monitor - technical definition

(1) A display screen used to present output from a computer, video camera, VCR or other video generator. The clarity of a CRT monitor is based on video bandwidth, dot pitch, refresh rate and convergence. See CRT, analog monitor and digital monitor.

(2) Software that monitors the progress of activities within a computer system. See computer monitoring.

(3) A device that gathers performance statistics of a running system via direct attachment to the CPU's circuit boards. See also network analyzer.

(4) Software that provides utility and control functions such as setting communications parameters. It typically resides in a ROM chip and contains startup and diagnostic routines.