Glossary
From Symbian Developer Community
Terminology used when referring to Symbian Foundation-related work.
Contents |
A
- ABI
- Application Binary Interface. This is a standard for the interfaces of binary code running in ARM environments, and is intended to allow inter-operation of binaries produced by different compilers that conform to the standard. Describes the low-level interface between an application program and the operating system, between an application and its libraries, or between component parts of the application.
- The specification is published by ARM.
- See also: ARM
- abld.bat batch file
- Controls all aspects of building a project in the SBSv1 build system. It is created in the current directory by the bldmake tool from a component description file.
- AC
- Architecture Council
- Active Object
- A class derived from CActive, which is responsible for issuing requests to asynchronous service providers and handling those requests on completion.
- See also: Active Scheduler, Asynchronous Service Provider
- Active Scheduler
- A class derived from CActiveScheduler, responsible for scheduling events to the active objects in an event-handling program.
- See also: Active Object, Asynchronous Service Provider
- Active Template Library
- This has been merged into MFC.
- Adopter developer
- A role in the Symbian Foundation community. Anyone using Symbian Foundation assets, as a device platform, for application development.
- ADT
- Application development toolkit. The ADT is intended for developers who wish to create applications that run on production phones – that is, 'on top' of the Symbian platform. Typical users include: professional application and games developers, professional service companies, hobbyist developers, students and research groups. The ADT is intended for use with one or more SDKs.
- Alpha blending
- The term used where a value (called 'Alpha') is used to indicate a transparency value for a pixel. If the Alpha=maximum then the pixel is opaque, that is the full colour of the pixel is written to the destination. If Alpha=0 then the pixel is fully transparent, and the destination is left unaltered. Values in-between cause 'blending' with the formula.
- Destination = Source*Alpha/max_Alpha + Destination*(max_Alpha-Alpha)/max_Alpha
- AMPS
- Advanced Mobile Phone System: a 1G standard which operates in the 800-900MHz-frequency band. It is still widely used in the United States.
- Analog
- The simple way to transmit speech, which is translated into electronic signals of different frequency and/or amplitude. The first networks for mobile phones, as well as broadcast transmissions, were analog. Due to being longer established in some countries, analog networks may offer better coverage than digital networks, however analog phones are less secure and suffer more from interference where the signal is weak. Analog systems include AMPS, NMT and ETACS.
- API
- Application programming interface. The visible public behaviour a system object or component exposes to other objects or components. An API is any interface that enables one program to use facilities provided by another, whether by calling that program, or by being called by it. At a higher level still, an API is a set of functionality delivered by a programming system, and as such the mix of APIs in a particular system tells you what that system can do. Symbian has two classes of APIs, Public APIs and Platform APIs.
- See also: Interface.
- API documentation
- Any documentation that describes an API to a human reader (not just C++ classes exposed by libraries).
- Architecture council (AC)
- The Architecture Council invites and reviews technical solutions for new contributions in order to ensure the architectural integrity, backward compatibility and fitness-for-purpose of enhancements to the platform.
- See also: Councils
- Architecture model
- Hierarchical arrangement of the large portfolio of software assets that make up the foundation platform. The model is organized into a fixed-depth hierarchy of layers, packages, component collections, components and files. The model is the basis for many of the architectural principles.
- ARM
- The ARM is a 32-bit RISC instruction set architecture (ISA) developed by ARM Limited. It was previously known as the Advanced RISC Machine, and before that as the Acorn RISC Machine. The ARM architecture is the most widely used 32-bit ISA—it is implemented in many microprocessors and microcontrollers for embedded systems.
- ASD
- Accredited Symbian Developer. A certification scheme for developers demonstrating competency across a broad range of technical areas defined by the Fundamentals of Symbian OS Curriculum.
- ASIC
- Application Specific Integrated Circuit
- ASSP
- Application-Specific Standard Product. An integrated off-the-shelf part consisting of CPU, MMU, cache and a number of on-chip peripherals (typically UART's, timers, LCD controller). Designed and marketed by a silicon vendor and intended to be used in a class of devices.
