one or more directions, as used by Lightwave.
BPS
BITS Per Second, the rate at which data is sent over the serial port or through a modem.
Breadbox
A magazine for Video Toaster enthusiasts, now known as Video Toaster User Magazine.
break
A command or sequence sent to a program in an attempt to halt execution of a routine or program.
brightness
A measure of the intensity of a color, with more vivid colors containing more brightness and duller colors containing less brightness.
broadcast quality
Any video that is capable of being displayed on television, using a given resolution and a large color palette.
BRU
AmigaDOS hard drive backup utility, written by Fred Fish.
brush
An image clipped from a larger image, often by a painting program.
brush warp
The process of fitting an image into an area such that some data is distorted by tightening it it smaller areas and widening it in larger areas.
brush wrap
The process of placing an image on the surface of a three dimensional object such as a sphere or any complicated modeled object.
bubble memory
A type of random access storage chip using magnetic storage bits called "bubbles".
buffer
An area of memory set aside to temporarily store incoming and outgoing data. This allows a fast input stream to keep up with a slow output stream.
bulliten board system
A computer network used over standard telephone lines, accessible with a modem and a terminal program.
bump mapping
A type of texture that creates a 3D surface rendered on a 2D surface.
bus
The data transfer path shared among processors and input devices, such that only one member of the system may use the bus at any given time. A bus consists of lines such as the timing line, the signal request line, and the data lines.
busy
A state in which a device or volume is storing or retrieving data and cannot be tampered with.
busy pointer
The sprite image used to represent when the main pointer cannot be used to control the graphical interface, icons, or gadgets.
byte
A measure of storage space, equaling 8 BITs.