VGD Ch 6 - Game Systems, Personal Computers, and Hardware (Mrs Lynch)
Resistance
what causes heat in electrical circuits
Optical disk drive (ODD)
Type of optical disc used by Nintendo that is similar to a DVD.
UAV
Unmanned aerial vehicle
Competitive advantage for the Wii?
User interface
Niche market
Very small or narrow market segment.
How does the Wii remote send information to the console?
Via Bluetooth technology
Graphics
Visual images seen on the display screen.
Which generation 7 console has the lowest computing power?
Wii
Which generation 7 console reportedly earns the most money on each console sold for the manufacturer?
Wii
Bluetooth
Wireless technology that relays information via radio frequency signal.
Dedicated Gaming Consoles
Xbox 360, PS3, Wii
Generation 7 game consoles
Xbox 360, Play Station 3, Wii
Niche Market
a small or narrow market of similar potential customers
GPU
advanced piece of computer hardware that creates realistic displays
Emulator
creates a lookalike, play-alike environment
Dedicated
how a game console is engineered for the primary purpose of playing video games
Technology Transfer
how experimental game technology is used in other products
Barrier to entry
how something prevents competitors from joining in the same market
Sony
manufactures Play Station 3
Nintendo
manufactures Wii
Microsoft
manufactures Xbox 360
FLOPS
measurement used to determine computer performance
Lamp
provides the lighting for a game scene
Wii
the best-selling generation 7 game console by the end of 2009
Pixel Shading
the depth effect controls how objects farther from the light source get darker
Accelerometer
the feature of a Wii remote that reads how fast the player moves the controller
Systems operations
the function of the CPU that controls the traffic of information
GPU
the part of the video game technology that is used in other products
User Interface
the part of video game technology that is used in a laparoscopic-surgery simulator
Flash Memory
the part of video game technology that is used in handheld devices
Market Share
the percentage of the total market sales for a single company or product
Red Ring of Death
the phenomenon that occurred due to overheating of the processor inside of the Xbox 360
Porting
the process of making the same game play on consoles made by different manufactures
Cache
the type of memory that is located closest to the processor
Graphics
the visual images that are projected on the screen
CELL
type of computer chip architecture used in PS3
Parallel
type of processing that allows for multiple program function to run at the same time
CELL processor architecture
Advanced computer processor design used in the PS3.
Laser burn
Burned spot on an optical disc that occurs when the disc gets too close to the laser or the disc stops spinning allowing the laser to stay in the same place for too long.
CPU
Central Processing Unit
What type of condition occurs when a dart touches the balloon in a "balloon pop" game?
Collision
Red ring of death
Colloquial phrase for a broken Xbox 360 that displays a red ring around the power button.
Competitive advantage for the Play Station 3
Computing Power
Porting
Converting computer code from one system to work on a different system.
Xbox
First game console produced by Microsoft; became a major player in the market.
Competitive advantage for the Xbox 360?
First to market
Unified shader
GPU attempts to move the vertices and shade pixels at the same time through the same processor.
PlayStation 3 (PS3)
Generation 7 video game console manufactured by Sony.
Pits
Grooves that hold data on an optical disc, like a CD, DVD, or Blu-Ray disc.
3D accelerator graphics card
Hardware in the computer that controls the display and enables 3D graphics to be displayed.
Blu-Ray
High-density data disc that is read by a narrow-beam, blue laser.
Technology transfer
How experimental gaming technology is later used in mainstream products.
System operations
How information is transported between the parts of the user interface, computer system, and video display.
Logic statement
IF and THEN programming to determine an action/reaction relationship in a game.
Lamp
Imaginary bright spot in a game that projects virtual light in a single direction.
Virtual light source
Imaginary lamp in a scene that projects light in a single direction to cause light/dark shades on objects and cast shadows for the illusion of depth.
SPE
In the PS3, the eight mini processors that help with parallel processing
Nanometers
Measurement equal to 1/1,000,000,000th of a meter.
Random-access memory flash
Memory chip that can be written to and read from.
Flash memory
Memory chip that retains stored information even when power is turned off.
Cache memory
Memory modules located very close to the processor in the computer.
Wii remotes
Motion-based controllers used by the Nintendo Wii; nicknamed Wiimote.
Which game console first used random-access flash memory?
Nintendo 64
How many nanometers are in one meter?
One billion
Pits
Optical discs, like DVDs, have information written to the disk in this
Which generation 7 console can play Blu-Ray discs?
PS3
Which generation 7 console has the highest computing power?
PS3
Which generation 7 console reportedly loses the most money on each console sold for the manufacturer?
PS3
Which generation 7 console can play DVDs?
PS3, Xbox 360, Genesis
Accelerometer
Part of the Wii controller that reads how fast the remote moves.
Market share
Percentage of the total market in terms of unit sales held by a single company or product.
Parallel processing
Performing two or more computer operations at the same time.
Dedicated
Performs a special or specific function.
PC
Personal Computer
PC gaming
Playing games on a personal computer instead of a dedicated game console.
PCB
Printed Circuit Board
Barrier to entry
Resources and technology used by existing firms that are difficult to obtain by others who would want to compete in the market.
Emulator
Simulated game environment that has a look-alike and play-alike feel of the original game environment.
Synergistic processing elements (SPE)
Small processors used in CELL architecture to enable parallel processing.
Pixel Shading
The GPU function that requires a virtual light source
Which field is the heaviest user of video game technology
The Military
