Computer Abbreviations and Full Forms Notes for Competitive Exams

Computer abbreviations and full forms are among the easiest and most repeated questions in the Computer Knowledge section of SSC, banking, railways, defence, police and state examinations. A question may directly ask "What is the full form of BIOS?" or may use the short form inside a bigger question. If you know the full forms, you also understand the concept behind them better. This note groups the most important abbreviations into hardware, software, networking and internet, and other categories, so that you can revise them in tables and remember them easily.

How to Learn Abbreviations Easily

Do not try to mix all abbreviations together. Learn them group by group. Read the full form slowly and connect it with the use of the device or protocol; for example, MODEM is Modulator Demodulator because it converts digital signals into analogue signals and back. Always note the small spelling points, such as "Versatile" in DVD, "Peripheral" in PCI and "Secure" in HTTPS. Revise the table once every day, and cover the right column while reading the left column to test yourself.

Hardware and Memory Abbreviations

Software, Language and File Format Abbreviations

Networking, Internet and Mobile Abbreviations

Security, Technology, Banking and Other Abbreviations

Tricky Points Examiners Love

• Wi-Fi is commonly written as "Wireless Fidelity" in exam answers, although it is a trade name.
• VIRUS is commonly given as "Vital Information Resources Under Siege" in objective questions.
• BIT means Binary Digit; a group of 8 bits is a byte; 1 KB = 1024 bytes.
• Pascal is named after Blaise Pascal and is not an abbreviation, while BASIC, COBOL and FORTRAN are.
• DVD is widely called Digital Versatile Disc, and sometimes Digital Video Disc in older books.
• ROM is non-volatile (data stays without power), while RAM is volatile (data is lost when the power is off).
• ENIAC was one of the first general-purpose electronic computers, and UNIVAC was the first commercial computer.
• HTTPS uses SSL or TLS to encrypt the data between the browser and the website.
• UPI, NEFT, RTGS and IMPS are digital payment systems, and UPI is managed by the NPCI.

Frequently Confused Pairs

Many students mix up similar abbreviations. LAN covers a small area like an office, MAN covers a city, and WAN covers a country or the world, so the internet is the largest WAN. POP downloads the mail to your computer, but IMAP keeps it on the server. SMTP is used to send emails, while POP and IMAP are used to receive them. SRAM is fast and used for cache, while DRAM is cheaper and used as the main memory. HDD has moving parts, while SSD has none and is faster. OCR reads printed text, OMR reads marked bubbles on answer sheets, and MICR reads the special ink on bank cheques. Knowing the difference helps you solve the application-based questions as well as the direct ones.

Keyboard, Data Unit and Generation Short Forms

Some short forms are not written in capital letters but are asked often. On the keyboard, Ctrl means Control, Alt means Alternate, Esc means Escape, Del means Delete, PrtSc means Print Screen, and NumLk means Number Lock. For data units, remember that 1 byte is 8 bits, 1 KB (kilobyte) is 1024 bytes, 1 MB (megabyte) is 1024 KB, 1 GB (gigabyte) is 1024 MB, and 1 TB (terabyte) is 1024 GB. Printer speed is measured in PPM (pages per minute) or CPS (characters per second), the screen quality in DPI or pixels, and the data speed in bps (bits per second).

The generations of computers are linked with the technology used: the first generation used vacuum tubes, the second used transistors, the third used integrated circuits (IC), the fourth used microprocessors based on VLSI, and the fifth generation is based on artificial intelligence (AI). Knowing these terms along with their full forms will help you in the questions on history and development of computers. If you meet an unfamiliar abbreviation in the examination, try to break it into its words and guess its meaning from the context, because most of the computer terms are made from simple English words.

Practice Questions With Answers

(1) The full form of BIOS is Basic Input Output System. (2) HTML stands for HyperText Markup Language. (3) The protocol used to send email is SMTP. (4) CAPTCHA is used to tell humans from computers apart. (5) The full form of the SIM card is Subscriber Identity Module. (6) UPS stands for Uninterruptible Power Supply. (7) OMR is used for checking objective answer sheets. (8) ASCII stands for American Standard Code for Information Interchange. (9) URL is the address of a web page. (10) DNS converts domain names into IP addresses.

Quick Revision

• Learn abbreviations in groups: hardware, software, network and others.
• CPU, ALU and CU are the parts of the processor; RAM is volatile and ROM is non-volatile.
• HTTP, FTP, SMTP, POP, IMAP and TCP/IP are the important protocols.
• OCR, OMR and MICR are different recognition technologies.
• UPI, NEFT, RTGS and IMPS are digital payment systems.

Make a small flashcard notebook for the abbreviations you forget, and revise it for ten minutes every day to get these questions right in the examination.

Related Notes to Read Next

Continue your preparation with these related notes from the same subject:

• Operating System, Database and Programming Basics Notes
• History and Generations of Computers
• Types of Computers and Supercomputers in India
• All Computer Knowledge notes

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What is the full form of CPU?

CPU stands for Central Processing Unit, which is the brain of the computer.

What is the full form of RAM and ROM?

RAM is Random Access Memory and ROM is Read Only Memory; RAM is volatile and ROM is non-volatile.

What is the full form of BIOS?

BIOS stands for Basic Input Output System, which starts the computer and checks the hardware.

What is the full form of HTML?

HTML stands for HyperText Markup Language and is used to create web pages.

What is the difference between HTTP and HTTPS?

HTTPS is the secure version of HTTP, and it uses SSL or TLS to encrypt the data between the browser and the website.

What is the full form of URL?

URL stands for Uniform Resource Locator and it is the address of a web page or resource on the internet.

What is the full form of DNS?

DNS stands for Domain Name System, and it converts website names into IP addresses.

What is the difference between SMTP and POP?

SMTP is used to send emails, and POP is used to receive and download emails.

What is the full form of OCR, OMR and MICR?

OCR is Optical Character Recognition, OMR is Optical Mark Recognition, and MICR is Magnetic Ink Character Recognition.

What is the full form of UPI?

UPI stands for Unified Payments Interface, which is a real-time digital payment system managed by the NPCI.

What is the full form of MODEM?

MODEM stands for Modulator Demodulator, a device that converts digital signals to analogue signals and back.

How can I remember computer abbreviations easily?

Learn them in groups, connect each full form with its use, revise a table daily and test yourself by covering the full form.