Glossary
This Glossary includes various technical acronyms, abbreviations, and common terms with their definitions. These terms are important to understand for those working with Disguise software and hardware, and engaging with the wider Disguise Ecosystem.
Term | Definition |
---|---|
1080p | Full HD, 1920 x 1080 pixel screen resolution, progressive, i.e. non-interlaced. |
1080i | Full HD, 1920 x 1080 pixel screen resolution, interlaced. |
2K | 2048 x 1080 pixel screen resolution, DCI defined. |
4K | Screen resoluton. See DCI 4k and 4K UHD. |
DCI 4K | 4096 x 2160 pixel screen resolution. |
4K UHD | 3840 x 2160 pixel screen resolution. |
4:4:4, 4:2:2, 4:2:0 | Different levels of Chroma Subsampling. A common video / image data compression strategy. |
AI | Artificial Intelligence. |
ArtNet | Data distribution protocol that allows DMX and RDM lighting data to be transported over an Ethernet network. |
AV | Audio Visual. |
AR | Augmented Reality. |
ARC | Audio Return Channel. |
BNC | Bayonet Neill–Concelman (a type of connector, used for SDI & Genlock). |
BP / BP2 | Backplane v2 - the infrastructure in disguise servers which houses VFC cards, e.g DisplayPort (DP). |
BPC | Bits Per Channel - 8 or 10, usually - other standards have 12 or 16 BPC. This is what people are referring to when they say “10 bit”. |
BPP | Bits Per Pixel. The number of data bits used to represent a 3 channel RGB (Red, Green, Blue) pixel. Normally 24 (8 x 3) but recently 30 (10 x 3). |
Broadcast (multiple definitions) | Distribution of audio/video content to an audience, i.e. TV; OR A reserved IP address used to send information to all devices on a network. |
BSOD | Blue Screen Of Death - OS-level crash due to faulty drivers or hardware. |
CM | CodeMeter - Encryption and Licensing product used for disguise servers, designer and some 3rd party products (Notch). |
CPU | Central Processing Unit, the main chip in a computer that does number crunching. |
CTD | Crash to Desktop. |
d3 | Designer, Disguise software. |
DCI | Digital Cinema Initiatives. |
DHCP | Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol. |
DMX | Digital Multiplex (DMX512 - used for lighting control, can be used to control d3, via a module called sockpuppet). |
DoF | Depth of Field, the part of a camera lens which is in focus and consequently the parts of the image that are out of focus. Defined as shallow or wide - shallow means only a small part of the image is in focus, wide means that everything the camera sees is in focus. |
DOF | Degrees of Freedom. Number of independent variables of a system, e.g. a 2D coordinate has 2, a 3D camera pose (position and orientation) has 6. Camera lens parameters have at least 1 (focal length), but typically many (2 for lens shift, plus varying number of distortion coefficients). |
DP | DisplayPort, a common video connector present on our VFC cards. |
DSE | Dynamic Softedge / Dynamic Blend. |
DVI | Digital Visual Interface. |
EDID | Extended Display Identification Data, the metadata between display and GPU. |
FFS | Four-Finger Salute, CTRL+ALT+SHIFT+F12 a shortcut for resetting emulated edids / displays from d3service. This is a very common fix to a wide range of problems. |
FPGA | Field Programmable Gate Array (programmable chip). |
FPS | Frames Per Second. |
GPU | Graphics Processing Unit, hardware for displaying graphics in a computer. |
GSOD | Grey/Green Screen Of Death. |
HD | High definition (1280 x 720 pixel screen resolution, but most people use it to mean 1920 x 1080 screen resolution). |
HD-BNC | High-Density Bayonet Neill–Concelman connector (small ones on the VX 4). |
HDCP | High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection. |
HDD | Hard Drive (spinning platter.) |
HDMI | High Definition Multi-media Interface. |
HDR | High Dynamic Range. |
IMAG | Image Magnification, screens specifically for displaying close-ups of performers’ on-stage acts so the audience in the back doesn’t miss detail. |
Interlacing | A means of increasing perceived framerate by displaying a single frame of video as two “half” frames. |
Internet Protocol address | A unique (per network) numerical “address” attached to a device on a network. |
IP-VFC | The next-generation of the Video Format Conversion (VFC) card using the IP workflow. |
LED | Light Emitting Diode. |
Localhost | A reserved hostname referring to this computer; resolves to the loopback address. |
Loopback address | 127.0.0.1 is a reserved IP address used for communicating with this computer. |
LTC | Linear Time Code. |
LUT | Look-up table. |
mDP | Mini DisplayPort, connector type. |
MIDI | Musical Instrument Digital Interface, common AV / sound protocol. |
MR | Mixed Reality. |
MST | Media Streaming Terminal. |
MST | Multi-Stream Transport (DisplayPort). |
Multicast | one-to-many or many-to-many network communication. More scalable and network-friendly than broadcast. |
NAS | Network-attached storage. |
NDI | A relatively popular proprietary but royalty-free means of transporting video over an IP network. |
NMOS | Networked Media Open Specifications. |
NVMe | Non-Volatile Memory express, a connector for a solid state hard drive via the pci express bus, much faster than the more old fashioned SATA connector. |
OSC | Open Sound Control, common AV / sound protocol. |
OTT | Over-the-top, initially named in reference to devices that go “over” a cable box to give the user access to TV content. In OTT channels, content is delivered via an internet connection - rather than through a traditional cable/broadcast provider. |
PID (control) | Proportional Integral Derivative Controller. |
QA | Quality Assurance. This relates to our testing process and quality control procedures for all software and hardware for making sure there are no bugs in our products. |
QuickCal | Quick Calibration. |
RAID | Redundant Array of Independent Disks (hard disk configuration) |
RGB | A colour encoding system based on the three primary colours red, green and blue |
RMA | Return Merchandise Authorisation. This is what we call the repair procedure. |
RT | ResourceTransport, mechanism for synchronising data between multiple d3 instances. |
SAAS | Software as a service. |
sACN | Streaming ACN, or ANSI E1.31. An open DMX over Ethernet standard. |
Standard Definition | Abbreviated to SD, includes resolutions at or below 480p. |
Secure Digital | Secure Digital, officially abbreviated as SD, is a proprietary, non-volatile, flash memory card format the SD Association developed for use in portable devices. |
SDI | Serial Digital Interface. |
SFP | Small form-factor pluggable transceiver. |
SLC | Single Large Canvas. |
SMPTE | Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers. |
SSD | Solid State Disk, a faster hard drive (compared to a HDD). |
UHD | Ultra-High Definition, 3840 x 2160 pixel screen resolution. |
Unicast | One-to-one network communication. |
UXF/UXFade | Universal Crossfade. |
UVM | UV Mapping (UV is not an acronym, they are like XYZ coordinates). |
VFC | Video Format Conversion card, a hardware product Disguise make for Disguise servers. |
VGA | 640 × 480 pixel screen resolution - Video Graphics Array, a display standard. |
VR | Virtual Reality. |
XFade | Crossfade. |
XGA | 1024 x 768 pixel screen resolution - eXtended Graphics Array, a display standard, follow up to VGA. |
XLR | External Line Return. A type of connector commonly used for lighting and audio cabling. |
xR | Extended Reality. |