- Asynchronous Request
- A request for an asynchronous service from an asynchronous service provider.
- See also: Asynchronous Service Provider
- Asynchronous Service Provider
- A system, component or class which provides a service asynchronously. Requests are indicated by function calls with a TRequestStatus reference parameter.
- See also: Active Object, Active Scheduler, Asynchronous Request
- ATS
- Automatic Test System. An automated test management system contributed to the Foundation by Nokia.
- AVKON
- UI-specific application framework layers implemented on top of Symbian OS.
B
- Backward compatibility
- Updating a component in such a way that client code which used the original version can continue to work with the updated version.
- See also: Forward compatibility
- BAT
- Basic Acceptance Testing
- Baseband
- The band of frequencies of a signal before it is modulated for transmission at another frequency. A baseband processor refers to dedicated processor in a mobile phone to handle communication functions.
- Baseport
- Normally, at least enough of an adaptation suite to boot the OS on the hardware and run the text command shell. This means enough of the hardware adaptation for the system-on-a-chip CPU and basic peripherals including mass storage, display and keypad, but excluding adaptation to multimedia and graphics acceleration or a baseband adaptation.
- Base station
- A base station is a fixed transceiver that acts as the link between a mobile phone and the landline network. Mobile phone networks are composed of an array of base stations that in combination provide coverage of a network's geographic area. Each base station's range of reception is determined by the area it covers and the number of calls that it is likely to process. In remote areas, a base station is likely to forgo power for increased area of transmission.
- Binary compatibility (BC)
- A new release is backward binary compatible (BC) when existing binaries work with the new release in the same way that they worked with older releases.
- The Binary Compatibility Suite (BCS)
- A set of tools for testing the backward binary compatibility of the Symbian platform (formerly known as the Foundation Test Suite) .
- Binary file
- Binary files are run-time machine-readable files. Some source files are also run-time machine-readable (for example, JavaScript).
- Binding
- The act of making a choice on the value of a configuration element. A default binding is the initial value that will be used unless the configuration element is bound with a different value.
- BLOB
- Binary Large OBject: a collection of binary data held in a file store or database. Commonly used to represent multimedia objects such as images, sounds and video.
- Bootloader
- Optional code which runs immediately on reset, before the bootstrap.This is also referred to as the core loader, or just the loader.
- Bootstrap
- A short program, often written in assembler, which gains control when the machine is first powered on. The bootstrap sets up an environment that allows the Kernel to continue to boot Symbian OS (for example, setting up memory, I/O devices and creating virtual memory space).
- Branch
- Noun – A codeline created by copying another codeline, as opposed to a codeline that was created by adding original files.
- Verb – To create a copy of a codeline.
- BSP
- Board support package: used in conjunction with a system-on-a-chip vendor’s software development board and usually means a hardware adaptation that is more than a baseport and up to a full hardware adaptation suite.
C
- C++ class
- Described by a C++ header file and used via static or dynamic libraries.
- CDK
- The Carbide.c++ development kit enables you to create plugins to extend Carbide.c++; note that normal Eclipse plugins can also be used with Carbide.c++, however these will not be 'Carbide.c++ aware'.
- Coding standards and conventions
- Set of identifiable coding rules and related guidelines to assist contributors and package owners in the task of creating quality code.
- Creator
- Creates test data such as contacts, messages or calendar entries into a Symbian device. It is a useful tool for testing situations where a device is saving high amounts of data, or the data is either saved to a device several times or to multiple devices at the same time.
- Committer
- An individual who has been granted permission to freely check-in code to the Symbian Foundation source-code repositories. This privilege is usually granted to a regular package Contributor with a proven track record of high-quality contributions. Committers are selected on a per-package basis by the Package Owner.
- Component
- The smallest architectural unit of the system. A component is an implementation unit that provides a discrete, re-usable piece of the system. In concrete terms, a component is identified with a single MRP file that packages binaries, data, documentation and source code.
- Component internal API
- The interface should not be used outside the component – for example, the inter-process call (IPC) interface presented by the file server is only used by the file server DLL that is in the same component.
- ConfML
- Configuration mark-up language. An XML-based language used to describe configuration elements.
- COM
- Component Object Model.
- Collection internal API
- The interface is used between components in a collection but should not be used outside the collection – even in the same package.
- Component test
- Act of testing to for component APIs, faults or reducing defect density using the component test code.
- Component collection, collection
- Component collections are used to organize the components within a package. Each component collection has typically fewer than 10 components and a typical package has three to seven component collections.
- Contributor
- A role in the Symbian Foundation community.
- A contributor:
- Creates the change or contributes changes from other developers in their organization
- Sends the contribution to a package.
- Code quality
- Code quality refers to the level of future wasted activity arising from known and unknown defects in foundation code. The less wasted activity, the better the quality.
- Code line
- A set of files that evolve collectively. One codeline can be branched from another, allowing each set of files to evolve separately.
- Cross-platform library
- A library that can be implemented on multiple operating systems.
- Committers
- Committers have the right to commit code to the Symbian code lines.
- ConE
- Configuration engine
- Councils
- The Councils are the controlling bodies of the Symbian Foundation. The are four councils: Architecture Council, Feature and Roadmap Council, UI Council and Release Council.
- CPF
- Configuration project file
- CR
- Change Request. Typically associated with public APIs.
- CRML
- Central repository markup language. A realization of ImplML.
- CSR file
- Certificate Request File used in Open Signed Offline as part of the process to obtain a developer certificate.
D
- DC
- Data compatibility, when data used by software is applicable and usable after a SW change in a service.
- DCE
- Distributed Computing Environment.
- Defect
- A software defect usually means that the software does not conform to the explicit or implicit specification.
- Defect fix
- Maintenance effort that aligns the software to the intended specification (explicit or implicit).
- Dependency
- Compile-time dependency, which exists when a component references a programming interface from another component.
- Dependency rule
- Dependent components may be in the same collection, the same package or in other packages in the same or lower layer. A component may not depend on a component in a package in a higher layer.
- DevCert
- Abbreviation for "Developer Certificate". A DevCert is an IMEI-locked code signing certificate (although it can be for up to 1,000 IMEIs). DevCerts are intended for use in development and beta testing before a version of software is ready for final distribution (i.e., before it would pass the Symbian Signed test criteria). DevCerts only required in cases where the necessary capabilitites for the application exceed those available for self-signing (i.e., aren't user-grantable). Developer certificates aren't a practical alternative to self-signing, as they produce an installation warning and the IMEI limitations on DevCerts mean that one would need to collect IMEIs from users in order to create certificates to sign content being sent to them, like themes.
- Directory structure
- The structure of packages, component collections and components files in the source tree. Should follow the architectural model.
- Distribution release
- One meaning for 'software release'. It is a set of files that are distributed from time to time (for example, daily, weekly, fortnightly) to external or internal users, for example, as a downloadable ZIP file. There are three types of distribution release:
- Pre-release
- A preliminary release that has not implemented all intended features and/or has not reached the intended quality level. Future releases are needed to complete the features and/or to fix known defects and/or defects that are anticipated to be discovered by contributors and/or users. Pre-releases allow the earlier user integration and/or testing of those features that have been implemented.
- Completed release
- The first release that has completed all the intended features (as specified) and which has met the intended (ideal, specified) quality level. From the release roadmap point of view, the only significant release is a completed release.
- Maintenance release
- Releases following the completed release that fix defects and may also include 'non-disruptive' new features. A maintenance release has to be able to substitute a completed release without requiring any change to the software into which it integrates.
- DMA
- Direct Memory Access
- Downstream
- An incomplete system definition file (or set of linked system definitions) that is intended to combined with a master.
E
- EABI
- Embedded application binary interface
- EKA2
- EPOC Kernel Architecture 2
- EPL
- Eclipse Public License (see http://www.eclipse.org/legal/epl-v10.html eclipse.org for further information).
- ECOM
- EPOC Component Object Model.
