virtual
<jargon, architecture> (Via the technical term virtual memory, probably
from the term "virtual image" in optics) 1. Common alternative to logical; often
used to refer to the artificial objects (like addressable virtual memory larger
than physical memory) created by a computer system to help the system control
access to shared resources.
2. Simulated; performing the functions of something that isn't really there. An
imaginative child's doll may be a virtual playmate.
Opposite of real or physical.
[Jargon File]
(1994-11-30)
Nearby terms:
virgin « virgule « Viron « virtual » virtual
86 mode » virtual address » virtual cache
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