Glossary P

packed record	A record that starts on an arbitrary byte boundary; each field starts in the next unused byte. Contrast with naturally aligned record.
pad	The filling of unused positions in a field or character string with dummy data (such as zeros or blanks).
parallel processing	The simultaneous use of more than one processor (CPU) to execute a program.
parameter	Can be either of the following: In general, any quantity of interest in a given situation; often used in place of the term "argument". A Fortran 95/90 named constant.
parent process	A process that initiates and controls another process (child). The parent process defines the environment for the child process. Also, the parent process can suspend or terminate without affecting the child process. See also child process.
parent window	A window that has one or more child windows. See also child window.
pathname	The path from the root directory to a subdirectory or file. See also root.
pipe	A connection that allows one program to get its input directly from the output of another program.
platform	A combination of operating system and hardware that provides a distinct environment in which to use a software product (for example, Windows* 2000 on processors using IA-32 architecture).
pointer	Is one of the following: A Fortran 95/90 pointer A data object that has the POINTER attribute. To be referenced or defined, it must be "pointer-associated" with a target (have storage space associated with it). If the pointer is an array, it must be pointer-associated to have a shape. See also pointer association. An integer pointer A data object that contains the address of its paired variable. This is also called a Cray* pointer.
pointer assignment	The association of a pointer with a target by the execution of a pointer assignment statement or the execution of an assignment statement for a data object of derived type having the pointer as a subobject.
pointer association	The association of storage space to a Fortran 95/90 pointer by means of a target. A pointer is associated with a target after pointer assignment or the valid execution of an ALLOCATE statement.
precision	The number of significant digits in a real number. See also double-precision constant, kind type parameter, and single-precision constant.
primary	The simplest form of an expression. A primary can be any of the following data objects: A constant A constant subobject (parent is a constant) A variable (scalar, structure, array, or pointer; an array cannot be assumed size) An array constructor A structure constructor A function reference An expression in parentheses
primary thread	The initial thread of a process. Also called the main thread or thread 1. See also thread.
procedure	A computation that can be invoked during program execution. It can be a subroutine or function, an internal, external, dummy or module procedure, or a statement function. A subprogram can define more than one procedure if it contains an ENTRY statement. See also subprogram.
procedure interface	The statements that specify the name and characteristics of a procedure, the name and characteristics of each dummy argument, and the generic identifier (if any) by which the procedure can be referenced. The characteristics of a procedure are fixed, but the remainder of the interface can change in different scoping units. If these properties are all known within the scope of the calling program, the procedure interface is explicit; otherwise it is implicit (deduced from its reference and declaration).
process object	A virtual address space, security profile, a set of threads that execute in the address space of the process, and a set of resources visible to all threads executing in the process. Several thread objects can be associated with a single process.
program	A set of instructions that can be compiled and executed by itself. Program blocks contain a declaration and an executable section.
program section	A particular common block or local data area for a particular routine containing equivalence groups.
program unit	The fundamental component of an executable program. A sequence of statements and comment lines. It can be a main program, a module, an external subprogram, or a block data program unit.