F
- FCL
- Feature code line. A file is actually edited outside the software configuration management (SCM) on the developer’s PC but Symbian Foundation encourages contributors to regularly post work-in-progress to an FCL branch of the master code line (MCL).
- The FCL branch is intended to allow collaborative package development – usually the implementation of one or more features. A successful FCL branch is normally merged back into the MCL.
- Feature
- A new (software) feature is an increment of change to the specification of any software – whether a library or an interactive application. The feature is described from the point of view of the direct user of the software. The new feature can apply to a single package ('package feature') or at the device level to multiple packages ('system feature').
- Feature and Roadmap Council (F&RC)
- The Feature and Roadmap Council invites proposals for contributions from the community and seeks to coordinate new contributions into a unified platform (or tools) roadmap.
- See also: Councils
- Feature flag
- One of the configurability mechanisms to implement an optional feature. In practice, it is a pre-processor definition in a build configuration file. By defining or undefining the flag, the corresponding feature can be enabled or disabled in a device. Each feature flag also has a corresponding constant definition (feature ID) that can be used at runtime to check whether or not the feature is supported in a device.
- FLM
- Function Like Makefile, used by the SBSv2 (RAPTOR)
- Forward compatibility
- Updating a component in such a way that code which works with the new version also works with the original version.
- See also: Backward compatibility
- FTS
- The Foundation Test Suite. Deprecated former name for the Binary Compatibility Suite (BCS) .
- Feature ID
- A constant definition that corresponds to, and uniquely identifies a specific optional software feature. It can be used at runtime (Feature Discovery API) to check whether or not the feature is supported in a particular device. Features are enabled and disabled using feature flags.
- Fixer
- A role in the defect handling process.
- Fragment
- (system definition) A system definition file that contains only layers or lower rank items (i.e. no <systemModel>). This can, but does not need to link to one or more other system definition files. It is expected that this will be linked from a root system definition, but that is not required.
G
- GCC
- GNU Compiler Collection
- GPIO
- General Purpose Input/Output, or Bus Expander, products allow easy serial expansion of I/O through an industry-standard I²C, SMBus™, or SPI™ interface. GPIO products can provide additional control and monitoring when the microcontroller or chipset has insufficient I/O ports, or in systems where serial communication and control from a remote location is advantageous. (Source: www.maxim-ic.com)
- GUI
- Graphical User Interface
- GUID
- Globally Unique Identifier
H
- HAL
- See Hardware Adaptation Layer
- HDR
- Hardware reference platforms
- Hg
- Short name for Mercurial, the source code management system used by Symbian Foundation; see Mercurial_Q&As and Mercurial page on Wikipedia.
- HTI
- provides a communication interface between a PC and a Symbian device, allowing you to remotely control the Symbian OS. The tool helps and enables automated testing of Symbian devices. A user interface version of HTI is included in the RnD Tools package.
- Hardware adaptation
- The software changes required when the hardware changes.
- Hardware adaptation code
- Any code that may have to be changed when the hardware changes.
- Hardware adaptation suite
- All the hardware adaptation code for a particular hardware platform. Consists of user mode (e.g. TSY for baseband adaptation) and kernel mode code (e.g. NAND flash memory media driver).
- Hardware adaptation layer (HAL)
- Normally refers to the layer between the OS and the actual hardware. In practice, it means the same as 'hardware adaptation suite'. The hardware adaptation layer is not actually a simple layer. Graphics and multimedia hardware integration, for example, involves complex frameworks with multiple levels of plugins and helper libraries that are called from the statically or dynamically linked plugins.
- Hardware Reference Platform (HRP)
- A development board comprising an SOC and external chipsets such as displays, Bluetooth, cameras and GPS together with software development tools and reference documentation. Examples include the ZOOM 2 from Texas Instruments , the BeagleBoard and the Zii EGG from ZiiLabs.
See also baseport and BSP (board support package).
I
- IAD
- Independent Application Delivery - a technology enabling applications to be updated without reflashing an entire device.
- IBY
- Include file in OBY.
