IT Glossary – ITU Online IT Training
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IT Glossary

Showing terms starting with L (310 terms)

Linked Data

A method of publishing structured data so that it can be interlinked and become more useful. It builds upon standard Web technologies such as HTTP, RDF, and URIs, but rather than using them to serve web pages, it uses them to share data.

Commonly used in Web Development, Semantic Web

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Linked List

A linear collection of data elements, whose order is not given by their physical placement in memory. Instead, each element points to the next. It is a data structure used in computer science.

Commonly used in General IT, Software Development

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Linker

A linker is a program that combines multiple object files or modules into a single executable file or library.

Commonly used in Programming

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Linker Script

A file used by a linker to control the linking process. It specifies how sections of code and data should be mapped to memory, defining various memory regions and symbols.

Commonly used in Programming, Embedded Systems

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Linux

An open-source, Unix-like operating system kernel that is the basis for a variety of operating systems (distros) used on servers and desktops.

Commonly used in General IT

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Linux Containers (LXC)

An operating system-level virtualization method for running multiple isolated Linux systems (containers) on a single control host. LXC combines cgroups and namespace support to provide an isolated environment for applications.

Commonly used in Cloud Computing, Virtualization

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Linux Distribution

A variant of the Linux operating system that includes a package management system and a selection of applications, tailored for specific needs or user groups. Distributions (distros) provide easy installation and configuration tailored to specific use cases.

Commonly used in Operating Systems

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Linux Foundation Certified System Administrator (LFCS)

Validates the skills to perform essential Linux system administration tasks.

Commonly used in Operating Systems, Linux

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Linux Kernel

The core interface between a computer’s hardware and its processes, providing basic services for all parts of the operating system.

Commonly used in General IT

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Linux Professional Institute (LPI)

Offers certifications for Linux professionals, validating skills in installation, operation, and troubleshooting of Linux systems.

Commonly used in Operating Systems

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Liquid Cooling

A method used to cool electronic and computer components through the use of a liquid coolant, which is circulated past the components to absorb heat. Liquid cooling is more efficient than air cooling and is used in high-performance computing and gaming systems.

Commonly used in Hardware, Cooling Systems

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Liquid Crystal Technology

A technology used in displays, based on liquid crystals that align to modify light passage. It’s widely used in monitors, TVs, and digital signs for its ability to produce clear images with efficient energy use.

Commonly used in Electronics, Display Technology

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Liquid State Machine

A type of recurrent neural network with a liquid or pool of neurons and dynamic synapses that can change over time, used for processing time-varying inputs. It’s a concept in bio-inspired computing and neural networks.

Commonly used in Artificial Intelligence, Neuroscience

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Liquidity Mining

A network participation strategy in decentralized finance (DeFi) where users provide capital to a protocol in exchange for tokens or rewards, often used in cryptocurrency markets.

Commonly used in Cryptocurrency, Blockchain

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Liskov Substitution Principle (LSP)

A concept in object-oriented programming that states objects of a superclass should be replaceable with objects of a subclass without altering the correctness of the program. It’s one of the five SOLID principles for designing OO systems in a way that makes them more maintainable and extendable.

Commonly used in Software Development, Object-Oriented Programming

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List Comprehension

A compact way to process all or part of the elements in a sequence and return a list with the results.

Commonly used in Programming

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List Inversion

The process of reversing the order of elements in a list. In computer science, this operation is a common task in data manipulation and algorithm design, often used to demonstrate basic principles of algorithms and data structures.

Commonly used in Data Structures, Algorithms

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List Processing

A form of data processing where data is maintained in lists (either singly linked or doubly linked) and operations are performed to manipulate, search, and sort these lists. It’s foundational in functional programming and Lisp-like languages.

Commonly used in Programming, Data Structures

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Listicle

An article or content piece published primarily on the web that is formatted as a list. Listicles are popular for their readability and engagement, often used to present information in a structured, easily digestible way.

Commonly used in Digital Content, Marketing

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Literal

In programming, a notation for representing a fixed value in source code. Literals can be classifications of numbers, characters, strings, or boolean values.

Commonly used in Programming

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Literal (Programming)

A notation for representing a fixed value in source code.

Commonly used in Programming

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Live Chat

Live chat is a real-time communication channel that allows users to interact with each other or with customer support representatives.

Commonly used in Communication

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Live Coding

A performance art and a technique for coding where programming is done on-the-fly in real-time, often in the context of artistic performances or educational demonstrations to create music, visuals, and animations interactively.

