FAQ - Glossary of terms

DanP

Administrator
Staff member
vacBacker
Feedback
5 (100%)
Credits
2,172CR
This will be work in progress for a while. If you have any others to add please PM DanP.

Glossary of terms used throughout UKVAC.

16-bit – second generation of CPU’s used in many arcade games of the late 80’s/early 90’s. Most common being the 68000.

6502 - CPU used in a lot of early arcade games and computer systems, especially Atari arcade games, Atari Computers, Commodore Computers and the BBC Micro.

8-bit - refers to the processor (CPU) used in many early classic games which were based on these types of processor (z80, 6502, 8080, etc).

Amplifone - manufacturer of Vector monitors used in later colour XY games like Star Wars and Quantum

Binary - the number system using base 2 which is used in all computers. Only uses the digits 0 and 1 to represent numbers.

Cab – short for Cabinet (as in Arcade Cabinet)

Cabaret or Mini – smaller than usual upright machine

Cap Kit - a kit containing all the capacitors required for a particular arcade item (usually a monitor or power suppy). Capacitors wear out over time and need to be replaced eventually.

Cockpit – Sit down/in arcade machine with roof to give you the feeling of being in a vehicle cockpit.

Conversion – a conversion is a process whereby an original cabinet of one game is converted to look and play another game. A common candidate was Williams Defender which was converted to many many other games.

CP – abbreviation for Control Panel, the part where a games controls are (joysticks, buttons, etc)

CPO – Control Panel Overlay, the artwork piece on the control panel. These are often worn or damaged after years in an arcade

CPU - Central Processing Unit, the "brains" of any computer system.

CRT - Cathode Ray Tube - the screen type used on old TV's and arcade games. Made of glass with a phosphor coating to produce red, green and blue dots which together form all the colours of the spectrum.

CT - Cocktail – tabletop arcade machine

Degaussing - the process of de magnetizing, usually applied to a CRT which becomes discoloured when it is magnetized.

Hexadecimal - numeric representation using base 16 which uses extra characters A-F to represent numbers. Used throughout the computing used for arcade games.

Holy Grail – refers to a persons “must have” all time favourite arcade game.

HUO - Home Use Only - an arcade game that's only ever been in someones home, never in an arcade. Consequently they are usually in very good/mint condition.

JAMMA – Japanese Arcade Machine Manufacturers Association – Standard for arcade machines post 1985.

Loom or Harness – the wiring that links all the parts of an arcade machine together.

Marquee or Header – the Artwork piece at the top of a cab, usually backlit and made of glass or plexi.

NOS – New Old Stock, an item made when a game was originally made but never used so it’s in as-new condition but is old.

PCB – Printed Circuit Board – the brains of an arcade machine, usually a small computer system for running a specific game program.

Raster – refers to the type of screen used in most arcade games (and TV’s).

Repro – short for Reproduction, a piece of Artwork or Electronics produced aftermarket to replace a worn part/piece from an arcade game.

Sit Down - a machine that you play sitting down, mostly driving games but some generic cabs also come with seats.

UR – Upright

Vector – refers to the special screen used to draw game graphics as single lines. These were generally much brighter and higher resolution than there raster counterparts

XY – another name for Vector

Z80 - CPU used in a lot of early arcade games and computer systems notably Konami games, Sinclair computers.
DanP2010-08-19 19:36:59
 
Top