Closed Thread 
Results 1 to 1 of 1
  1. #1
    JU1CYFRU1T's Avatar
    JU1CYFRU1T is offline Founding Member - Awesome Guy
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    San Diego, Ca
    Posts
    1,352

    Default Acronyms & Definitions


    Tip - I type the item I'm looking for, followed by "acronym" into my favourite search engine and it usually gets me the answer.

    Here's a link to HDTV Acronyms

    Here's a link to Chatroom Acronyms

    Here's another good Acronym Finder

    Before we get to the acronyms, here are a couple of useful definitions:

    macroblocking - The "squares" that you sometimes see on digital programming (HD or SD) when there is too much compression of the signal, or a lot of movement on screen. (Created by MPEG limitations (compression) in HD and compression on SD digital). (sometimes described as a "game of Tetris" on your TV, when you're not playing the game... )These do not go away with increased signal strength. See the sample image of macroblocking at the bottom of this post.

    pixellation- The "squares" that you can sometimes see on digital channels, but they differ from macroblocking. These are "colourful" (red, green or black etc "very hard" blotches) caused by a borderline signal strength. These go away with increased signal strength, the picture goes away with decreased signal strength.


    Some of the more popular acronyms:

    8VSB - 8-level Vestigial Sideband Modulation (ATSC standard for OTA)
    AC-3 - Audio Code 3
    ADC - Analog to Digital Conversion
    AM - Amplitude Modulation
    AR - Acoustic Research
    ATSC - Advanced Television Systems Committee
    BEV - Bell ExpressVu
    bps - bits per second (also b/s)
    Bps - Bytes per second (8 bits per Byte)
    BNC - Bayonet Neill-Concelman (A connector named after the two gentlemen)
    BUD - Big Ugly/Useful Dish
    CATV - Cable TV (Community Antenna TV)
    CAB - Canadian Association of Broadcasters
    CD - Compact Disc
    CD-R - Recordable CD
    CD-ROM - Computer Data CD
    CD-RW - Rewritable CD
    CG - Computer Graphics
    CPU - Central Processing Unit
    CRT - Cathode Ray Tube (Direct View TV)
    CRTC: Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
    DAB - Digital Audio Broadcasting
    DAC - Digital to Analog Conversion
    DAT - Digital Audio Tape
    dB - decibel (a measure of sound level, loudness)
    DBS - Direct Broadcast Satellite
    DD - Dolby Digital
    DIY - Do it Yourself
    DLP - Digital Light Processing (Texas Instruments)
    DMD - Digital Micromirror Device (used in DLPs)
    DSP - Digital Signal Processing
    DTS - Digital Theater System (similar to Dolby Digital)
    DTV - Digital Television
    DVD - Digital Video/Versatile Disc
    DVI - Digital Video/Visual Interface
    DVR - Digital Video Recorder (same as a PVR)
    ECM - Electronic Counter Measures (satellite receiver disable)
    EDTV - Enhanced Definition TeleVision (480P)
    EPG - Electronic Programme Guide (see also IPG)
    FAQ - Frequently Asked Question(s)
    FM - Frequency Modulation
    GTA - Greater Toronto Area
    HBO - Home Box Office (US Movie Channel)
    HD - High Definition (720P, 1080i, 1080P)
    HDD - Hard Disk Drive
    HDCP - High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection
    HDMI - High-Definition Multimedia Interface
    HDTV - High Definition Television
    HTIB - Home Theater In a Box (DD5.1 Receiver/Speakers and/or DVD)
    HTPC - Home Theatre Personal Computer
    Hz - Hertz (cycles per second) kilo (1,000) mega (1,000,000), giga, etc.
    IEEE - Institute of Electrical & Electronic Engineers
    IEEE 1394 - Firewire, I-Link interface
    IPG - Interactive Programme Guide (see also EPG)
    IR - Infrared (used for remote controls)
    IRD - Integrated Receiver Decoder
    IRE - Institute of Radio Engineers
    ISF - Imaging Science Foundation (TV Calibration)
    IT - Information Technology
    LCD - Liquid Crystal Display
    LCoS - Liquid Crystal on Silicon
    LD - Laserdisc
    LED - Light Emitting Diode
    LFE - Low Frequency Effects (signal for subwoofer)
    LNB - Low Noise Block (Downconverter for Satellite Dishes)
    MD - Minidisc
    MP3 - MPEG-1 Layer 3 audio encoding
    MPEG - Moving Picture Experts Group
    NAB - National Association of Broadcasters
    NTSC - National Television Systems Committee
    OAR - Original Aspect Ratio (1.33:1, 1.85:1, 2.35:1 are some standards)
    OFC - Oxygen Free Copper
    OFHC - Oxygen Free High Conductivity Copper
    OS - Operating System
    OTA - Over The Air
    P&S - Pan and Scan
    PAL - Phase Alternation Line (European TV)
    PAP - Picture alongside Picture
    PCM - Pulse Code Modulation
    PIP - Picture in Picture
    POP - Picture outside of Picture (side by side PIP)
    POD - Point Of Deployment (PCMCIA-like device on new HDTVs)
    PPV - Pay Per View
    PQ - Picture Quality
    PS - Progressive Scan
    PVR - Personal Video Recorder (see also DVR)
    QAM - Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (binary data over Cable)
    RAM - Random Access Memory
    RF - Radio Frequency (some remotes are RF, instead of IR)
    RGB - Red Green Blue (TV CRTs) (also type of connection)
    ROM - Read Only Memory
    RPTV- Rear Projection Television
    SA - Scientific Atlanta (Maker of STBs)
    SACD - Super Audio Compact Disc (Sony)
    SAP - Secondary Audio Programme
    SD - Standard Definition (480i)
    SDTV - Standard Definition Television
    SKU - Stock Keeping Unit (inventory, piece of equipment)
    S/N - Signal to Noise Ratio
    SPL - Sound Pressure Level
    *C - Star Choice
    SPDIF - Sony Phillips Digital Interface (Coax for digital sound)
    STB - Set top box (Cable, Satellite or OTA)
    S-VHS - Super VHS (about 400 lines resolution)
    SVM - Scan Velocity Modulation
    SVOD - Subscription Video on Demand
    THD - Total Harmonic Distortion
    TMN - The Movie Network (Canadian)
    UPS - Uninteruptable Power Supply
    USB - Universal Serial Bus
    VCR - Video Cassette Recorder
    VGA - Video Graphics Array (480 x 640)
    VHS - Video Home System (about 240 lines resolution)
    VTR - Video Tape Recorder
    VOD - Video On Demand
    WS - Widescreen
    XGA - eXtended Graphics Array (768 x 1024)
    Y - Luminance
    Y/C - Luminance + Chrominance (S-Video)
    YCbCr - Digital Luminance + Colour Difference
    YPbPr - Analogue Luminance + Colour Difference (Component Video)

    *Do you have updates for this FAQ? Post a note in our "Feedback" forum in the "Update for FAQ" and we will make the changes.*

    (This FAQ was originally posted at HDTVoice and has been reprinted here with permission)
    Last edited by JU1CYFRU1T; 11-13-2006 at 02:31 PM.

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts


Content Relevant URLs by vBSEO 3.5.1 PL1