Commonly used in Programming, Digital Art

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Live Coding Environment

An interactive programming environment that allows developers to write and execute code in real-time, often used for educational purposes, data analysis, and algorithm visualization. It enables immediate feedback and experimentation.

Commonly used in Programming, Education

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Live Migration

Live migration is the process of moving a running virtual machine from one physical host to another without disrupting its operation.

Commonly used in Virtualization

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Live Patching

The process of applying patches to software, particularly the Linux kernel, without the need for system reboots or stopping the software. It’s crucial for applying security patches or upgrades without affecting system uptime.

Commonly used in Operating Systems, Security

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Live Streaming

Live streaming is the process of delivering real-time audio or video content over the internet.

Commonly used in Multimedia

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Live USB

A USB flash drive that contains a full operating system that can be booted.

Commonly used in Hardware/Software

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LiveCD

A LiveCD is a bootable CD-ROM or DVD-ROM containing an operating system that can be run directly from the CD without installation.

Commonly used in Operating Systems

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Liveness Detection

Liveness detection is a biometric authentication method that verifies the presence of a live person by detecting physiological characteristics such as heartbeat or movement.

Commonly used in Biometrics

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LLVM (Low Level Virtual Machine)

A collection of modular and reusable compiler and toolchain technologies used for developing compiler front ends and back ends.

Commonly used in General IT, Software Development

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Load

Load refers to the amount of traffic or data being transferred through a network at any given moment.

Commonly used in Networking

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Load Average

Load average is a measure of the average system load over a period of time, indicating the amount of computational work being done.

Commonly used in System Administration

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Load Balancer

A device or software that distributes network or application traffic across a number of servers to increase capacity (concurrent users) and reliability of applications.

Commonly used in Networking, General IT

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Load Balancer Health Check

A mechanism used by load balancers to check the status of the servers that it is distributing traffic to. It ensures traffic is only sent to servers that are currently operational.

Commonly used in Networking, Cloud Computing

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Load Balancer Stickiness

A feature of load balancers that maintains user session continuity by directing requests from a specific client to the same server behind the load balancer. It’s useful in applications where session state is important.

Commonly used in Networking, Web Services

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Load Balancing

Load balancing is the process of distributing network traffic across multiple servers to ensure no single server is overwhelmed.

Commonly used in Networking

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Load Balancing Algorithm

An algorithm that distributes network or application traffic across multiple servers to optimize resource use, maximize throughput, minimize response time, and avoid overload of any single resource.

Commonly used in Networking, General IT

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Load Balancing Strategy

Techniques used to distribute workloads across multiple computing resources, such as computers, a computer cluster, network links, CPUs, or disk drives. Load balancing aims to optimize resource use, maximize throughput, minimize response time, and avoid overload.

Commonly used in Networking, Distributed Systems

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Load Compiler

A specialized tool or software that translates high-level load specifications into a format that can be executed by load generators for the purpose of performance testing.

Commonly used in Software Development, Testing

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Load Distribution

The process of spreading computational tasks across multiple computing resources, such as processors, servers, or network links, to optimize resource use, maximize throughput, reduce latency, and ensure fault tolerance.

Commonly used in Distributed Computing, Networking

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Load Factor

Load factor is a metric used to measure the utilization or efficiency of a system, typically expressed as a percentage of maximum capacity.

Commonly used in Performance Evaluation

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Load Factor (Hashing)

In the context of hash tables, the load factor is a measure that indicates how full the hash table is. It’s the ratio of the number of stored entries to the total number of slots. A higher load factor indicates a fuller table, which may increase the chance of collisions.

Commonly used in Algorithms, Data Structures

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Load Factorization

Load factorization is a technique used in distributed computing to balance the workload among multiple nodes by dividing tasks into smaller units.

Commonly used in Distributed Computing

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Load Generator

A load generator is a software tool or application used to simulate user activity or generate artificial traffic on a system or network for performance testing.

Commonly used in Testing

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Load Profile

Load profile is a representation of a system’s resource usage patterns over time, often used for capacity planning or performance optimization.

Commonly used in Performance Evaluation

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Load Shedding

Load shedding is a technique used to manage system overload by temporarily reducing the load on certain components or services.

Commonly used in System Administration

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Load Testing

The process of putting demand on a system or device and measuring its response, often to understand the system’s behavior under likely conditions.

Commonly used in General IT, Security

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Local Area Network (LAN)

A LAN is a network that connects computers and devices within a limited area such as a residence, school, or office building.

Commonly used in Networking

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