Page 18 ® » ; LEADERS IN BUSINESS If you haven’t yet found Clarks Summit True Value Home Center at the corner of Davis and Spring Streets behind the fire station, you should take time to look for it! Phil and Arlene Spinka purchased the store in October 1983 and have been rearranging it ever since. By May 1984 the store had been enlarged, remodeled, the outside painted, and the parking lot paved. Phil and Arlene had the Spring Street side landscaped, and flower boxes installed in front of the building. They enjoyed adding a touch of beauty to their corner of Clarks Summit. They have plans to landscape across the top of the parking lot this spring. Inside, the carpet helps keep your feet clean, well lit aisles. The Spinkas have increased their inventory considerably during the past year. They have canning needs, small appliances, kitchen gadgets, a full line of basic hardware, small heaters, humidifiers, fans, snowblowers, garden tools, lawnmowers, painting sun- dries, and Tru-Test paint. True Value Stores own their own paint factories and produce a high quality paint rated in the top three by Consumer Guide. In the glass and screen shop you can have glass custom cut for large windows or small frames or table tops. In addition to Phil, Doug Giberson is kept busy in the spring making screens like new. During vacations and after school, young Philip, a seventh grader, can be found helping to stock shelves and learning the glass and screen business. During the holiday season and may Saturdays in winter, coffee and donuts are served for the enjoyment of their guests. That is how Phil and Arlene want you to feel; like an honored guest in their store. They have tried to stock enough items for the home handyman and home- maker so that you won’t have to leave the Abingtons to do your shopping. True Value Hardware Stores are a buying group, not a chain. All stores are locally, independently owned and oper- ated. Master Card, Visa, and True Value charge cards are welcomed here. The store hours are 6:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. weekdays; 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays. Phil and Arlene’s primary interest is dedication and service to the people of the Abingtons and Lackawanna County. If you identified with the Doonesbury comic strip characters who needed a phrase book to translate the unintelligible lingo of a computer salesman, chances are you probably grew up thinking that hardware is something you use to fix the kitchen sink. Like any foreign language, comput- erese can be overwhelming to the unin- tiated. Dictionaries are available, of course. Consider, for instance, the bible of computer folk, the 624-page ‘Computer Dictionary,” which carries you from ABA all the way to zone plus, sparing nary a bon mot. Or take “The Hacker’s Dictionary,” if you can get it. Appropriately, this com- pendium can be obtained only from a computer, which with the right command gurgles forth words like “frobnicate’” (to manipulate or adjust) and ‘‘crufty” (poorly build, possibly overly complex). These are terms favored by computer freaks, engineers and ‘hackers,” self- defined as ‘‘persons who enjoy learning the details of programming systems’ as opposed to most ‘‘users,” a hacker’s Feb. 27th through March 24th, 1985 CLARKS SUMMIT TRUE VALUE HOME CENTER (== » Sed sat-n-hue Mem? on One Coat INTERIOR FI" G 9.98 .... 12.98 .... E-Z Kare™ Sat-N-Hue" Latex E-Z Kare™Marvelustre” Latex Flat Finish is fully washable. Easy Semi-Gloss Enamel is scrub- cleanups with soapy water. Choose bable for convenience durability. 1.98... Select Ceiling Latex is ideal for ceilings, drywall or plaster. Eco- nomical formula leaves a non-yel- lowing finish. White only. 8.98... 100 Davis St. Clarks Summit Phone 586-1661 STORE HOURS Mon.-Fri. 6:30 A.M. to 5:30 P.M. Sat. 7:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. p URNA) OF THE MONTH Make buying paint as easy as using it! These cards are welcomed at Teflon-S participating stores. ed blade While Anvil Pruner W/Holster has Power-Link* for powerful cutting action. Makes %-in. cut. 2087 HARDWARE VALUE OF THE MONTH While 4 48 Supplies » Last Heavy-Duty Drum Auger clears up clogs fast. 15-ft" steel wire! stores in drum, soaes QUANTITIES LIMITED Latex Redwood Stain is a flat finish that shows wood's natural texture. Great for siding, shingles, shakes and fences. LRW. “prefer to learn only the minimum neces- sary.” None of this gibberish, however, will help you in “the real world,” variously defined by hackers as ‘‘the location of non-programming’” and ‘a universe in which the standard dress is coat and tie.” A much more modest glossary will serve a beginner well, computer scientists Rachelle Heller and Dianned Martin say. They have helped thousands overcome computer phobia at organizations rang- ing from the University of Maryland to the Smithsonian Institution. Herewith area few key words to help land jargon. Bit - The basic unit of computer memory. An abbreviation for binary digit, the term refers to a single digit of a ginary number - a “0” or “1” - which is the smallest unit of information recog- nized by a computer. For example, the binary number 101 is composed of three bits. Bug - A program defect or error that causes: the computer to opeate incor- rectly or not at all. Byte - A group of eight bits, usually treated as a unit. One byte can store one unit of information. Memory capacity of a computer is measured in bytes. Cassette - A standard tape cassette, an inexpensive way of storing programs and data. Chip - A single device containing many transistors and other components formed on the surface of a tiny sliver of silicon. Often used synonymously with integrated circuit. CPU - Central Processing Unit. The heart of the computer, the CPU performs the basic arithemetic and logic functions and supervises the operation of the entire system. In a personal computer, the CPU is ‘a microprocessor, a single integrated chip. Disk or “floppy’’ disk - A flexible piece of plastic coated with magnetic material, used to store and retrieve programs and data. Disk Drive - an electromechanical device that stores information on or recalls information from a disk. Hard disk - A rigid disk made of a hard, plastic-like material, used to store and retrieve programs and data. Though more expensive than a “floppy disk” a hard disk is far more permanent and has much greater storage capacity. Hardware - All of the various mechani- cal and electronic components of a com- puter system, e.g., the electronic chip, printer, monitor, etc. Input - Used as a verb, a grammatical impossibility accepted placidly by com- puter people, this is the act of entering information into the computer. As a noun, input refers tp data entered into the computer. Interface - The boundary between two parts of a computer system, often con- that allows other devices to communicate with each other. Used as a verb, inter- face. means to make one part of a computer system run smoothly with another. pil DA pg sti an i NEEL games. Also referred to as a paddle. K - Kilo, a prefix meaning a thousand. Used before the word byte to denote memory capacity. Each kilobyte is actu- ally equal to 1,024 bytes, but K is generally used to mean about a thousand. A typical personal computer has a memory ranging between 5K and 64K. Keyboard - The device used to enter information into the computer, usually consisting of a standard typewriter set of keys and various special keys. Memory - A device or series of devices capable of storing information in the computer temporarily or permanently in theform of pattersn of binary ‘‘Os’’ and ‘‘1s.” In many personal computers, memory can be expanded by adding hardware. Microprocessor - A central processing unit (CPU) contained on a single chip. Modem - Derived from the words modulate-demodulate. A device attached to the computer to conert the computer’s digital signals into signals for transmis- sion to other computers over telephone lines. Monitor - A television receiver or cathode ray tube (CRT) used to display computer output. Output - Information or data trans- ferred from the internal memory of the computer to some external device such as a screen or printer. Peripherals - The various pieces of a computer system that can be hooked up in different ways to the central process- ing unit and memory and which form the system’s input and output devices, such as printers, disk drives, joysticks, etc. Personal computer - A small computer based on a microprocessor. Not all microprocessors, however, are personal computers. A microprocessor can be dedicated to single tasks as diverse as controlling a machine tool or a video game. Printer - A device for producing paper (“hard”) copies of data output by a computer. Program - A series of instructions carried out by the computer is sequence. The program must be written in a language the computer understands. RAM - Random Access Memory. This is the memory into ‘which information can be put (written) and from which it can instantly be copied (read). RAM is the “working memory’’ of the computer into which applications programs can be loaded from outside and then run. ROM - Read Only Memory. A memory circuit in which information stored is “built into” the chip at the time of manufacture and which cannot be subse- quently changed. Information can be copied from ROM, but it cannot be written there; hence, the name ‘read only memory.” Software - The programs and instruc- tions governing the operation of the computer that direct it to perform spe- cific functions. In contrast to the ‘hard- ware.” Terminal - A device for providing input to and output from a computer. Usually consisting of' a keyboard and screen together in the same box. : User-friendly - What. all computer “illiterates” hope for: a: computer:
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers