floppy disk

floppy disk
Computers. a thin, flexible plastic disk coated with magnetic material, on which data and programs can be stored for later retrieval: used mainly with microcomputers. Also, floppydisk. Also called floppy, diskette, flexible disk, magnetic disk.
[1970-75]

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Magnetic storage medium used with computers.

Floppy disks are made of flexible plastic coated with a magnetic material, and are enclosed in a hard plastic case. They are typically 3.5 in. (9 cm) in diameter. Data are arranged on their surfaces in concentric tracks. A disk is inserted in the computer's floppy disk drive, an assembly of magnetic heads and a mechanical device for rotating the disk for reading or writing purposes. A small electromagnet, called a magnetic head, writes a binary digit (1 or 0) onto the disk by magnetizing a tiny spot on the disk in different directions, and reads digits by detecting the magnetization direction of the spots. With the increasing use of e-mail attachments and other means to transfer files from computer to computer, the use of floppy disks has waned, though they are still widely used to keep second (backup) copies of valuable files.

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

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  • floppy disk — noun count COMPUTING * a small square plastic object that you use for copying information from a computer. A floppy disk is often simply called a floppy or a disk. The part of the computer where you put the floppy disk is called a disk drive:… …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • floppy disk — floppy disks N COUNT A floppy disk is a small magnetic disk that is used for storing computer data and programs. Floppy disks are used especially with personal computers. (in BRIT, also use floppy disc) …   English dictionary

  • floppy disk — / flɒpi disk/, it. / flɔp:i disk/ locuz. ingl. (propr. disco morbido ), usata in ital. come s.m. (inform.) [disco magnetico usato per memorizzare dati negli elaboratori elettronici] ▶◀ (fam.) dischetto, floppy, minidisco. ‖ hard disk …   Enciclopedia Italiana

  • floppy disk — /floppiˈdisk, ingl. ˈflHpɪˌdɪsk/ [vc. ingl., comp. di floppy «allentato, floscio» e disk «disco»] s. m. inv. (elab.) dischetto, minidisco CFR. hard disk …   Sinonimi e Contrari. Terza edizione

  • floppy disk — {{hw}}{{floppy disk}}{{/hw}}(elab.) Disco magnetico flessibile per la registrazione dei dati; CONFR. Hard disk. ETIMOLOGIA: voce ingl., comp. di floppy ‘allentato, molle’ (da (to) flop ‘lasciare cadere’) e disk ‘disco’ …   Enciclopedia di italiano

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  • Floppy Disk — Floppy Disk, Flop·py·disk [ flɔpi dɪsk] die; , s; eine flexible Kunststoffscheibe, auf der man Daten speichern kann und die man für Computer verwendet …   Langenscheidt Großwörterbuch Deutsch als Fremdsprache

  • floppy disk — n. a small, flexible, relatively inexpensive computer disk for storing data, esp. in smaller computers …   English World dictionary

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