Množina: formats
ETYM French or German Cf. Formation.
1. The general appearance of a publication.
2. The organization of information according to preset specifications (usually for computer processing); SYN. formatting, data format, data formatting.
Množina: formats
1. In general, the structure or appearance of a unit of data.
2. The arrangement of data within a document file that typically permits the document to be read or written by a certain application. Many applications can store a file in a more generic format, such as plain ASCII text.
3. The layout of data storage areas (tracks and sectors) on a disk.
4. The order and types of fields in a database.
5. The attributes of a cell in a spreadsheet, such as its being alphabetic or numeric, the number of digits, the use of commas, and the use of currency signs. 6. The specifications for the placement of text on a page or in a paragraph.
1. To determine the arrangement of (data) for storage and display (in computer science).
2. To divide (a disk) into marked sectors so that it may store data; SYN. initialize.
3. To set into a specific format; of printed matter; SYN. arrange.
1. To change the appearance of selected text or the contents of a selected cell in a spreadsheet.
2. To prepare a disk for use by organizing its storage space into a collection of data “compartments,” each of which can be located by the operating system so that data can be sorted and retrieved. When a previously used disk is formatted, any preexisting information on it is lost.