- ImplML
- Inplementation mechanism language. Used to map ConfML definitions into a products native formats. Examples of ImplML include CRML and GenConfML, (XML-based formats) or custom scripts such as Python.
- Interface
- Programming interfaces for other software to use. Referred also as an API. For example:
- header file describing C++ class and other related declarations
- formats of persistent data
- keys for accessing the data
- communications protocols.
- Data interface
- Data-driven interface, such as the central repository key, the format of a resource file or a SQL schema, message data protocols.
- Plugin interface
- Interface is defined by the calling framework and where the plugin may be implemented as a dynamic or static library.
- Plugin interfaces for hardware adaptation
- Also known as hardware adaptation interfaces or HALs.
- Interface scope
- Package external, package internal, collection internal, component internal
- Interface category
- Term used to divide the package external APIs into public APIs and platform APIs.
- Internationalization (I18N)
- The process of designing software so that it can be localized to various languages and markets easily and efficiently, minimizing engineering changes.
- IMIE
- International Mobile Equipment Identity
- IMS
- IP Multimedia Subsystem, an architectural framework for delivering Internet Protocol (IP) multimedia services.
- IPC
- Inter-process comminication
- ISV
- Independent software vendor
- ISSK
- Interim Symbian software kit. Intended for product developers and is only available to Symbian Foundation members.
J
- JTAG
L
- L2CAP
- is used within the Bluetooth protocol stack. It passes packets to either the Host Controller Interface (HCI) or on a hostless system, directly to the Link Manager.
- Layer
- Layers contain packages with no upward dependency between layers. A package may depend on other packages in the same layer or in any lower layer.
- Application layer
- The application layer contains programs that primarily implement device behavior. This layer provides non-native programming platforms ('runtimes') and includes also non-interactive applications (daemons) that respond to events from other than the device user (e.g. from a PC).
- Middleware layer
- The middleware layer provides higher-level 'generic' APIs that are of interest to programs in the application layer. This layer includes also 'native' UI frameworks. A component qualifies for the middleware layer if it is independent of the hardware platform and its APIs are not used by the OS layer.
- OS layer
- The OS layer provides APIs that abstract the hardware platform (allowing higher layers to be isolated from hardware changes) and also contains lower-level APIs that are not hardware abstractions but that are used within the OS layer (or are likely to be used in the near future).
- Locale
- A locale is a set of data values that vary according to language and geographic region.
- Load Generator (LoadGen)
- Generates load into a Symbian device. You can use it to simulate the behavior and possible problems of a device when put under a heavy load in actual usage scenarios.
- LGPL
- Lesser general public license
M
- M2M
- Mobile to Mobile.
- Managed code line
- Package owners act as change gatekeepers when packages are released to the managed code lines that form the core of the foundation SW processes.
- MFC
- Microsoft Foundation Classes.
- Master
- (system definition) A system definition (or set of linked system definitions) that is complete in the sense that all hierarchical levels are filled in.
- MCL
- Master code line. The MCL is the linear sequence of file revisions that carries on indefinitely while the package continues to be developed or maintained. Files revisions are not admitted to the MCL (usually by merging in an FCL) unless they meet the quality standards required for a release.
- MCP
- Major Contribution Proposal
- MemSpy
- Traces data on a Symbian device. MemSpy traces various data that is useful in analyzing performance issues such as heap fragmentation, memory leaks, or peak memory usage. You can target the tracing at specific threads or the entire device. A user interface version of MemSpy is included in the RnD Tools package.
- Mercruial
- Source code management system used by Symbian Foundation; see Mercurial_Q&As and Mercurial page on Wikipedia.
- MIDP
- Mobile Information Device Profile
- Modularity
- Packages contain cohesive components to reduce dependencies between packages. A human reader can understand the purpose and scope of each package without having to know or examine the others and many platform user needs can be addressed by changing one package.
- MOC
- The Meta-Object Compiler, moc, is the program that handles Qt's C++ extensions.
- MultiROFS
- A ROM image that contains multiple extension ROFS images, for the purposes of faster flashing and configurability. Note that dependencies between theses images must be 'top down'.
- MVC
- Model–view–controller (MVC) is an architectural pattern used in software engineering.
N
- NFC
- Near Field Communication
- NGA
- New Graphics Architecture
- NGMA
- New Graphics and Multimedia Architecture
- NIC
- Network Interface Controller
O
- OBY
- Obey file: a text file that is input to the Symbian SDK ROM-building tool. It describes which files make up the ROM, and how they are laid out.
- Open System Trace
- (OST) transfers trace data. OST is an open, platform-independent trace data transfer solution that is easily integrated into the software development process. OST provides a set of macros to instrument traces to the source code.
P
- PDK
- Product Development Kit
- PDT
- Product Development Toolkit
- Package
- Packages are modular collections of components, owned and maintained by a single organization (although contributed to more widely). The Symbian Foundation codeline comprises approximately 150 packages. The primary principle for organizing components into packages is based on modularity. Packages drive our source tree structure and SW repository (SCM) configuration. (The foundation has a separate software configuration management (SCM) repository for each package.)
- Device package
- Package that provides software for a production device.
- Desktop package
- Package that is primarily run on a desktop (includes PC Suite and desktop-based developer tools).
- Package external API
- Interfaces that can be used by other packages and by external foundation-based software.
- Package internal API
- The interface is used between components in a package, but should not be used outside the package.
- Package owner
- A role in the Symbian Foundation community.
- The package owner:
- Determines policy for the package (roadmap for package, what kinds changes are appropriate, and so on).
- Acts as a change gatekeeper for managed codelines:
- Reviews contributions against all the package criteria required (not a code review)
- Either approves it and makes the change, or declines/defers it and provides the reason
- Participates in the defect-handling process.
- (Note that the package owner may appoint 'committer' delegates to perform some of their responsibilities. Contributors don't need to worry about this detail.)
- Package repository
- The package repository defines the following code lines:
- Performance Monitor (PerfMon)
- Monitors and logs CPU load in a Symbian device, and monitors and logs the consumption of memory (RAM and disk drives) in a Symbian device. You can view the monitoring status either on a numerical display, a graphical representation, or in a small information pop-up that is always active on top of the display.
- Public API
- Public APIs are provided for all purpose development and come with strong backward compatibility promises (BC and SC). Any change likely to break compatibility must be accepted by the Architecture Council. See also API.
- Platform API
- Platform APIs are primarily aimed at device manufacturers, but may be used by any third party. Backwards compatibility is provided on a best-effort basis and changes to Platform APIs do not have to be accepted by the Architecture Council. Changes to Platform APIs are however clearly communicated in PDK and SDK release notes. See also API.
- Platsim
- Platsim is a ARM simulation platform from Nokia. It comprises a lot of third party IP. It provides a model of a particular phone. This allows app, middleware, and os developers a more accurate environment to work in than the emulator. This can help out with certain types of bug fixing and feature development.
- Plugin component
- An atomic set of binaries that exposes a standard interface that is defined outside of the component.
- Presence
- Generally refers to the notion of being able to inform a user that a particular person is "online" and available to be contacted by some medium - often Instant Messaging of some kind.
R
- RAID
- Redundant Arrays of Inexpensive Disks, as named by the inventors, and commonly referred to as RAID, is a technology that supports the integrated use of two or more hard-drives in various configurations, for the purposes of achieving greater performance, reliability through redundancy, and larger disk volume sizes through aggregation.
- RAID 0
- Variant of RAID that provides improved performance and additional storage but no fault tolerance
- RAII
- Resource Acquisition Is Initialization: a design pattern popular in many object oriented languages, which combines the acquisition and release of resources with initialization and uninitialization of objects.
- Rank
- The architectural level of a system model item. A layer has the highest rank, and a component has the lowest. Units do not technically have rank since they are not architectural items, but just a special type of component metadata.
- Raptor
- Project code name for the Symbian build system that supersedes the original bldmake/abld toolchain. Also known as SBSv2.
- RCL
- Release Code Line. Package owners who are prepared to maintain a 'frozen' release would create an RCL branch. An RCL branch is frozen in the sense that it only has file revisions deriving from defect fixes. In other words, the RCL is isolated from file revisions that derive from new features. In practice, this means that, once a new feature has been added to the MCL, the package owner has to apply defect fixes independently to the MCL and RCL revisions (propagating from the RCL to MCL or vice versa). An RCL would normally be maintained for a limited duration.
- Reporter
- A role in the defect-handling process.
- Release Council (RC)
- The Release Council exists to support the reliable delivery of robust platform releases. It acts as a point of coordination for project management and risk mitigation and ensures community-wide transparency regarding development and release plans. It also acts as an escalation point for project-related issues.
- See also: Councils
- RFCOMM
- The Bluetooth protocol RFCOMM is a simple set of transport protocols, made on top of the L2CAP protocol, providing emulated RS-232 serial ports (up to sixty simultaneous connections to a bluetooth device at a time). The protocol is based on the ETSI standard TS 07.10.
- ROFS
- Read-only file system. There are two partitions in a NAND ROM image: the core section (pre-linked and resident in RAM) and the ROFS section (accessed on demand).
- ROFS image
- Part of the composite file system used in Symbian OS. Comprises data (executables) that is copied into RAM at runtime – executables are decompressed and linked at runtime. There are potentially several ROFS images, and these are designated 'primary', 'secondary' etc.
- ROFS overlay
- A ROFS extension images created in order to allow small changes (addition, removal, and modification), at the granularity of a file, to be made to a device without the need to rebuild the whole core image.
- ROM
- Read-only memory
- Root
- (system definition) A system definition file that contains a single <systemModel> and links to one or more other system definition files.
- RTTI
- Runtime type information
- Runtime
- Refers to a 'non-native' programming environment in which the source code or a byte code is interpreted at runtime (or a dynamic runtime compiled by a JIT compiler). Examples are JavaScript (whether run in a browser or independently), Java ME, Flash Lite, Python and Ruby.
S
- S60
- S60 (formerly known as Series 60) is a software platform for mobile devices. It is based on Symbian OS (up to and including Symbian OS v9.4).
- SBSv1
- Symbian Build System version 1 (original toolchain using bldmake, abld etc)
- SBSv2
- Symbian Build System version 2. Also known as Raptor
- Setting
- In the context of configuration policy, 'setting' equates to 'feature'. In the context of ConfML, setting is a parameter given to a feature definition.
- SCM
- Software configuration management
- SC
- Source compatibility. A new release is backward source compatible (SC) when existing sources still build with the new release in the same way that they did with the older release.
- SDK
- A software development kit describes programming interfaces (APIs) in human-readable form (documentation) and machine-readable form (header files and libraries). There are three types of SDK:
- after-market developer (includes public APIs from all the layers)
- device integrator (includes public and platform APIs all the layers)
- hardware integrator (includes public and platform APIs from the OS layer only)
- SDP
- Used to allow devices to discover what services each other support, and what parameters to use to connect to them. For example, when connecting a mobile phone to a bluetooth headset, SDP will be used to determine which bluetooth profiles are supported by the headset (Headset Profile, Hands Free Profile, Advanced Audio Distribution Profile etc) and the protocol multiplexor settings needed to connect to each of them. Each service is identified by a Universally Unique Identifier (UUID), with official services (Bluetooth profiles) assigned a short form UUID (16 bits rather than the full 128)
- SDPR
- Standard device platform release. A release from the Symbian Foundation. Releasing is time-boxed i.e. timing and quality overrule the content.
- SIP
- sf
- The name of the root directory containing source files of the Symbian Foundation build.
- SFDG
- Symbian Foundation development guideline (this document, for example).
- SFL
- Symbian Foundation License. Symbian members may use the SFL to gain access to code that cannot be released under EPL, or to gain additional licensing rights to code that is also available under EPL.
- STIF
- The System Test Integration Framework is a test harness used for testing Symbian non-UI components. It is a toolkit for test case implementation and test case execution. It is used commonly for implementing test cases in separated test modules. A user interface version of STIF is included in the RnD Tools package.
- Software release
- Either 'distribution release' or 'version release'.
- ScreenGrabber
- Captures images and video of the visible screen area in a Symbian device. Captures can be handled with the Media Gallery application or with a PC.
- Source files
- Source files are build-time machine-readable files that are human-readable in principle. Source files are usually read and processed by compilers and other translators at build time. Some source files can be produced by a design tool and, in this case, may not be human-readable in practice (for example, HTML, SVG). Some translators produce intermediate files (called object files in some contexts).
- System On Chip (SOC)
- A single piece of silicon including a Microcontroller (MCU), typically ARM, and a number of other hardware components which connect to external chipsets for GPS, WLAN and power management etc. The components in an SOC typically include System Bus, DMAs, memory controllers, display controllers, MMC controllers, USB hardware interfaces, cameras and more general pourpose interfaces like SPI, GPIOs.
- System test
- Act of testing to cover representative device use cases, discovering 'failure' or reducing device mean time between failure (MTBF). The 'system' in 'system test' is a foundation device platform running on an ARM-based hardware platform.
- SIS
- Symbian installation source
- SNS
- Social Networking Site ( i.e. Facebook , Orkut , Twitter etc )
- Standalone
- (system definition) A system definition file that does not link to any system definitions, and represents the state of a build or device at a specific point in time.
- All paths must also be absolute so that the file is not tied to the file system on which the data lives. All metadata should be embedded, although that is not required.
- This is sometimes also called a 'snapshot'.
- ScreenGrabber
- Captures images and video of the visible screen area in a Symbian device. Captures can be handled with the Media Gallery application or with a PC.
- SW
- Software
- SW asset
- A software-related item of economic value, for example, binary files, documentation and content.
- System model item
- A component, collection, package or layer. Also called architectural item.
- sysdef
- A system definition XML file
- System definition
- The XML file(s) that define(s) a system model. The terms system definition and system model are sometimes used interchangeably.
- System model
- The architectural breakdown of a set of software, including the operating system and supporting parts, such as tools.
T
- Technology domain
- Technology domains are package categories that simplify product planning for the Foundation’s software asset. They can be regarded as a high-level partitioning of technology and market drivers. The domains are as follows:
- Kernel and base, networking, multimedia, UI and graphics, shortlink, location, personal communications, runtimes, and tools
- TDM
- Technology Domain Manager
- Technology Manager
- Target files
- Target files are binary files and run-time machine-readable source files that are integrated into a device. Target files are combined into memory device images by ROM-building tools.
- TEF
- The Test Execution Framework is a test framework similar to STIF, contributed to the Foundation by Nokia.
- TEM
- Template Extension Makefile used by the build toolchain(s). See Introduction to RAPTOR#Template Extension Makefiles
- TLS
- Transport Layer Security (TLS) and its predecessor, Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), are cryptographic protocols that provide security and data integrity for communications over networks such as the Internet. TLS and SSL encrypt the segments of network connections at the Transport Layer end-to-end.
- TSD
- Technical Solution Description
U
- UDA
- User data area (also known as user disk or user area): a drive on a device that contains a user's data as well as additional installed applications. UDA can be an internal drive in a device or removable memory.
- UI Council (UC)
- The User Interface Council invites and reviews descriptions of new user interface elements and develops guidelines to help ensure high quality device user experiences.
- See also: Councils
- Upstream
- (system definition) The system definition(s) with which a downstream system definition expects to be combined.
- UUID
- is an identifier standard used in software construction, standardized by the Open Software Foundation (OSF) as part of the Distributed Computing Environment (DCE).
- UIKit
- Is the UI framework in the IPhoneRuntime, the equivalent of AppKit for traditional OS X apps. Most of the classes are more or less equivalent to their NS- prefixed AppKit counterparts
V
- Variant
- A customized device product
- Variation point
- A control point that can alter the build or content of a system definition.
W
- WSERV
X
- XSP
- External Service Provider - the phonebook application provides a plug-in interface to extend its capabilities by adding extra tabs to access other services.
- XTI
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